On being a Filipino

Written on October 21st, 2005
Today's the birthday celebration of a very dear friend Nena. She's my first Filipina friend here in Finland. When I gave birth to Ria, she spent a couple of days helping me out. Not just because of the baby, but also because Toni and I are in the middle of moving from Kerava to Ikaalinen. I owe her a lot for doing that. And of course, I also thank her better half, Sten, who is a collegue of Tonis back in Manila. They have been very helpful in more ways than one. And now they have their own precious Selena.

I salute people like them, who are always willing to lend a hand. This is the first time I have lived outside the Philippines and I am a bit culture shocked, not by the Finnish people but the Filipino people who lives here. I am saddened by the fact that there really are Pinoys that would put other Pinoys down. I have been a witness to how some Pinoys who lives in Helsinki actually looks down on other Pinoys who lives outside the capital city. I am not saying that they are all like that. But there are a few in existence.

When I first came here, I was pregnant, cold, hungry for Pinoy home cooked meals, friendless, alone, away from family, and very, very lonely. Yes i have Toni and his sister. But its still different. Nena came to Finland almost on my last tri mester. And we didn't even see each other until 4 days after I gave birth. So now that Valerie is in the same position as I was two years ago, its my turn to help her out. I will try to help her ease out her post pregnancy blues, hormonal imbalances, and so on. She gave birth today via CS to a healthy baby girl. And I will see them tom. I want to give back what I got when I was the one suffering, and I will try to give more. Because shes a Filipino, and I am a Filipino.

By the way, we had a very good lunch. It was pumpkin and potato soup. Boil one kilo of cubed pumpkin, and ½ kilo of peeled, cubed potatoes. When soft enough, drain and put them in your blender in batches. Be very careful. Make sure that the lid is open a crack on the side that is not facing you. I use this Braun probe especially made for pureeing food. In a casserole, heat up 2 tbsp. of olive oil. Fry ½ cup of chopped bacon, when crispy, add 1 tbsp. of chopped garlic and ½ cup of chopped onion. Add 1 cup of cubed chicken or 1 cup of ground beef. Saute until the meat is done. Add the potato and pumpkin puree. Add ½ cup of water and bring to a boil on medium heat. Again be very careful because it bubbles up. you don't wanna get burned by a very hot soup. When it boils, turn off the heat and add 1 cup of low fat cream and mix. Add 1 tsp of Italian seasoning, 10 fresh basil leaves (if fresh is not available, then put ½ tsp of dried basil instead), 1 tsp of salt (herbal salt if possible). Sprinkle some fresh gorund black pepper before serving. This is really good with garlic baguette. Healthy and enjoyable.