BERNADITH BERNADITH BERNADITH

De La Cruz De La Cruz De La Cruz

A Nipa hut (small house made of bamboo). Do you think it is strong? Do you think it is enough to protect and shelter a family?

My father is a carpenter. He is good at it. That’s his craft. He built houses in our place. Nice and strong-wall houses. People trust him to do that because of course, they saw his ability to do so People felt secured upon hiring him to do the job Until today, my father still, within his 68 years of existence, continuously being hired to build houses His kindness, genuineness, loyalty, down to earth personality gained trust from people who know him better and also from people afar who heard his story.

Alberto B. De La Cruz is not a perfect father and husband. He hasn’t gained any professional degree. He has a lot of flaws you can not imagine. His knowledge is not from secular standard but from daily experiences in life. The pressure of being in the lowest class in the society due to poverty and illiteracy, mocked, degraded, affects his way of thinking. Honestly, he can be brutally bad, an effect from consuming too much alcoholic drinks and smoking cigarettes The only two vices that stresses out the family The family struggles financially, emotionally, even spiritually My mother is a battered wife for how many years but salute to her, she is a tough woman, indeed a real true lamp that shines and gives light to us. Inside the Nipa Hut is the literal “survival of the fittest” mode. His addiction to alcohol and smoking cigarettes not only creates psychological problems but ruined our trust and security and even our respect. To make the story short, we are all doomed. Until I got my own family, got pregnant after I graduated in college to a wonderful daughter. Learned a lot from life under pressure. Supported the family as an eldest (Filipino culture), the breadwinner Strive hard to survive and put my family first above all else second to God Then my father took a U-Turn from the road of life All of a sudden, positivity resides in our Nipa Hut and that was a great miracle “To God nothing is impossible if we trust and obey”. He finally chooses to be free from alcohol and smoking. Though from time to time (occasionally) he still drinks a few shots. Gaining strength from each other.

Though we can’t avoid negativities that hinders success but we managed to fulfill our goals as a family. Within our home resides the YIN and YANG energy that our family only understands, creates balance.

Now you see I can say, my father without knowing, build a wall of trust and security within the family We started to gain our trust to him once more My father became the perfect head and example, a role model out from his own imperfections

And I proved to myself, 43 years of my life, that everything in this world tend to change Either change to become better and be the best versions of ourselves or become the worst person and it all depends to our own choices. Hold on! Ha! Ha! Ha! You’ve learned my fathers’ unacceptable manners. But wait! He is the kindest, genuine person I’ve ever known, not because he’s my father but I’m talking as an ordinary person not related to his blood. Try him…he can even give you his last grains of rice if you will go to him asking for help. The most helpful person I’ve ever known without asking for any return Sincere and loyal If I were given a chance in this world to choose a father, I will still choose my “Tatay Bert” from all choices given to be my father His way of motivating us to reach our goals in life in his own way might be different from the given social norm but I realized, he’s got the point, it might be harsh to some but it creates a fortification inside our hearts nobody can destroy. His legacy lives within me, my mindset, my personality. I am the proudest daughter of the third-grade man who loves me dearly, loves my mother genuinely, loves my siblings. He is the living testament of the Bible verse