Saturday, December 10, 2005

The other side of Christmas

PHILSTAR.COM 12/11/05 - A young boy sleeps on his mother’s lap as she pleads for some loose change as ‘pamasko’ from passersby on Session Road, Baguio City’s main thoroughfare. Photo by ANDY ZAPATA JR.

I saw this picture at the website of the Philippine Star (www.philstar.com) today it really struck me how on one side we merrily celebrate Christmas and on the other hand how a lot of us are barely getting by with what life has offered them.

Every Christmas, we see many mother-child teams roaming the busy city streets asking for 'pamasko' (Christmas gift, from the word Pasko, meaning Christmas). In the hope that people will be generous because of the Christmas season, mothers would actually bring their children as young as a few months old to the cities begging for money and food. Could we blame them for bringing their children along? Are they being exploited?

Honestly, I don't know. Do they deserve it? NO.






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