“Go to the people. Live among them. Love them. Learn from them. Serve them. Plan with them. Start with what they know. Build on what they have. And when the best leaders leave, the people will say: we have done it ourselves.” -Lao Tsu

The inspiring words of an early Taoist social worker (well, no, he probably wouldn’t have identified himself that way) provoke an image of Pulang Lupa to this US social worker from Vermont visiting Palawan this past December and early January.

Pulang Lupa is an eye opener, and yet much is familiar to me as a social worker. Thatched huts with rattan walls, no inside plumbing, tropical warmth, painfully thin children, few with shoes all seemed almost exotic. But the running, laughing, poverty, ill fitting clothing, mothers chatting, smiling, a few distant fathers, all seemed universal. Susan introduced me to some of the women who immediately wanted to know who was older, where I came from. One accused me of laughing like Susan! I felt very large and very white. I went to see the children’s classes, organized, fun, with ROH’s engaging teachers leading three groups of children in separate stations, periodically shifting like a US high school at the sound of a bell. Most of the children were bright looking and enthusiastic. A few have clear delays, teetering, leaden-eyed faces, looking too solemn. Their caretakers help them join in; one is reminded of the “it takes a village to raise a child” notion with so many women tending their own and others’ children too.

The reproductive education courses for the women were completed some time ago. Now the ROH staffers want to know how much knowledge the women have retained. The staff debate how to measure such private matters as attitudes about child bearing, responsibility, hopes for their families and hopes for their own futures. How does one gauge what is beyond information, and what translates to health and well being?

On my second day at Pulang Lupa, I felt more comfortable, as if I knew some of the women a bit, could see who was a leader, who was quiet, who was especially concerned about their children, who was especially relaxed about their children. The social work students from Western Philippines University led the women in a meeting that has activities and offices. They participated enthusiastically and with apparent pleasure. A little later I marveled at the skill of Josh, the ROH nurse, who gently, patiently, removed a large very dark buildup of dirt, grime and who knows what else from the ear of a small child who was both howling with discomfort and absolutely able to sit still through the ordeal. Concerned mothers gathered around Josh doing her work and finally smiled supportively. Another woman had her blood pressure taken, as she felt ill. Still another, mother of the child with the ear problem, received an injection of contraceptive medication. They’re all so comfortable with Josh; they trust both her skills and her intentions.

In between the two Pulang Lupa days we went to visit Little Tondo, possibly the next area to work in. I was amazed to look up and see several women carrying babies coming down the path in order to be interviewed by Shirene and Josh! I’m not sure how much they knew about ROH, but they wanted to find out. Susan and I were received graciously into a multigenerational household where the Lolo was carrying a newborn baby. The Lola was squatting (I marveled at her positioning propped up by a wall but without a seat) shelling cashews. It looked tedious and hard on the hands (not to mention the thighs). She smiled and chatted and told us she was 52 years old. She was beautiful but had terrible teeth. Another generation older than she, a more senior Lola, worked in another room. I know I’ll remember that crouch every time I open a can of cashews in the US.

We walked around a bit, circular paths, chickens, a few pigs, several stray dogs and puppies, and a tiny kitten crossed our path. A house with no plumbing had a large TV screen. Some had radios that worked. We walked to the inlet area where they sometimes get fish and talked to a young man who was open and articulate, used some English words like “discrimination” and told us his tribe, who are native to Palawan, and typically excluded from mainstream life, really needed education above all else. His son and another boy, about 11 probably, gallantly held out their hands to help us cross wet places on small logs that required some sense of balance. Gentlemen in every sense.

Social workers like to think they listen and are always curious. They look for what is different in peoples’ needs and also for what is common to us all. It isn’t hard to see the common dimensions of families and children in Pulang Lupa and Little Tondo. Roots of Health will continue to find the distinctive dimension of needs for reproductive health and education and the overall well being of children and families. What an adventure!