I met the most eloquent, energetic, and lovable 11 year old girl the other day. Her name is Joy. She speaks almost perfect English, and could even keep up with our sarcasm. Then I found out that she spoke some French, and German too. I met her on the beach, and she was playing a game in the sand with the other kids. Maybe that is why I noticed her and was so absorbed by her; she was playing on the beach, with the boys and maybe one or two other girls.
I always see Filipino boys playing on the beach, in the river, in town, playing sports etc., but the girls are always casually absent. I asked Zach, Lars and Monica’s son, where all the girls were and why they weren’t out on the beach on a hot Saturday afternoon. He said that they usually just stay home, complacently, clean, and take care of their younger siblings during the day. If they are not doing that, they just are not allowed to leave their homes because their mothers are afraid that they will get into trouble.
The girls do not play sports- not because they are not allowed or because they are not athletic, but because there are simply no programs for girls sports. If the girls play sports with the boys, they are called Tomboys-which is not a good thing for Filipina girl to be called, because it means she is gay, which is so frustrating to think about. We try to explain to the people here that at home, tons of girls play sports and it does not mean that they are gay...it means that they are girls who like sports.
It makes me sad, though, to think about Joy. She is an extremely bright girl, on her way to speaking 4 languages. But she will probably wind up maybe going to high school, and working as a masseuse or sari sari shop owner for the rest of her life. Not that many women are not very happy doing those jobs. But for Joy to only have a miniscule chance of continuing her education in college or beyond, or traveling to Europe like she dreams of, is disheartening for me.
