Isang post sa Facebook page ng Home Buddies ang pumukaw sa atensyon ng social media users dahil sa inspiring nitong kuwento kaugnay sa isang ancestral home.
Isang netizen ang nagbahagi ng personal na kuwento kaugnay sa unang larawan na nagpapakita ng dating bahay umano ng angkan ng kaniyang ama na kanilang tinirhan noong paslit pa lamang siya.
Ayon sa ka-Home Buddy na si Bea Rico, iyon ay naitayo pagkatapos ng WW2. Ang bahay ay tinawag dating “pink house” dahil sa kulay rosas nitong pinta. “Built after the world war, this house is where my clan from the father side lived. It was made from narra and was painted in pink. Thus, it was once called a pink house.”
Nagbalik-tanaw siya sa alaalang hatid ng lumang bahay. “I lived there until I turned three. One day I woke up and all of our clothes were packed in a jeepney. We had to move to a different town and lived in a 36sqm apartment. I didn’t know what was happening and as a child, it didn’t matter.”
Kalaunan, nalaman na rin niya ang dahilan kung bakit napilitan silang lisanin ang kanilang tahanan nang musmos pa siya. “Years have passed and the story of why we moved out of the pink house was pass onto me. My father sold the pink house because we did not have anything to eat. He asked the new owner if we could still live there and pay monthly fees. The new owner agreed. Three months later, my family could still not pay the rent. Consequently, we had to move to a place with cheaper rental fees.”
Hindi pa abot ng kanyang kamalayan noon ang tunay na estado ng kanilang pamilya sa usaping pinansyal. Ang alam lamang niya ay naging makulay ang kanyang kabataan. Hindi umano ipinaramdam ng kanilang mga magulang sa kanila kung ano man ang bigat ng kanilang pinagdaanan kaugnay sa kanilang ikabubuhay. Patuloy silang itinaguyod na magkakapatid at tiniyak ang kanilang magandang kinabukasan.
Aniya, “I didn’t know that my family was in financial turmoil. I had fun and colorful childhood. My parents did not make my siblings and I feel how difficult their financial situation was. They struggled and thrive. Nonetheless, they were able to raise three difficult kids and provide them with the best education. The only thing that they asked in return was for all of us to graduate.”
Mahihinuha na goal achieved na ang mag-anak. Nagbunga na ang sipag at tiyaga, ang pagpupunyagi na makapagtapos sa pag-aaral ang mga anak. Nagkaroon ng pag-angat sa buhay dahil sa sama-samang pag-abot sa mga pinapangarap.
Pagpapatuloy ni Bea, “27 years later and two other move outs have passed, my parents were able to buy back the pink house and rebuild it with their dream home.”
Truly inspiring, ‘di ba? Nakabalik sila sa tahanang minahal nila. Nawala man ito sa kanila ay nakatadhana palang ito’y muling mababalik sa kanilang mag-anak!
Sa mga sumunod na larawan sa post ni Bea ay makikita ang kanilang bagong tahanan na pinagtulungan din nilang idisenyo. Aniya, “We are proud to have the interior design by ourselves. Each of us were entitled to our own opinion and we all poured our hearts in contributing to the overall aesthetics.”
Bilang pagtatapos sa kanyang ibinahaging kuwento, sinabi niya na ito ay hindi isang tipikal na ‘from Rags to Riches’ na kuwento. Sa halip, ito ay isang kuwento tungkol sa “love, hope, and perseverance. They have this home at the age of 65 — never early and never late like God’s perfect time.”