Remember when you get hurt if you walk barefoot on rocks, sand or on pavements under the sun? Remember when you see ordinary people walking without slippers like its normal? Or when you see farmers trudge their feet on mud grounds before sunlight until after sunset without ever complaining? You are probably too busy to wonder how they do it but we are all witnesses. We see them everyday and we have grown accustomed with it.
The Barefoot Lady
It broke my heart to see an old lady in her mid seventies wearing nothing on her feet during one of the field simulations that DSWD Region 2 did in preparation for the 2nd Round of Family Assessment or Listahanan. You can see her labor as she walked on uneven ground. Every step was calculated, slow, arduous and unbearably painful. Why does she need to experience this? If only I was rich that time. If only I was powerful enough to change her condition.
When she finally reached the doorsteps, her radiant smile greeted us. It was AMAZING. How can she probably smile with all the things she is going through? You know what I realized? She saw HOPE in us. Perhaps finally, after decades of painful struggles help is coming her way. It puts pressure on people working for DSWD Region 2 to deliver. But at the same time it is a gratifying type of pressure because if you succeed, you know that the needy will finally get assistance. They will finally get the help that they deserve.
Hope Restored
We can only do so much as individuals. We help someone in need and then you turn to another direction and a lot more beg for help. You turn to your resources and realize that it is not enough to help all of them.
We need a beacon of hope, something that the needy people from Region 2 can look up to. That’s where DSWD Region 2’s version of Listahanan comes in. The Listahanan or the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR) is an information management system that identifies who and where the poor are in the country. The system makes available to national government agencies and other social protection stakeholders a database of poor families as reference in identifying potential beneficiaries of social protection programs.
Now, all of a sudden, there is a reason to hope again. Just when the poor people of the region think that they are down and out, they now have a chance to be lifted up again.
With the financial assistance that will be distributed after Listahanan identifies the poorest of the poor, they can have the leeway to buy basic necessities. No need to take on the beating by walking, running and working barefoot anymore. They can now have a remedy for their aching feet.
Saving the World, One Feet at a Time
It all starts with their feet. It takes a pair of slippers for them to stand again. It takes a pair of slippers so they can learn to walk again. It takes a pair of slippers so they can start running again. It takes a pair of slippers for them to start chasing their dreams again.
Jesus said that when we lend, we should not lend to people who can pay you back because what good would that bring? When they pay for what you gave, doesn’t that cancel the good act that you did? Jesus said even tax collectors who are considered sinners lend to the poor. He teaches us that we should lend to people who cannot pay us back because that is where real goodness comes in. We should help without expecting something in return. Listahanan works that way. It pinpoints the poor people that will benefit from the financial aid without expecting anything in return. It helps because it can and it has the resources to assist poor people.
Dream all you can. It is free and it is something that no one can take away from you. Believe that social workers are doing their best to identify where the poor are. It is never too late to foster change.
Listahanan will usher the help they need, one foot at a time. A little less foot scarred by the earth, a little less reason to feel hopeless. What difference does a pair of ‘tsinelas’ make? A LOT it seems. ### By CHESTER CARLO M. TRINIDAD, Listahanan Information Officer