I just read an article this morning at Manila Standards online. It says in the headlines that 34% of families "food poor" and rate declining since June of 2006.
We all know that this country is developing. Poverty is present everywhere you look. The terms "poor and poverty" are sometimes even casually used in modern Makati wherein educated, supposed financially independent professionals, work and reside. But sometimes, even I occasionally use the term "budget meals, tipid meals, PG" and other different kinds of demoralizing terms to describe the personal poverty I am experiencing. But yes, I am guilty of using these terms without actually considering that these are just paltry representations of what other unfortunate people have. The usual term na "Wala akong pera" "Naghihirap na ako, Tagtuyot" for me and the majority who have appropriate jobs are just results of...most of often than not lack of proper budgeting or lack to budget implementation as my mom would say. It's easy to see where one can draw a line here which end up just your social life / ego getting affected.
But this particular news made me reflect on my/family's standard of living when it comes to food. According to the survey 34% of Filipino Families consider themselves "poor" in terms of food. The survey also showed that 34% consider themselves "not poor" in terms of food, while 32% of Filipino families put themselves on the "food borderline" or "in between."
According to the SWS survey, "self rated poverty has been on a collective downward trend since June of 2006, reaching 37% in June 2007 before bouncing to 43% in September of 2007. The latest record was on December, which hit to 34%, the record low since June 2004. Amongst the three major islands, Mindanao's majority dragged the percentage followed by the Luzon Counterparts. Visayas had only minimal to no=change.
The survey was conducted by asking household heads to rate their families on the three categories (poor/not poor/in the middle) based on the type of food that they eat.
Despite the inflation, accessibility of resources, a declining poverty threshold, "despite the rising cost of living, means that households are lowering their standards, or they are tight-belting."
As Lelaina Pierce's mom, in the film Reality Bites said "Times are hard, sometimes you're just gonna have to swallow your pride." Pride...Pride chicken!?
It's quite difficult when the changes one has to make go beyond the normal adjustments of entertainment and other activities. It's already hard trying to put your weekend shopping money to rent, to rising bills, to food, but does one have to suffer lowering the standards of food in order to live? That is a sad sad thought and very unfortunate thing to happen to any person. It couldn't get any lower than that. It's an indication that you've somehow drained of strategies to avoid the inevitable, which is tight belting on the basic thing that nourishes people physically and psychologically.
I remember, being in love with grocery shopping, a place where I successfully developed my innate trait to be a nuisance to my mother, I've always been attentive to the food that my mom buys. I know my family's specification, and I know our brands. Hence we have a certain standard to uphold, a standard that is based on our chosen food for taste and comfort. But as I grew, and as time began to change, the amount of grocery items more or less did not change, but the end total amount of every trip to the cash register right now would make my mother faint if she was to see it 3-5 years ago.
She had to do a little sacrificing here and there, subtle sacrifices. She had to take out the imported twinkies. She had to take out pounds of bacon. She even tried to experiment switching from Purefoods to Argentina (Which was a totally big mistake, and immediately corrected). We had to adjust to changes as expenses are ballooning for different purposes like medicine, electricity, travel, addition to the family etc. Just like any company, we had an early concept of budgeting.
Naturally my mom is a thrifty person, hence she's the only one who can stick up to food budgeting; and any sale or discount she could find, she'll have to acquire in an instant. But standards make everything all so human. If you ask if certain standards are important, in some circumstance like food, security and health it is important. Standards also make us unique from anyone else, it's a matter of expression. It's a matter of preference, that's why choices are available to humans.
But how poor is poor when we cannot even keep our own standards with our food? A wealthy lifestyle can be easily identified and remedied, but how does one feel when standards in food are compromised? I think when standards of food are compromised, the basic sustenance and the only natural, acceptable luxury known to man, is lowered then it's just totally depressing. It is the lowering of standards at the lowest possible sphere. It is the moment when one has exhausted all possible efforts to uplift ones life that even compromising your basic comfort, which is food, is entertained. It's a sad thought, but a fact of life. Thinking of the things I would sacrifice, I have to admit, I got so many. I could even list a couple of things I would have to sell when I'm at the poverty point, but I just cannot bear the thought of lowering my standards to food. It would be, for me, the lowest of the low. And it would be like surrendering to the times of increased hardships and more suffocating tight-belting.
The past reminds us, through the lives of war and famine, that standards in food and basic needs were close to non-existent. Present promotes standards and challenges for people to uphold them. The future remains a mystery and a great hope in the shadows that no one should be able to loose the power to choose and submit the standards to the fangs of survival.
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