The More, the Merrier

The more, the merrier—this widely known phrase is often metaphorically reflecting that the more physical bonding a specific group has, the merrier the feeling each one celebrates. Everybody wants to have fun with friends, classmates, and most especially with family members. Many consider this to be a pro because of the priceless joy it brings to quite a number of members, but sadly, there will always be cons.

Maria Helen Pedrosa and Willie Pedrosa were love birds who fell in love when they were still young. Maria was 18, and Willie was 19. Because of the strong love between both, they decided to live together in 1986, and eventually got married on December 22, 1989.

Before getting married, the couple already had two children, one boy and one girl. Their eldest was born in 1987 followed by their second child in 1988. They lived as a normal and happy family, but because the expenses kept growing, the couple decided to work harder to save the family.

Maria worked in a printing press and was involved in buying and selling. On the other hand, Willie was a construction worker. Because of the inconsistent income, they had to transfer from one place to another, budgeting the money they had on hand. The Pedrosa family had no permanent home way back then. It was a tough road for the couple because there were times when their income cannot suffice the need of the family, but one thing that the couple ensured was that everybody could eat three times a day.

Maria considered all her children as blessings. Because of the unending perseverance of the couple, they finally had a permanent home in 1989. It was a small house, but Maria made sure it was a happy home.

In 1992, Maria gave birth to a baby girl, and followed by another baby girl in 1993. With many mouths to feed, Maria and Willie were not discouraged instead it gave them strength to keep moving forward. And for the fifth time around, Maria gave birth to their youngest child in 2003. Maria admitted how hard life was because there were many of them, but she never did regret having five kids. She was even thankful to have a big family because they are very happy despite of the challenges.

Maria and Willie truly did not fall short of their duties as parents. Two of their children graduated in college, while two now have their own families. Their youngest is still in school and is fully supported by the couple. They are happy to see the fruits of their labor. All their children are so proud and forever thankful of their parents from all the hard work, suffering, and patience they had to endure to keep the family afloat.

In 2015, Maria joined Center for Agriculture & Rural Development, Inc. (A Microfinance NGO), hoping she will be given financial assistance as she continues to deal with life’s struggles. Maria joined on February 20, 2015 and is still an active member of CARD, Inc. up to now.

“I am so grateful to be a CARD, Inc. client. Before, I had borrowed money from other people in order to finance our daily expenses, but now here is the organization that I considered a friend because it allowed me to support my family financially. Our daily expenses and the continuous construction of our house are some of the benefits our family enjoys. Also, we are happy that CARD insures us,” Maria mentioned.

Maria left an inspiring advice— “Yes, it does not sound easy to have a lot of mouths to feed, knowing how limited our income was and is, but never ever fail to look on the brighter side out of life struggles. It always works that way. It’s up to you on how you change it.”