Once a Helper

A helper usually pertains to domestic ones. The one people have at their homes to work for them mainly with household chores. Sometimes it's not only with houseworks but anything their boss asked them to do.

Helpers also were the ones people pay to work for them in shops and or in construction sites. It is anyone hired to work out of office to make work loads lighter..

This article was inspired by jheanette's article about their helpers. And I thought of writing mine, too. We don't have a helper but I once experienced being one myself. However, my father used to call or hire helpers on our shop before. Basically, to help him with projects he was able to win in biddings for school furnishings especially with college armcahirs, office tables, desks and chairs. Sometimes for other offices and government establishments. And these projects need to be met at a certain time. Five hundred armchairs for a month, for example that's why we had to help and the need for additional helpers preferably those who knew furniture making.

My father was a very strict man, a meticulous carpenter that he is. He checks every item for twisted nails that came out of the wood, the way it was smoothened that no part should be rough to touch. No matter how strict and meticulous he is when it comes to his handcrafts, he made sure that his helpers were well fed. Treat them nicely because we know that when harshly treated, they would leave no matter how they needed a job.

I experienced being a house helper right after I graduated from highschool and that was summer vacation. I was taking up computer literacy every Saturday at a University in San Carlos, Pangasinan. It was an hour ride from my sister's residence but forty five minutes from town where I worked as a helper.

My sister accompanied me to the house where I'm going to work and I started right away after we arrived and fixed my things to a room they showed me.

They were nice folks, a retired seaman at his 80's and his wife who was 10 years younger than him. My work included cleaning the house, doing the laundry, washing the dishes, buying goods at the marketplace but I told them that I won't touch the kitchen. And that was no cooking for me, I am not confident with my cooking though I have learned to cook from my brother-in-law who was a Pangasinense native.

The house was a huge, two-storey building. One part was rented by Tambunting pawnshop while another one was Dunkin' Donut. The center part was their xerox copy shop and a space for photoshoot. Another room was for the rush ID shop which is managed by one of their sons located at the back part of Dunkin Donut. A hallway separated these rooms from the xerox copy shop and the pawnshop. It led to a very wide room which is the living room, kitchen and dining room. The hallway, extended to the laundry space which has a poso and a water tank. Their backyard was where their machine shop was located, a garage for their dump trucks which one of their sons used for his aggragates or quarrying business.

The second floor was also a living room, a kitchen which is not being used, two bathrooms. While one door led to the old couple's room. It was very huge with two beds, and was heavily carpeted, they have china pots on side tables and anything you wanted to picture at a wealthy man's room while on the sides were built-in cabinets. It has it's comfort room an adjacent door led to the old ladies own room. A door led to to the porch where flowers are.

There's also a hallway that led to five more bed rooms and the stairs up the third floor where there's a big nipa house- the one they were selling.

The old couple had three children, the two sons I mentioned earlier and a girl who was four or five years older than me. She has a computer shop she's managing at another building. She barely smiles, you can tell she's a snob because she never talked to me. She doesn't like her things to be touch and even her clothes to be laundered, her nieces told me to never touch it. Because she does it herseld and never used the washing machine, she basically handwash her clothes.

They were all nice, even their grandchildren who are younger than me respected me. The two sons had their own family. The one who's managing the photo shop had three. Two with his wife whoo's abroad and one with his mistress he is living with. They have their own house. The other son has also two children, he's wife also was an OFW. Sometimes their children helped with the laundry. It's because the mistress of the other son is trying to teach them to work independently.

However, my food was being measured that sometimes I was like shaking of hunger. The work load is heavy for a sixteen year old me. Their last helper ran away with her boyfriend some months ago. You can imagine the dust that accumulated in every corner and in every shelf. The laundry which were not done for a long time. Well they don't mind washing them because they have lots of clothes to wear. The blankets and bed covers were also piled up. The thick curtains at the second floor which needs to be change and the couch covers and throw pillowcases.

I was able to do it all gradually in one week. Manage my time for the laundry, mopping the tiled floor, cleaning every room which was thick of dust, watering the flowers. The old man told me that their last helper was not able to do what I did. She's more on the kitchen, cooking their meals and clean downstairs from time to time, she only wash clothes when told.

After the work load became a little lighter, my lady boss took me at the marketplace so that I may know her suki and where to buy goods then to the convenient store where they buy their groceries.

I was also taught to operate the xerox machines because it was also a busy place. Then the daughter of the one who's managing the photo shop started to teach me with adobe photoshop which they used in the ID production.

I became an ultimate all-around helper. That at night, the moment my back touched the mattress I am already snoring. One time my sister dropped to visit me when she went to the marketplace. She immediately asked questions which made me wonder. Questions like am I eating right, am I sleeping right. It was because I loose a lot of weight, she can see the tiredness in my eyes and I have gained eyebags too (am not aware of it). She also saw me washing the carpets and pumping water at the poso which I used to wash the laundry. Yes there's a water tank and a hose but they told me to pump water for washing clothes. She said that carpets should be vacuumed and not washed because how can I carry the wet carpet to dry at the roof top. Well,they don't have a vacuum cleaner. She was a little bit furious. But I didn't like to leave because the old couple were looking for my substitute so that I will took over the computer shop which they said will be left by their daughter to study again in college. She finished up a degree but would like to study another one and there's no one to look after the computer shop because it's nearing enrollment and their grandchildren would be back to school, too.

I would like to learn some skill too with the computer shop that's why I didn't like to leave when my sister tried to talked me out. That's why my mind was not set to enter college that time.

After a week, my father came unexpectedly with his car- its an owner type jeep just a bit bigger. My bosses were astonished, they thought we were that very very poor based on how they talked to me and described the life in the mountains. They thought my parents can't afford to send me to school. Well, I was the shy type and didn't bother to explain to them how Igorots live.

There and then, he told me to pack my things and go home with him. Well, I really don't want to but that's my father already talking. He just told my bosses that I need to go home because enrollment in college is ongoing. There's no way, I need to stay and that they're sending me to school.

Well, the only thing I can tell was that be nice with helpers. Feed them well so that they may not faint at the middle of their work.. Respect them also and give them consideration because they're also human beings deserving such treatment. There's no need to be harsh on them because without them, your house would be a mess. Furthermore, everyone even you is also working.

05-14-21

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