The Life of an O.F.W.
EAT, SLEEP, WORK, AND WORK
Graduating from university can be both exciting and scary at the same time. For Louie, a 2013 graduate from Southwestern University in Cebu City, it was challenging due to the family pressure to work abroad. In 2017, within a matter of weeks, Louie learned her visa had been approved, and she had a plane ticket purchased for her to find work in Dubai.
“How would I tell my boss and the rest of the team that I was about to leave? But they already knew before I told them that I had a plan to leave eventually.”
This was not the first time she had been down this road. Her family really wanted her to find work abroad, but the first attempt did not end up happening. This time, she asked for advice from two close friends, but the deal was already sealed and she was bound for Dubai. She said goodbye to everything familiar in just a matter of weeks: her job (which she loved), friends, family, and church community.
“This was not the first time she had been down this road. Her family really wanted her to find work abroad, but the first attempt did not end up happening.”
On the surface, this seemed like the perfect opportunity. She had a place to call home and she would be living with relatives, yet she still wasn’t fully prepared for her experience in Dubai. The night before she flew out of Cebu, she frantically packed her belongings. When she arrived with only house clothes, she realized she didn’t plan right. As she began looking for a job, she discovered that living in Dubai was very different than Cebu.
“I even experienced walking in the desert with very thin flats. It was very hot. As I approached the place I needed to go to, there were 300 to 400 people outside the building.”
As the expiration of her visitor visa quickly approached, she was still without work. This left her wondering if Dubai was part of God’s plan for her.
“Every day, I would send out like two hundred job applications. Out of those, only two called me back. I got hired just days—literally two or three days—before my visitor visa expired.”
During her year abroad, Louie faced some of the lowest points in her life. The job she accepted wasn’t the job of her dreams. She quickly settled into the routine of working long hours and trying to do it all. There was so much to be done and so little time. Her job involved so many tasks, and all of them were considered high priority by her boss. At one point when she was leaving for the weekend, her boss asked why she wasn’t taking her work computer home. In a culture where you work, eat, sleep, and work, having a life outside of your job is not the norm.
There were high points—like riding the train for a weekend adventure to see a friend nearby and getting to know a few people—but she was lonely. Even though she lived with family, she was away from the church community in Cebu that she had come to know and love. She tried to meet people and connect to a church in Dubai, but it wasn’t the same as the friends and church family she left behind. During this time, she began to feel physically ill and knew after her one-year contract ended, she needed to return to Cebu.
“Even though there were high points—like riding the train for a weekend adventure to see a friend nearby and getting to know a few people—but she was lonely.”
“Always, always pray! Before you go, have spiritual prayer warriors—like prayer partners—to pray with you. I was really happy to get in touch with you guys when we had that video call. You just don’t know how I felt. I was crying deep inside and longing to speak to people. I was really happy to be able to hear your voices.”
Her time abroad wasn’t exactly what she imagined, but Louie said she will be forever grateful for the experience. When she returned to Cebu, she was reminded of what her place in her church community really was. The experiences Louie had while abroad helped her to see that the Philippines is where God has called her to stay at this point in her life. However, if she never went overseas, she would not have had the experiences she had and seen the things she did. She emphasized how important the whole thing was in helping her become the person she is today.
Writer’s Note: My friend and I were hosting a Bible study in Cebu City while Louie was living abroad. We knew her from before she moved, so I’ll never forget the conversation we had when she reached out to join our Bible study digitally. It seemed like an ordinary night to everyone that attended, but for Louie, it was the support she was looking for. When I interviewed her, she reminded me of how grateful she was that we would take the time to include her from so far away. If you have a friend that’s living or working abroad, you never know how your simple message could encourage them. Take some time—especially during this pandemic—to reach out!