I don't have kids but I grew up with an OFW dad.
If I did have children, I would encourage them to go where their heart leads them. When I was 16, I got admitted to UP Diliman Pre-law and wanted to take archeology as my minor then switch over. I've always read about Egypt and Knossos and I've always wanted to go. My father told me that if I ever wanted a husband, kids and a family, my life as an archeologist would not work. He made me weigh it on my own, the important things that I really wanted to have further down in life. So I abandoned the notion and took Pre-law.
A few years later, I found myself on my last year of Accounting at HNU. I asked my parents if I could take French and Japanese classes for the summer since it was offered. They asked me why and I said, well, after I graduate, I'd like to become a flight attendant for KLM or Cathay and take my MBA online, or do distance learning. I've always wanted to travel and see...well...Egypt, Greece and Rome. So my father, who has traveled the world in his 20 some years of being a Seaman told me that if I pursued this path, I will forget time and before I know it, I've seen the places I've wanted to see but grow old without a husband or kids.
I dwelled on this, but took the classes anyway. He gave me a choice and gave me the money to study.
A while later, through luck or destiny, I found myself married to a dapper young man and moved to a new country. Two years later my move, my father got sick, lost his income and now has solely to rely on my mother. Sometimes, with a little help from me. Not all the time, but I'm sure all the sugar free supplies I send in the balikbayan boxes go a long way, specially glucerna.
Had my father discouraged me about going abroad, I probably wouldn't have worked and studied so hard when I was young. If he just gave me a subscription to National Geographic and then told me to stay put, I don't know if I would have had the drive or still be sitting in Bohol and reading books.
I probably wouldn't have aimed for science high school and probably wouldn't have studied so hard to graduate near the top of my class because I didn't aim for UP or ADMU or LSU. Its all a domino effect. Maybe it works for some kids, maybe not for others. In my case, I wanted to be in a good school, so I can have the background to go where I want to go and do what I want to do.
If Papa had said, stay pud and find a way to make a life here in the Philippines...well, Lord knows how hard our lives would've been after he got sick. Or if he would still be alive, seeing that sometimes, Glucerna and Ensure is all he could eat/drink. If I was still there, I certainly could not afford Glucerna, or sugar free cookies or sugar free chocolates...I know some are just creature comforts but it sure makes life so much bearable for someone who's partially blind, diabetic and needs assistance 24/7.
I sure miss Papa...
And you know , there is a reason for the things we do, and special circumstances like these always reminds of the necessity in our decisions in life. I am happy to read that you are doing good and that your father, whom worked abroad to support his children, is now being cared for by his wife and children.
Everything is a cycle, Alice. As our parents care for us, it is also expected that we, too, care for them and support them when the time does come. God Bless You!
PS.