Learning to be a better wife and mother

 

Nothing could have prepared Sheryll Estipona for starting her own family.

At a young age of 20, she married Mark Gil and settled in Brgy. Bagupaye in Mulanay, Quezon Province. Now at 28, she has three children age eight, three and one who they work hard for to support daily.

The family is a beneficiary of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program and Sheryll is grateful not just for the cash grants they are receiving from the program but how it helped a young mother and wife like her to deal successfully with married life.

 

A better wife and mother

Sheryll works as a beautician and also helps her husband as a vegetable dealer. For a young couple like them, who both did not finish college, life is undoubtedly hard especially supporting their children’s needs.

More than the financial burden, however, the couple also struggled to keep their relationship strong being both young at the time they started their family.

Sheryll acknowledges how her attendance to the monthly Family Development Sessions (FDS) helped her deal with life better.

The FDS is a monthly gathering of parent-beneficiaries and is a venue for teaching various family development topics such as improving marital relationships, understanding the rights of children and proper financial management among others. Attendance of parent-grantees to the FDS is monitored since it is one of the co-responsibilities of beneficiaries besides 85 percent monthly class attendance and monthly preventive health checkups of children.

“Sa FDS ko natutunan kung paano maging matatag sa kahit na anong hamon sa buhay. Kahit mahirap ang buhay namin, kaya naming pagtagumpayan,” she shared.

Through hard work, Sheryll and her husband dreams that one day, their children will have a more comfortable life and a better future.

“Dito rin nadagdagan ang aking kaalaman sa pagpapalaki sa aking mga anak at kung paano i-handle ang buhay may asawa. Binigyan nito ng kaliwanagan ang aking pag-iisip upang makapag-adjust sa lahat ng hamon ng pag-uugali ng aking asawa,” she added.

She also noted how she learned the importance of properly communicating with her husband all the time. Through having an open communication with Mark Gil today, there are lesser misunderstandings between them and so their relationship became smoother. Hence, their life is happier and they can both concentrate on being good parents to their children.

 

Fulfilling their needs and dreams

It is also through the program that Sheryll found fulfillment in her role as a parent to her three children.

According to her, the education of her two children is ensured from the cash grants they receive from the program. As a mother, she is glad that with keeping her children in school, they become equipped with the right knowledge and skills to improve their lives in the future. Further, their health is given priority.

“Dahil umiinon na sila ng vitamins araw-araw ay nakakaligtas na sila sa mga sakit. Nakakakain na rin sila ng masusustansyang pagkain,” she shared.

Since they worry little about spending on the needs of their children, the family can now allot their income for their other needs. They are even able to save some from their income to secure their children’s future.

“Nagpapasalamat ako sa programa dahil sa mga pagtuturo sa amin, hinahanda ninyo kaming malampasan ang kahirapan ng buhay. Malaki ang naitulong nito sa akin bilang isang batang magulang,” said Sheryll.

From a young wife and mother who used to be clueless on the life she entered, Sheryll is now a picture of a woman who is holding on to her family and leading them to a direction she is certain is for the best of every one of them. With the learning she acquired as part of the Pantawid Pamilya program, she is optimistic that as a wife and a mother, she can be the light to guide her family into a better future.***with reports from YBLopez UPLB