Meet Two Village Families

 
This issue, we’ve upped the ante and are featuring two of our fantastic Village families!
 
 

Q&A with Kristine and Joel M., Parents of Harmonious Humu Jacques and pre-schoolers Karylle and Korynne

Where were you each born? Where did you each grow up?
I was born and raised in Manila then moved to Santa Rosa, Laguna (south of Manila) after graduating from high school, while Joel was born and raised in Santa Rosa, Laguna. We were neighbors back then.

When did your family move to the United States? To California?
Joel moved to Virginia the year of 2004 and I followed in 2005. Both of us moved to California in 2005.

Why did you move?
Joel moved to Virginia because of his mom. After college, I moved to Virginia with Joel, we got married, and after a few months, we both moved to California.

What are some of the major differences in living here versus your original home?
Living in the Philippines was much more relaxed. People are laid back, they like to party, eat, and they know how to have fun. Here in the U.S., people are very hardworking. Average people have more than one job, pay a lot of taxes and still do chores at home.

Though it rains a lot in the Philippines, the weather is really hot and humid. There are only two seasons, the hot and rainy seasons, while we have four in the U.S.

What do you like about living here?
We love the lifestyle here in the U.S. We became very independent. We’ve raised 3 of our children, (Jacques, a current 5th grader, and Karylle, and Korynne, 3-year old preschoolers) on our own. We didn’t need to hire a sitter and just worked our schedule around despite our hectic work schedules and that our families were back in the Philippines. When the twins were born, our families frequently visited to help us out.

We like the advanced technology here and it has helped us with a lot of things. It makes our lives easier, and we became more efficient and productive.

We found a great community that helped us adjust and part of it is Village School. We love the culture and the warm acceptance of each of the families.

What do you miss?
We miss our families back home. All our families are there. Our childhood friends, relatives and neighbors. The food is great in the Philippines, especially during big occasions. Christmas is the biggest holiday there and we try to go home every other year.

We have spectacular islands there. It is amazing that we have a lot of them. We miss going to the beach in warm weather.

How do you keep traditions and culture from home a part of life for your children?
One of the major things is that we let our children practice our religion. We are Catholics and our family attends Sunday mass regularly.

Home-cooked Filipino dishes are always on the table and rice is a staple. We speak Tagalog at home though the kids respond to us in English.

How did you pick Village?
We moved in Campbell in the year 2010 and started searching around for great schools. We were lucky to have been picked 3 weeks before the school started. From then, we’ve loved Village!

What is the school system like in your hometown?
Both Joel and I went to Catholic private schools. Catholic schools are stricter. We have strict uniform policies, we have at least 7 subjects a day and we do a lot of homework daily. Our grading system is in percentage. At that time, we only have until 6th grade in elementary and right after you go to 4 years of high school. So pretty much, you are done schooling on a 4-year college course when you get to 19 or 20 years old.

What else would you like our community to know or understand about the culture of your childhood and the transition you’ve made?
We all know that the Philippines is part of the third world countries. Joel and I are very fortunate to experience a comfortable childhood. It was a big adjustment for us living together on our own and doing all the work. Ironically, it is very common in the Philippines to have house nannies because of inexpensive labor. And when we moved here, we have to do everything, from the cooking, doing the dishes and the laundry. We always tell our kids how blessed they are compared to the street children back home. We do our best to give back and help those who are in need.

Q&A with Karin and Joar W., Parents of Wise Watermelon Ester and Sparkly Diamonds Tea and Liv

Where were you each born? Where did you each grow up?
Joar and Karin were both born and raised in Sweden. Joar in the northern part (in PE he did cross country skiing!), while Karin grew up in the south, where the weather is similar to Seattle, WA. Sweden is about the same size and shape as California, but with a population of only 10 million.

When did your family move to the United States? To California?
We moved to Campbell in 2007.

Why did you move?
Joar received a job offer from a tech company in the valley, and Karin managed to do a transfer within the company she was working with at that time. We’ve realized that we had a lot of luck that both of us were able to continue our professional careers.

What are some of the major differences in living here versus your original home?
Moving here was initially both very exciting and a bit overwhelming. It can take forever to do the most basic grocery shopping when you can’t find any one of your familiar or favorite brands, and when there are a seemingly infinite number of morning cereals to choose from… So many basic things are different: Celsius vs. Fahrenheit, the Metric system vs. the Imperial system… (Karin’s height is still off on her drivers license, since we got the conversion wrong on that first trip to DMV…) In Sweden we had never owned a car – relying on bicycles and public transport. We grew up with public healthcare and education. But of course, over time you adopt and learn to appreciate the Californian lifestyle and culture.

What do you like about living here?
Besides the obvious with sunny blue skies 9 months of the year and living so close to where all the amazing fruit and veggies grow, we appreciate how friendly and open Americans are. In Sweden you would never speak to the cashier – here you can spend 10 minutes exchanging yummy food recipes with the staff or some other shopper at any grocery store. We also like how incredibly patient and kind everyone is with kids here, be it when they cross the street or when they pick which flavor they want at the ice cream store.

What do you miss?
Family and friends and speaking Swedish! We still miss the ease with which you’re able to pick up the nuances of the underlying meaning when people say something in your native tongue. Americans are more polite, while Swedes are more honest and direct (you’d find us rude!). And food, of course — it’s a joy to travel to Sweden and have a “proper” breakfast with filmjölk, dark rye bread with Swedish cheese, and our many, many, coffee breaks.

How do you keep traditions and culture from home a part of life for your children?
We speak Swedish at home, and read lots and lots of books in Swedish. We spend all summers in Sweden. We celebrate Christmas on Christmas eve. At Midsummer we dance around the Midsummer pole with friends, feasting on snaps and herring, while singing our traditional snaps songs. We sit down as a family for home made meals every day. In the fall the girls will attend a one-day per week after school program at the Swedish school in Silicon Valley.

How did you pick Village?
We wanted our kids to go to a smaller school, where they could be part of a community. With our families and childhood friends far, far, away, having a strong community at the school is extra valuable to us. The positive discipline approach towards learning is also something that appeals to us.

What is the school system like in your hometown?
We’re honestly not quite sure! Our personal experiences are from the 80’s, and things have probably changed a lot since then… When we grew up everyone went to public schools, but private schools have since then started to pop up everywhere. Many of the activities that Village offers as part of the Centers are part of the standard curriculum: woodworking, sewing, and cooking. English is taught in elementary school, and a few years later you can select additional languages — typically one of the major European languages like German, Spanish, or French.

Is there anything else you’d like us to know about your culture?
Both parents typically work full time and kids consequently have to learn to be more independent at an earlier age. You would for example prepare your own afternoon snack, bike or take a bus to your activities, prepare meals for the family weekly, help out with household chores, etc.