Last year I went back to Japan to be with my husband Bong, who was working as an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW). One of the reasons for doing so was to help him work, so we could save up faster, as there were now three of us who were studying: our two kids--and me. I had gone back to university to cultivate my knowledge and improve my skills in the field of art.

I am Cecille Pauline Sanglap Montenegro, also known as Yllang--a migrant, feminist, and artist.

I started part-time work in August 2019 at a hotel in Umeda, Osaka, as a room service cleaner. It was a good experience, working in a hotel. As a migrant worker, this was the second job I’ve had in Japan; the first one was as an OPA (Overseas Performing Artist or entertainer) for ten years.

Every Tuesday on my day-off, I would often make the rounds in the different museums in Hyogo and Kansai Prefecture. My curiosity was piqued by the beauty and process of creating wood block prints, a Japanese art form that flourished in the 1700s until the 1800s.

As we rang in 2020, my husband and I decided that I would be the first one to return to the Philippines  in April. The original plan was I would go back ahead of him, so that I could make the necessary preparations for my incoming university school year, but in the end we just decided to go back home  at the same time. As April approached, he resigned from his job in Japan and applied for a new job in the Philippines. Somehow we had saved up enough for the next school year, and we were excited to go home and be with our children.

What about the other migrant workers--how were they? How was the situation of students stranded abroad, worrying about how to return home safely to their families? What about the parents who miss their children very much and continue to worry for their safety?

In February and March, news about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) had become so loud that we started to worry whether we would be able to go home or not. A few months later, our suspicions were confirmed; a week before we were supposed to go home to the Philippines, our flight was canceled. We were worried because by this time we were already both unemployed. We also had nowhere to live because the contract of the house we were renting had ended, so we sought help from friends. We reached out to the NGO Network Assistance for Foreigners in Kobe and the Asian Shokudo Sala, a restaurant which used to be a gallery that featured my art works.

Fortunately, we were given assistance and a place to stay while awaiting news about our new travel schedule. Since April, our flight back to the Philippines had been canceled seven times, so we asked my friend and supporter Naoko Kuroda, the manager of Asian Shokudo Sala, if my husband and I could work part-time at her restaurant, for the meantime.

Naoko’s restaurant is a social enterprise that helps migrant women living in Japan. Before it opened in 2016, Naoko invited me to develop a concept about empowerment, so a mural was created inside the restaurant, entitled “Empowerment of all People,” which eventually became the vision for the restaurant.

According to Naoko, only take-out food had been sold at the restaurant since March. The restaurant workers and chefs stopped going to work because of the fear brought on by the pandemic. In effect, the restaurant would not be able to hire us as part-time employees. We agreed to just make a project instead, while there was still widespread economic crisis.

Sala launched a crowd-funding campaign, “Save the Future of Sala,” to help itself get back on its feet. I used my creative skills, and with the help of my husband who stood in as graphic designer and digital editor, we produced a lot of artworks. Naoko, on the other hand, focused on the online crowd-funding campaign that ran from May 7 to May 31. The project was a huge success.

We are currently continuing our collaboration with Sala. My husband was given the opportunity to show off his cooking skills. Every Sunday we sell lunch boxes (obento) which I dubbed “FilpinObento.” We also prepare a special Filipino dinner set that we call “Philippines Night.” My role is to organize the utensils and stack the food packs while selling postcards.

I know we are lucky because we have friends and a support group, so somehow we are able to surpass the problems that come our way. I am thinking, how are other migrant workers like us in the situation, how are they? What is the situation of students stranded abroad and worried about how to return home safely with their families?

What about parents like us who are longing for their children while constantly worried about their safety?  The reality is it would be extremely hard for us if we would not be able to return home; here we have no jobs and no permanent place to live. It is extremely hard to live with uncertainty.

As soon as I wake up, my mind is filled with worry, so every day we read and watch the news to get updates about events in the Philippines. The Filipino people are already living in very harsh conditions under the current regime; now add this pandemic and the worsening poverty they have to deal with, on top of it.

This is one of the reasons why I sketch and carve an artwork daily that responds to these news reports. Drawing inspiration from the woodcut prints called Ukiyoe, I create images from stories from the Philippines and the situation of migrants currently stranded in different parts of the world, like us.

Creating every day saves me from loneliness, anxiety, and longing for my children. It also gives me strength emotionally, spiritually, and financially. Creating art is also a way for me to share my sentiments regarding what is currently happening to Filipinos. Its spirit is what drives me to better understand the struggles that we Filipinos face, especially the issues that address the lives of women workers in the mountains, cities, and inside and outside the country.

Printing postcards using carved wood and rubber has allowed me to communicate with loved ones, friends, and family in different parts of the world. It’s still a different experience, receiving from the post office a message you can touch.

What I’m trying to figure out now is how to move forward, in case we really can’t go home yet or from whatever other life obstacles come my way. Every day when I wake up, I do my daily work: to create and craft a story by mixing different kinds of media, to make art. ###