Houses: the Gawad Kalinga's Apostolate

A house is just a house. Whatever materials utilized to build it, whether it may be concrete or just pieces of woods put together or whatever its design, it remains the same. It is still identified as a house that serves as a dwelling place. Well, for an artist he/she may defines it as a hollow sculpture. Beyond that, house remains to be house. It remains to be a physical structure. No more no less.

However if we take a second look on every house and reflect on it, we find more on what appeals to our senses. Well, it requires some levels of transcendence and a little semiological analysis to realize this stuff. Yet, it can’t be ignored that there is more to a house than just a sort of physical structure. Houses are signs pregnant with meanings.

Globally, poverty and richness are identified with houses. Not only that, we also identify individuals according to his/her house. Slums, shanties and squat represent the abode of petty crimes and small time criminals. While subdivisions, villages, mansions and the like signify prosperity and vanity. At the same time, those houses represent the abode of big time criminals, such as corrupt individuals, gambler and drug lords. This semiological analysis is very true in the Philippines. It is not just a mere hearsay but also a fact. Hence, are ability to delineate types of houses brought the emergence of meanings that could be deduced. In this score, houses signify the dichotomy of the rich and the poor.

Houses are also womb of values. In every house built, it gives meaning to unity and love. Houses symbolize the two souls unified in the name of love. However surrounding circumstances affects the pregnancy of values. Thus, an instance such as a broken family leads to the metaphoric destruction of the house and to some extent even literally, due to the aborted values which are primordial foundation of the house.

Furthermore, a house signifies relationship. The complexity of the web of relationships starts when a house is built. Likewise, whether we like it or not, we become neighbors and they become our neighbors. Then expand that relationship, houses create a community. Notice the relationship built by a single house. It starts in a microsphere and eventually expanded to the macrosphere. This fact is very true and could be verified if you may by analyzing it through deduction. Say from the world we deduce nations. Then from nation to communities. Then eventually goes back to the heart of every relationship, which is the house. You may even complicate more this simple paradigm of relationship if you want it to, and still it would lead you back to the house.

The GAWAD KALINGA (GK) is known for building houses. However, its activity is symbolic of a greater cause. It made use of a house because the house is not just a physical structure. There is more on building houses and these things must be taken in a greater scheme of things. Originally, GK dreamed of making our nation become one of the first world countries through transforming squatter and slums areas into descent middle class villages, but unaware of the undeniable chain of reactions, the simple dream of transforming slums branched out to transformation of hearts, restoration of old values and peace. Today guided by their slogan “build a nation by building a house” GK continually realized its dreams. But let me add to their philosophy because I see more in Gawad Kalinga’s apostolate. I perceived that the activity is not just building a nation, but more so “building house is building humanity” as well.

Let’s then build humanity. Let’s build a house. It may sound utopian to some but I would say the shovel, hammer, and saw remains to be an idea if we will not utilize them to build the abode of meaning—HOUSE.