After more than 2 hours at the hotel with my boss, I returned home to cook porridge for my paralyzed husband. Who would have thought that as soon as I entered the house, I would see the account number continuously jump with a shocking message…
I had just set foot on the gate of my house in Quezon City when it started to rain. The sound of rain falling on the tin roof, the smell of damp soil wafted up. In my hand, I still held a bag of rice and a few green onions to cook porridge for my husband – who had been bedridden for more than 3 months after a traffic accident. I just wanted to quickly get to the kitchen so he could have a bowl of hot porridge.

For the previous two hours, I had been at the hotel with my boss to discuss a new business plan. It may sound ambiguous, but my boss is a woman, older, and treats me like a younger sister. The company was having difficulties, I had to take care of my husband and earn money, so I had to take on more work, taking advantage of every opportunity. The hotel was just a private place to work without interruption.

As soon as I put the key in the door, the phone in my pocket vibrated continuously. I glanced down at the screen – a notification from the bank:
“Your account has just received ₱5,000.”
Before I could be surprised, another message came:
“You have just received ₱3,000.”
Within a minute, the numbers kept jumping: ₱500, ₱1,000, ₱2,000… My heart was pounding.

I pushed the door open and entered. The light from the bedroom was shining, the fan was still running. My husband – Miguel – was lying still on the bed, but his eyes were unusually bright. Next to him was a phone on a stand, the screen was open to an application… livestream.

I walked closer. Miguel looked at me, a smile on his thin face:

– You’re back? I’m… singing for everyone.

I stared at the screen in shock: hundreds of people were watching, liking, sending wishes. Next to it was a list of donations that kept popping up – from unfamiliar names everywhere.

Miguel’s voice was hoarse, not perfect, but full of emotion. In the introduction, he wrote:
“I am a husband trying to help my wife. Thank you for listening to my story and singing.”

I was speechless. For days, I thought he was just lying there, helpless. But it turned out, during the hours I was at work, he had found a way to contribute something to the family – with a trembling voice and a sincere story.

My eyes stung. I put the rice package on the kitchen table, my hands still shaking with emotion. Outside, the rain was falling harder, but in the small house, I felt a strange warmth.

The husband who did not surrender

That night, after Miguel finished the livestream, I helped him adjust the pillow and cover him with a blanket. He was tired, but his eyes were still bright like a child’s.

– When did you start doing this? – I asked quietly.

– Since the day I saw you staying up until 2-3am to work extra, I thought I couldn’t just lie here. I watched a video of a disabled person singing for money through livestream, then followed suit. At first, no one watched. But a woman in Cebu listened, shared my story online… and everything changed.

I opened my phone, read the comments again:
“Come on kuya, your family will overcome!”
“I’m sending you a little gift, hope you and your husband will be okay soon.”
“You sing very well, please sing again!”

Most of them were strangers, but there were also familiar names – old classmates, old colleagues, even a neighbor I hadn’t seen in a long time. They didn’t say much, just quietly sent some money and words of encouragement.

For the next week, the donations continued to come in regularly. Not much – a few hundred, sometimes just a few dozen pesos – but it contained faith and humanity. I realized that, in the midst of a noisy society, there are still hearts that open up for a small family like ours.

One night, I received a message from a strange account:
“I was also in an accident and was paralyzed for a year. Seeing you sing, I remembered the day I was helped by everyone. Today, I am sending something back to you.”

I was speechless. Kindness is truly like a circle – you give it away, it will come back to you, when you least expect it.

Light in the Rain

Now, every night I no longer work overtime until I am exhausted. Instead, I sit next to Miguel, help him adjust the machine, read the comments, and sometimes sing with him. In those moments, though tired, I feel that life is not just a series of days of struggling, but a journey of two people fighting together.

The rain is still falling outside, but in my heart there is a clear sky. I know that, even though the future is full of challenges, we will still go together – with the faith gathered from strangers who turned out to be extremely close