Andrea Romero: A Granddaughter’s Love

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For Andrea Ysabel Romero, her grandmother Esperanza Pascua (Mami Chit as she is fondly called) is one of the most important people in her life.

“Pinanganak ako sa taxi (I was born in a taxi), my grandmother served as my mother’s midwife then. We are 11 in the family. My mother cannot handle the responsibility of raising us, and my father cannot accept me, that is why Mami Chit stood as both my mother and my father. She was the one who raised me since I was born,” she said while sharing why she holds her dearly.

As she felt all the love a child needs in her grandmother’s company, Andrea has long wished to repay all the kindness she received.

“I did not hear her complain about raising me. She was also the one who sent me to school. She made me feel that although my mother doesn’t seem to care about me, she is there for me — she loves me very much.”

The 17 year-old Wisher is proud that her Mami Chit is a cancer survivor. But one reality saddens her — her grandmother is currently fighting against another disease: Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)

“Because of UTI, she cannot walk and stroll anymore…Now it saddens me to see that she’s not the same as before. I know she would have to leave me soon that is why I wanted to make her happy in her remaining days even through the smallest thing I could think of.”

Thinking of how she can make her Mami Chit feel loved and delighted, Andrea wished for a wheelchair.

“I know that she suffers from pain a lot, and she wants to give up [at times]. I love my grandmother very much and I wanted to take her to her favorite restaurant. I wanted her to feel that she is loved and cared for. I wanted to see her happy while she’s still here.”

When her earnest wish was fulfilled, she was able to see a different kind of glow in her grandmother’s eyes. And for seeing something she has not witnessed for a long time, Andrea was more than grateful.

“I hope that you would continue doing good works and I hope that you could make more people happy,” she told Wish.

“…Sana po marami pa pong makinig sa station ninyo kasi napakaganda po ng naisip nyo na mag-grant ng wish ng mga tao. Kahit sa maliliit na bagay na winiwish namin ay marami na po kayong napapasaya.”

(I also wish that your station would gain more listeners because your idea of granting wishes, no matter how small, makes many people happy.)