Since the day my elementary mind started absorbing a few truths of the world, I have been taught that the Filipino overseas worker is the new breed of hero. Bagong bayani, they were called. It mattered to me because my father was one of those modern heroes, and because of it we became one of those modern absentee-parent families. It was the in thing, and 20 years later it has evolved to more than that. The trend was fortified not only into a social norm, but into a significant economic driver. The news now says nothing else but that the Philippines is the new darling of Asia, posting historic high growths while the first world giants are folding, fueled largely by OFW remittances. 20 years later and my father is still the new breed of hero.
