Some children wake up to alarm clocks. Others wake up to traffic outside their windows. Jhay Catano woke up to the soft rhythm of his mother’s broom brushing against a dirt floor.
Before the sun rose over the mountains of Benguet in the Philippines, dust already lingered in the air inside their small wooden house built on stilts. It clung to skin and clothes, settling into the fabric of daily life. That dust was not just a sign of poverty. It was a symbol of labour, sacrifice, and the quiet dignity of a family doing everything they could to survive.
Inside the house, there were no walls separating rooms. Ten people shared one open space, sleeping side by side on woven mats. In a home so full, silence was rare. Yet as the youngest of nine, Jhay often felt unseen, learning early that even in a crowded room, loneliness can find its place.
A Childhood Carved by the Land
Life in their secluded valley followed the rhythm of the mountains. The family survived by planting chayote, and the slopes around them were covered in endless rows of green vines. The land provided, but it demanded strength in return.
Once a week, before dawn, Jhay and his siblings were woken earlier than usual. Harvest day meant carrying nearly 25 kilos of chayote down a steep and slippery path to the highway. The weight rested against their foreheads through a handmade carrier called a tokyod, pressing into their skin and tightening the muscles of their necks and shoulders.
The walk lasted only twenty minutes, but it felt longer under the burden. Their steps had to be careful. The path could betray them. Sometimes they moved in silence, focusing only on balance and breath. Other times frustration surfaced, spilling into arguments born from exhaustion rather than anger.
After delivering the harvest, they rushed home, washed quickly, and began another hour-long walk to school. By the time they reached their classrooms, the sun was high and their uniforms were already damp with sweat. Education was precious, but survival came first. Even at twelve years old, Jhay understood the unspoken rule of their home: everyone worked, and no one complained.
He would watch his older siblings disappear up the mountain and quietly hope that by the time he was strong enough to carry the baskets himself, life might have changed.
The Brothers He Never Met
Before Jhay was born, their family had been eleven. Two older brothers had passed away, leaving behind photographs and a grief that never fully faded. Though he had never heard their laughter, their absence shaped him.
He studied their faces in old pictures, tracing their smiles with his eyes. He noticed how his father sometimes sat in silence facing the valley, and how his mother’s smile occasionally held a sadness that words could not explain. Loss lived quietly in their home, woven into everyday moments.
From a young age, Jhay learned that life could be fragile. That understanding did not make him fearful. It made him determined. He felt a responsibility to honour the lives that ended too soon, to make his own life count not just for himself, but for them as well.
Leaving the Valley
When Jhay left Benguet to attend college in the city, he carried very little. A single pair of slacks. A red shirt. A small bag holding everything he owned. The mountains that once felt confining now felt protective, and stepping beyond them was both exciting and terrifying.
The city did not slow down for anyone. Buildings stood taller than anything he had known. People moved with confidence. Conversations happened quickly. In classrooms filled with students who seemed more prepared, he felt the weight of his background pressing against him. Poverty did not disappear when he left home. It simply followed him quietly.
Loneliness settled in deeply. It was not just the distance from family that hurt, but the realization that his struggle was far from over.
Back home, his mother worked under a system called purdiya, taking labour on other farms for small wages. When she handed him one thousand pesos for allowance, her hands worn and tired, his chest tightened with guilt. He knew that money came from long hours under the sun. He promised himself that when he became a teacher, his first salary would be used to celebrate his parents. He would show them the city they had never seen. He would give them comfort, even if only for a day.
He believed he still had time.
A Loss That Changed Everything
In March 2024, Jhay’s mother passed away from chronic kidney disease. Later, the family learned that she had refused dialysis because she believed the money should not be spent on her. She did not want to burden her children with medical costs they could not afford.
Her decision reflected the same sacrifice she had shown her entire life.
Her death left a silence that felt heavier than any harvest basket Jhay had ever carried. The gentle voice that once steadied him was gone. The woman whose quiet strength anchored the family was no longer there to call them together at the end of the day.
Grief shook his faith. It dimmed his hope. For a time, continuing his studies felt meaningless.
But in that darkness, his siblings became his support. They reminded him how close he was to finishing college. They reminded him that their mother’s sacrifices deserved to be honoured through his perseverance. Slowly, through pain and exhaustion, he chose to keep going.
Building Strength, Step by Step
After facing several rejections, Jhay secured part-time work as a waiter in a bar. It was not the future he had imagined, but it allowed him to pay rent and manage daily expenses. The work was humbling, yet it strengthened him. It taught him independence and dignity.
He eventually completed his degree in Secondary Education, major in English. Shortly after graduation, he received a scholarship from the University of the People in Pasadena, California, where he is now pursuing an associate degree in Business Administration through distance education. He also began working as an administrative aide in his hometown. The salary is modest, and the role is not directly aligned with his academic field, but he views it as a meaningful step forward.
Because over time, Jhay came to understand something essential.
Life does not always reward effort immediately. Progress is often quiet. Sometimes it looks like a contract job. Sometimes it looks like surviving grief without giving up. Sometimes it is simply continuing when stopping would be easier.
The Mountain’s Son Today
It is now 2025. His father still works on their small farm in Benguet. The mountains remain as steady as ever, watching over the valley that shaped him. Jhay visits whenever he can, no longer seeing the place as something he needed to escape, but as the foundation that built his resilience.
The dust, the harvest paths, the shared mats, the silent grief, and the sacrifices of his parents all live within him.
Life did not become easy.
But Jhay Catano became stronger.
And sometimes, strength is the greatest inheritance a family can leave behind.
A Note to Our Readers
If you are carrying responsibilities heavier than your years, if you are grieving someone who shaped your courage, if you are building a future your parents once dreamed of but never reached, your story matters.
Story of Souls is a space for real journeys and honest voices. One story can remind someone else that they are not alone.
Submit your journey to Story of Souls.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Jhay Catano?
Jhay Catano is a young educator from Benguet, Philippines, who grew up in poverty, helped his family carry farm harvests as a child, lost his mother to chronic illness, and persevered to complete his college education despite financial hardship.
Where is Jhay Catano from?
Jhay Catano is from Benguet, a mountainous province in the Philippines, where his family earned a living by planting and harvesting chayote on steep mountain slopes.
What challenges did Jhay Catano face growing up?
He grew up in a large family living in poverty, carried heavy farm produce before school, experienced the loss of two brothers before his birth, struggled with loneliness in college, and later lost his mother to chronic kidney disease.
How did Jhay Catano continue his education after his mother’s death?
Despite deep grief and financial pressure, Jhay completed his degree in Secondary Education and later earned a scholarship from the University of the People to pursue further studies in Business Administration.
What is the main message of Jhay Catano’s story?
His story shows that perseverance, family sacrifice, and inner strength can help someone rise above poverty and loss, even when life feels overwhelming.
What can readers learn from Jhay Catano’s journey?
Readers can learn that progress does not always look dramatic. Small steps, consistent effort, and resilience during hardship can slowly build a stronger and more meaningful future.
Our Storyteller: Amna
Amna believes that words have the power to hold emotions that are often difficult to say out loud. Through her writing, she tries to capture small, fleeting feelings and moments that many people carry but rarely express.
Poetry has always been close to her heart. On her Instagram page loev.ly, she shares verses about love, longing, hope, and the gentle complexities of human connection. For Amna, poetry is a way of making sense of the world and leaving behind small pieces of warmth for others to find.
She finds inspiration in simple, everyday joys: nature, the wonder of watching planes cross the sky, and the ritual of making a good cup of coffee. These small moments often become the seeds of her writing.
At heart, Amna writes to share pieces of happiness and tenderness with the world, believing that even the smallest words can make someone feel a little less alone.
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