CEBU, Philippines — An emotional video of a Filipina mother in Ukraine praying for her family’s safety amid Russia’s invasion went viral on the internet.
In the video, Rhea Rhose Ramos Taibova can be seen watching her daughter sleeping while she wept and worried about their safety.
“Kaya siguro binigay ni Lord saken si Baby Lia para maging lakas at inspirasyon ko (namin) para harapin at lampasan ang lahat ng mga pagsubok na ito.
Pinipilit kong maging matatag para sa anak ko kaya as much as possible hindi na ako umiiyak pag nanjan at gising sya kasi nakikita nya ako at tuwing umiiyak ako nakatitig talaga sya sa akin,” Taibova shared on Facebook.
She said she draws strength from her family during this uncertain time.
“Marami ang nagtatanong kong paano ko na susurvived ung ganitong sitwasyon, kong ano ung nagpapalakas ng loob ko para ipagpatuloy ang buhay, walang iba kundi ang anak ko, asawa ko, pamilya at mga kaibigan ko na walang sawang sumusuporta at nananalangin para sa kaligtasan namin.”
Taibova from Nueva Valencia, Guimaras, got married to her Ukrainian partner last 2019.
On February 25, 2022, she shared on social media that it was the “scariest 28 hours” of her life. She also described it as her “nightmare.”
She posted that she could not imagine her experience which she has only seen in the movies before.
Her family went running and hiding in an underground storage to survive explosions.
Despite the difficult situation, she can see the silver lining through her daughter’s smile.
“Gumigising ako araw-araw na umiiyak habang nakatitig sa mag ama ko but very thankful kay God at the same time kasi He has given us another day, another life. God is really good, alam kong di nya kami pababayaan,” she wrote on Facebook.
Taibova told CDN Digital that they already left Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine, “Dun po kami nakatira pero nakaalis na po kami dun bago mag close yong city.”
“So far, ok naman po (kami), di ko po masabi na we’re good pero thankful pa rin kasi we’re safe kahit papano,” she added.
She hopes that her family will overcome the situation and someday be able to go home to the Philippines.
/bmjo
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