Chasing Windmills | Maya Butalid | Good Street

Description

This fascinating collection of stories follows the journey of Maya Butalid, born in 1957 in Cebu City, Philippines. While studying at the University of the Philippines, she became a political activist against the Marcos dictatorship. In 1983, she was sent to the Netherlands to work as an activist. In 1993, she left the political movement. In the Netherlands, she learned Dutch and graduated from Tilburg University with a Masters in Psychology.

Maya courageously tells of the challenges of living as a migrant in a foreign country, building her own family, bringing up her daughters in a mixed culture, learning Dutch and her various undertakings to participate fully in Dutch society. She tells of her experiences in working in Dutch institutions as a migrant, and of her engagement in Dutch politics as a city councilor in Tilburg.

In her stories, Maya continues to reflect on the challenges she faced as a migrant, balancing being a Filipino while embracing her second home, the Netherlands. She concludes: “No matter how integrated I may be in Dutch society, contributing and participating fully in this society, does not make me less of a Filipino. An important part of me will always be Filipino.”

Maya, to this day, is continuing with her efforts to contribute to the development of the Philippines.