“When I started making my stories on Youtube about my life and journey here, I feel more uplifted and confident in myself.” Earlier this month, Jkristine Gonzaga, an aspiring Filipino Youtuber, shared her joy and celebrated her achievement of hitting the 1k subscribers milestone in her latest video.
Having worked as a domestic worker for more than 2 years, Jkristine decided to vlog about her daily life to stay connected with her relatives and friends to avoid feeling homesick and make traceable memories in Riyadh Saudi Arabia since May 2019.
“Making Youtube videos has changed my life. Being an Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) here in the Middle East is not easy. You’d need an adjustment period to deal with the homesickness.”
Jkristine has made a series of videos about how to cope with the change of life in becoming an OFW based on her own experiences, you could find them with the hashtags of #Life & Journey, #NannysLifeInRiyadh, #OFWinSaudi, and #BuhayOFWInSaudi. In her channel, you can also find engaging content that gives you some useful ideas on cooking, skincare, DIY ideas, online shopping, and unboxing experience. Sometimes, you might also find some exciting discount offers of branded products from her content! Apart from that, she loves interacting with her audience by hosting live streaming videos to talk about different topics.
In Jkristine’s spare time, she loves to edit and film her videos and create more inspiring ideas for her content. Her favourite Youtubers, such as #Hungry The Syrian Wanderer and #Erika Embang, have inspired her to make content that allows her to share ideas and happiness to the world. Her major audience is from the Philippines and Middle East countries, such as Dubai, Qatar, and Kuwait. She is aspired to reach more people in the future to share her stories and creative vlogs.
Being a foreign domestic worker is not as easy as we thought. Leaving their beloved families and home countries for years, they are not able to take care of their families in person, yet they have to cope with cultural difference and try blending in a new family. Jkristine deeply feels the sentiments that her fellow OFW friends share. Happiness and making memories are important to her as an overseas worker. By the end of our interview, she’d love to share a little message to every OFWs out there if they are struggling:
“Be strong and brave enough. Have faith and pray always. Love your work and enjoy every moment. Treasure every single moment as if they wouldn’t happen again.”
