I Came to the Philippines Broke — Now I Have a Maid at 71

At seventy-one, after six years nursing my dying husband, I woke the morning he was finally gone to find I had nothing left — no money, and nobody. 00:00 — Six Years, and Nothing Left 02:20 — What in the World Have I Done 04:20 — The Plant I Couldn't Keep Alive 05:57 — Ramon Counted It Back, Coin by Coin 09:22 — You Are a Guest. Sit. 11:57 — Eighteen Dollars for the Doctor 13:27 — I Stopped Doing Math in the Aisle 17:10 — Her Name Is Grace 21:00 — Which One Is the Hungry Feeling 22:40 — The Bowl at My Door 26:30 — Setting the Bucket Down 28:30 — Now It's Our Turn, It's Only Fair 32:15 — If You're the One Doing the Catching My name's Linda. I was a teacher once, up in Portland. But for the last six years of my life I wasn't a teacher — I was a nurse, a cook, a pair of hands, an alarm clock that went off every two hours all night long. My husband David had dementia. I kept him home, I kept him comfortable, and I spent our savings doing it. I let my friendships quietly fall away, because there was never any time. Then he passed. And I sat in a silent house with an empty bank account and a phone that did not ring. Six years, and everything I had, and there was nothing left over — and no one left to notice. I could have stayed in that quiet house and just waited to get old. But I was seventy-one, not dead, and I was so tired of being the one who gives and gives. So I did something selfish for the first time in my life. I took what little I had left and I moved to Cebu, in the Philippines — somewhere warm, somewhere I could afford, somewhere I might finally be the one who gets taken care of. That first night in Manila I lay awake with my thumb over the button to look up flights home. The only thing that stopped me was that there was no home left to fly back to. This is where my story really begins. Footage Attribution: Portions of the video footage used in this production are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. The original footage has been edited, color graded, trimmed, or combined with additional footage, and paired with original narration and storytelling to create a new transformative work. Credit for all original creators is provided below in accordance with the CC BY license. Video Credit: "Walking the Nightlife in SIARGAO Philippines [4K]" by Jiggers TV Source:    • Walking the Nightlife in SIARGAO Philippin...   Video Credit: "Heavy Rain Walk in Calle Marino Cavite City Philippines [4K]" by Jiggers TV Source:    • Heavy Rain Walk in Calle Marino Cavite Cit...   Video Credit: "Manila Street Food Walk in Carriedo Quiapo Philippines [4K]" by Jiggers TV Source:    • Manila Street Food Walk in Carriedo Quiapo...   Video Credit: "Exploring Guyam Island | Siargao's Famous Island Paradise [4K]" by Jiggers TV Source:    • Exploring Guyam Island | Siargao’s Famous ...   Video Credit: "Salvo Street Party 2026 Cavite City Philippines [4K]" by Jiggers TV Source:    • Salvo Street Party 2026 Cavite City Philip...   Video Credit: "Super Heavy Rain Hits Manila City Philippines — Street Scenes in San Andres Bukid [4K] walking tour" by JOHN WALK TOUR Source:    • SUPER HEAVY RAIN HITS MANILA CITY PHILIPPI...   Channels: Jiggers TV —    / @jiggerstv   | JOHN WALK TOUR —    / @jwtrealninja   Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY). — #RetireInThePhilippines #RetireAbroad #RetirementPlanning #CostOfLivingPhilippines #ExpatLife #RetireOverseas #Cebu #CaregiverBurnout #ElderCare #StartingOver retire in the philippines, retire abroad, retire overseas, retirement, retirement planning, cost of living in the philippines, retire on social security, retire on a budget, american retiree philippines, americans retiring in the philippines, moving to the philippines, living in the philippines, cebu, cebu philippines, healthcare in the philippines, medical bills, retire cheap, cheap places to retire, affordable retirement, best places to retire abroad, senior expat, expat life, expat philippines, retire at 71, retiring alone, single woman retire abroad, retire as a widow, widow, caregiver, caregiver burnout, caregiver fatigue, caring for a dying spouse, dementia caregiver, spent savings on care, elder care, aging alone, fixed income, pension, inflation, retirement crisis, retirement savings gone, starting over at 71, second chance, life abroad, another life abroad, philippines cost of living 2026, retire in asia, southeast asia retirement, filipino hospitality, filipino kindness, retire with dignity, running out of money in retirement, how to retire abroad, elderly woman philippines, being invisible, lola