Ramon grew up in Batangas, where weekends meant family gatherings and shared meals. As a boy, he would watch his uncle prepare meat for fiestas carefully slicing, trimming, and portioning with steady hands. Fascinated, Ramon began helping in their small talipapa (wet market), where he learned the basics of butchery. By the time he was in his twenties, he was already known in town as someone who could expertly handle knives and prepare meat cuts for customers.
Despite his skills, income in the Philippines was low and unstable. With two children to support and a wife trying to juggle expenses, Ramon knew he needed a bigger opportunity. When a recruitment agency offered jobs for butchers in Saudi Arabia, he decided to take the risk. It was a difficult decision leaving his young children behind but he told himself, Every cut I make abroad will carve out a better future for them.
His first day in Saudi Arabia was overwhelming. He was assigned to a large meat processing plant that supplied supermarkets and hotels. The facility was equipped with modern machines, far different from the small wet market back home. His job included deboning beef, cutting lamb and chicken according to strict specifications, and ensuring hygiene standards were followed. He wore protective gear from head to toe, and the cold storage rooms often left his hands numb.
The work was physically demanding. Hours of standing, lifting heavy carcasses, and repetitive knife movements tested his endurance. At times, he suffered cuts and bruises, but Ramon learned to work carefully and efficiently. What made it even harder was the strict quality checks. Each cut had to meet exact weight and size requirements, and mistakes meant wasted time and deductions. But Ramon took it as a challenge, determined to improve every day.
Loneliness was another battle. In the dormitory he shared with other workers, he missed the warmth of family dinners and the laughter of his children. He often sat quietly after long shifts, scrolling through photos of his family on his phone. To ease the homesickness, he began cooking Filipino dishes with his roommates, using meat trimmings and spices from local stores. The familiar flavors gave him comfort and reminded him of home.
One of his proudest moments came during Eid, when his team was tasked with preparing large quantities of meat for distribution. The supervisor praised his precision and speed, saying he worked with the skill of a craftsman. Ramon felt proud not just as a worker, but as someone representing the dedication of Filipino OFWs.
Month after month, his remittances paid for his children’s schooling, helped his wife start a small sari-sari store, and eventually covered the construction of their family’s modest concrete home. When Ram0n finally returned for vacation after two years, his children hugged him tightly, and his wife proudly showed him their new home. With tears in his eyes, Ramon whispered, Every cut was worth it.
Ramon’s story as a butcher abroad is more than handling knives and meat it is about carving a better life from hardship, shaping a future out of sacrifice, and proving that even in the coldest rooms of a factory, the warmth of love for family can never fade.
