Lou Santos

Backstory

Maria Lourdes Santos — “Lou” to the parents who hire her and “Inday” to the few kababayans she trusts — was born in Cebu, the eldest daughter in a devout Roman Catholic family. Her father drove a jeepney, her mother sold produce in the market, and much of her childhood was spent either in church or keeping younger siblings in order.

She married young, had two children in quick succession, and expected a modest, predictable life. That ended abruptly when her husband was killed in a workplace accident, leaving her as the sole provider and forcing her into domestic work to keep her children fed and in school.

After only a few months working as a nanny for wealthy families in Manila, she realised the wages weren’t remotely enough to support her children’s education. With little choice and mounting pressure, she secured a domestic worker visa for the United States through an agency promising reliable hours and long-term employment. The Long Island family who hired her dismissed her after ten months, citing “budget constraints”. With no income and two children depending on every peso she sent home, she overstayed her visa, slipped into New York’s informal childcare economy, and has remained ever since — raising other people’s children so she can provide for her own.

Personality

Lou, from Argao in Cebu, is soft-spoken, patient, and deeply devoted to God. Her tone never rises above gentle. Her movements are quiet and deliberate, and she never sits when standing might be more respectful. She refers to everyone as “Ma’am” or “Sir,” even when they insist otherwise. She prays morning, noon, and night — often in silence, sometimes with rosary beads hidden inside her coat pocket. Her moral worldview is strict: sin is sin, and suffering is part of life. But she also believes God sees the intention in your heart — and so she convinces herself that overstaying her visa is not theft, but duty.

She loves children fiercely, and they love her. She never uses harsh words, never shouts, and never lets a child cry longer than a few seconds if she can help it. She believes discipline should be firm but never cruel — a philosophy rooted in both Scripture and decades of practical experience. She watches Dick and Marge secretly — the volume low, her disapproval high. She finds Dick immoral and Marge a bad influence, but sometimes prays for them anyway. Once, she fasted for a day “to cleanse her spirit” after hearing Dick mock the Virgin Mary.