Dating in the Philippines is in no way out of this world or anything extraterrestrial. Filipinos publicly showing some form of affection over the other gender is not uncommon.
Dating can mean different things. It can be simple going out to know
someone better. It can be another term for being in a relationship. Or
it can be a wedded couple’s wedding anniversary tradition. Which way it
is, dating is part of the human relationship relating to love.
Love is when you like someone far too much that you always think of them and it is a given that you want to spend time with them and if possible, have a relationship with them. So apart from love, what do you think completes the “relationship” of two people?
Decades ago, dating and the likes have been a conservative topic in our country. Back in the old times, dating someone- often, a lady, as men were suppose to be the first to make the move- is impossible without the consent of the parents. And boy that consent is quite hard to obtain. Lads start with introducing themselves to the father, as fathers are hard to please, especially when it comes to their precious daughters. Then comes the serenading, Filipinos are music-loving people, and some are lucky to have good voices to parade in serenading a lady. Some even go to the extent of doing labor work for the girl’s family. When all of that are done and the prized consent of the parent has been obtained then the couple could proceed with dating, which is mainly walking in the park and eating outside, only when you’re not lucky, you will receive a chaperon from the lady’s side just to be sure, as I have told you- said a while ago, Filipinos are very conservative. Premarital sex was a taboo back in the old days.
But the present day dating is 180 degrees upside down turn from the old times. All the arduous labor gentlemen underwent to win a lady’s heart have completely disappeared. It is no longer a necessity to get the parent’s consent to date a lady, as a matter of fact; it is a common occurrence for two people to date in secrecy behind their parent’s knowledge. The serenade slowly disappeared; only a handful who sticks to the old tradition does this, a truly very rare to thing to happen in our present days. And premarital sex, well it is still looked downed and frowned upon, but it is not against the government’s law or anything and is happening from time to time, which always leads to children being born out of the wedlock.
If there is one thing that time and advancement wasn’t able to change or delete it are the close family ties of the Filipinos. When dating, you must know that family of the other party still matters. Family has big influence over a couple’s relationship. The family can refuse to accept the relationship, which in turn will put the relationship in dire situation. So you must remember, to date someone, you must be able to please the family. If possible, be a part of the family even before the relationship starts. That way, you have a head start in winning the affection of your beloved.