Sometime in 2015 (eight long years ago!), I wrote a blog with the same title. It was an in-depth discourse why indeed do I “bother” (a distressing term from a writer friend) to write children’s books when I can write “real” books, like he does.
Eight Children’s Book Day have come and gone and people still ask me, “Why do you write books for children?”
I stand my ground; my reasons cannot be moved.
Then I read this heartbreaking news about our children, “. . . less than 15% of Filipino children are found to be capable of reading a simple text at age 10—placing the country's learning poverty somewhere around 85%.
Learning poverty. Learning. Poverty. 
About the same time, a dear friend, who has a PhD in Education and is a dedicated teacher in a public school, sent me this photo on Children’s Book Day this year. It suddenly hit me.
There are over 20 million children in the country within this age range today (2023). If 85% (roughly 17 million) of them can’t read, sob, should the question—Why do you write for children?—even be asked?
I posted this photo on my FB wall and captioned it: “I have many, many reasons for writing for children. These are four of them. The post got over 100 positive responses, which I call affirming grace, in a few hours.
“Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court.” (Psalms 127:3-5 NIV)
Credits (top photo collage): Rappler and Philippines Orphanage Foundation
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