After taking the language for granted during her early years, Jayde Crystal Wright now feels the need to speak it with confidence and eventually becoming deeply connect with her Filipino roots.
At 22, she thinks it’s not too late to learn her mum’s first language in search of her Filipino identity – and possibly a career in the south-east Asian country.
A recent communications graduate in Sydney, she started out in public relations with her first job giving her invaluable opportunities to expand her horizons, by working with Malala Yousafzai, the youngest ever Nobel laureate and Hillary Clinton, during their recent visits down under.
In her work, Ms Wright had the opportunity to appear Australian breakfast show Today.
But possible opportunities in the Philippines are not off the cards, judging by the contacts possessed by her mother Cathy Snell, who is a former actress and movie producer.
Her aunt, Natalie Hart is a popular actress in the Philippines, while uncle Kenneth Snell is a budding actor.
“It’s very hard. I’m split, my heart is in the Philippines,” she admits on the dilemma of whether to stay in Australia or move.
'Wowowin'
When she was 19, popular Filipino host Willie Revillame invited Ms Wright to be one of his co-hosts on the noontime variety show Wowowin on one condition – that she spoke the language.
She didn’t take the offer seriously due to her reluctance to speak the language.
Three years on and during a recent visit to Manila, she received the same offer from Mr Revillame.
Ms Wright, who won the 2016 Miss Philippine Australia Charity, is having second thoughts as she gets more inspiration from her idol, Catriona Gray who won the recent Ms Universe competition, and the growing successes of other Filipino-Australians like of Anne Curtis and James Reid, as well as newly crowned Ms Intercontinental Karen Gallman.
Ms Wright, far right, with popular TV host Willie Revillame (middle), and her mother Cathy. Source: Supplied by Jade Wright
Ms Wright knows the importance of the Filipino language in her future prospects.
She is determined, more than ever, to accept Mr Revillame’s offer, and has given herself at least six months to improve her grasp of the language.
She knows it’s an uphill battle, as she lacked interest in the past.
But now she’s unfazed, saying “I’m still a baby".
She believes she can still easily pick up the language.
Nowadays, she tries to learn as many Filipino words as possible. Unlike before, she seeks mum’s help to communicate with her in Filipino. And at home, she always carries an iPad and lists down the words she hears in Filipino and verbalises them aloud.
She also watches more Filipino shows and movies. She's also looking to enrol in a language school.
Source: Supplied by Jade Wright
Reluctance to speak Filipino
Like many Filipino-Australians who grew up with at least one of Filipino-speaking parent, Ms Wright could comprehend the language but was just too shy to speak.
Her mum says she talks to her two children in Filipino, but they respond in English.
“It’s not that they are not really interested," she said.
"They are just embarrassed every time their classmates hear them talk in another language as if it is weird."
Beauty and charity
Ms Wright believes that her Caucasian look could work against her in her pursuit of potential success in the Philippines where most successful Australian-Filipinos have 50-50 split in their genetic make-up, while she's only a quarter Filipino.
Despite her aspirations and involvement with UNICEF, she's determined to continue her charity work, something she's "very passionate about".
"I believe that it is very important that's all, to serve and inspire people," she said.
"So I join a lot of pageants and do modelling so that I can use as a platform to raise awareness and reach more people."
She's also involved with Destiny Rescue Australia, an organisation that helps victims of child sexual exploitation and slavery.
Jayde distributes goods to children in the Philippines. Source: Supplied by Jade Wright
In her recent visit to Manila, she visited many disadvantaged areas to give out educational material.
“I believe in the importance of education and learning."
