The young woman who has come to Canada to work as a nanny is one of those people whose face is never without a smile. I suspect that she reflects the attitude and personality of many women from the Philippines, though I have no real yardstick for that thought. I do know that if I were in her circumstances, a smile would rarely cross my face.

She is here, after all, looking after other peoples' children, not her own. She works at a family home, three up from ours, where a new family with young children has recently moved into this neighbourhood of mostly older people who have lived here for decades. Occasionally a new family like theirs does move in. This family has a three-year-old boy and he has two older, school-age siblings.

Faye takes scrupulous care of these children not her own. Whenever she looks at one of the children, an authentically fond smile creases her face. She is the kind of person whom one can place implicit trust in.

We asked her whether her family has been directly affected by the hurricane season, annual events in her island home. Hurricane Ophelia had just passed through, killing 52, leaving many homeless, and Nesat was set to hit, while rescue crews were still frantically looking for people from the first storm. Last year, she said, her parents' roof had been replaced because of damage incurred in previous storms.

This year, she said, Hurricane Ophelia had blown off the new roof entirely. Her family is walking about in waist-deep waters. Her children live with her parents. The wages she earns, in large part, make their way home to support her children and her parents.

Would I be smiling pacifically scrupulously looking after other peoples' children, tending to their needs?