Growing Needs

I went back on Monday, as agreed, to discuss the plan to sell the pottery in the market. The house where we always meet was wide open as usual, but to my surprise, there was nobody inside. Even the usual kids were not playing in the yard. I yelled “Hola” several times and 3 girls came by. I asked for Doña María or Doña Florita, but they were not there. They forgot I was coming.

Since I take the public bus to visit the women, I was stuck there for about 45 minutes until the next bus was scheduled to come by. The girls invited me into the living room and sat there with me. We started chatting. The conversation that followed gave me a better understanding of the situation in Honduras and what some of the biggest problems here are. Let me tell you what I found out…

The three girls are daughters of Doña Flora. The oldest and most talkative is about my age. She is a very thin girl with brown skin and eyes. Her hair was loosely tied in a pony tail, but it looked like she hadn’t brushed it in a few days. Her clothes were simple but clean, and her shoes, like everybody else’s here, were covered in mud. She’s a fairly pretty girl but has already lost all her teeth. I learned she has eight kids. Yes, she is my age and has eight kids already!!! She had to give one of her girls away to her mother in law, and hasn’t seen her in years. I asked if her kids go to school. She said they do, when she can take them. The school provides the uniforms and some supplies, but it is difficult for her to take them to school in the 45 minute bus ride. Her husband is usually away, selling things in other towns, and he doesn’t support sending the kids to school, because in his opinion, the school asks for too much. She told me how one of her little girls is in kindergarten and has great handwriting. The teacher is really frustrated because she misses class for weeks at a time and her progress is slow. I told her about the importance of going to school. How her girls would be dependent on men if they don’t get an education, how being educated can change things completely. I said those things because they were the right things to say. However, as I said them, I wondered about myself in the same situation. What if it was me living in complete poverty, raising seven kids by myself, dealing with disease and hunger? Would sending my kids to school be something I would have the time or energy to think about? I think the answer is probably not.

The second girl must be a teenager, maybe 16 or 17. She is so beautiful, very shy and quiet. Her hair is long and dark, she wears it down. Her eyes are big and shinny. She just sat there; quiet, during most of the conversation, rubbing her 5 month pregnant belly. She only moved from the couch to pick up fruit, spice it with salt and eat it. I asked if she knew the gender… it’s a boy she’s expecting. After the story I had just heard I wasn’t ready to ask anymore questions.

The last girl is 13. I’ve seen her in the house before. She’s usually around when I visit… sweeping the floor, cleaning the “pila”, playing with kids. She always smiles when I arrive and likes touching my skin. Once, touching my skin, she said she liked it, and asked why it is so pale. She always sits really close to me and hugs my arms when I am visiting. Since she’s always home when I visit I wondered if she goes to school. She said she doesn’t and the older sister explained that their mother has 13 kids, and the 13 year old stays home to help with the seven year old.

After those conversations, I realized how much work is needed in these communities. These people need to learn about basic health, education, gender equality, and family planning. The work selling pottery in the market seems so insignificant compared to these other needs. And I only have next week to work with them before the business group heads out to the town of Danlí for Field Based Training (FBT).