Yesterday, like many days in the past six weeks, I was greatly humbled after conversing with one of the women of Yo’on Ixim. We met at the school in the morning so we could make exfoliants. Because they need a freezer but don’t have access to one at home, we decided to work at Sam’s house (where I’m staying). I learned three new things on our commute to Sam’s that again reminded me how different our lives are and how much I take for granted without realizing it.
First, as we were waiting for one of the women to arrive this morning, another woman started touching my hair. She asked what shampoo I use to make my hair so soft. I explained that I don’t stick to a particular brand, but I do use conditioner to untangle my hair. The three women I was waiting with asked what that was. I did my best to explain, but they looked at me funny. I asked them what they use to wash their hair, and they simply said “shampoo or soap.” I promised I would buy them a large bottle to share so they could try it. I wasn’t surprised that they weren’t familiar with hair conditioner, but I think about all the things I use daily that they may not know about or have access to.
After the four women were ready to go, we started walking to the bus stop. I began talking to one of the women who is very polite, despite the language barrier. She was carrying her toddler on her back, and I asked how old her daughter was. She answered confidently, “4 years and 7 months. Her birthday is in March.” I then casually asked how old she was trying to not offend her. She shyly said, “I don’t know.” I jokingly threw out numbers like “27, 30, 34” to make her smile, but she reiterated that she didn’t know. She also didn’t know the month or date of her birth. I then asked if she’s ever celebrated her birthday, and she shrugged not understanding my question. We quickly did some math to estimate her age: she thinks she got married at 16 and had her oldest son at 18. Her son is now 13, so she’s around 31 or 32. I suggested that if she wanted, she could celebrate her birthday on the same day as one of her children. She smiled, but I’m not sure she cares.
I had already planned on buying a cake and throwing a party on Friday to celebrate my last day with Yo’on Ixim. After learning that some of the women don’t know their birthday, I bought candles so they can get a chance to blow out their birthday candles. 🙂
Finally, as I continued conversing with the woman on the bus, I brought up her children. She has five kids, between the ages of 4 and 13, and she told me that her four oldest ones had gone to work that day. There is no class on Thursdays (because of a lack of funds), so the kids work selling gum on the street with their dad. They leave their home between 7 and 8am, and they return around 6pm after spending all day at a busy intersection in a wealthier part of the city. I like to believe they eat during those hours, but I’m not sure.
As we’re talking, I ask her how much her kids earn in one day. She said: “on a good day, between 50 and 60 pesos.” Now, let me break it down:
• Let’s say they work from 8:30am to 4:30pm to account for the time they spend commuting. That’s 8 hours.
• Let’s also say they all have a good day and earn 60 pesos each. That’s a total of 240 pesos between 4 kids.
• And let’s say $1 US dollar is worth $18.70 pesos (it fluctuates from day to day, but that’s around the average). They earn $12.83, less than $13.00 US dollars. In other words, they make $1.60 an hour. Between 4 kids! In traffic. In the heat.
I remember that during my first week at Yo’on Ixim, I was asked to work with one of the woman’s daughters because she was behind. I spent my evening researching lessons and prepped materials for class. However, the next day, the little girl didn’t go to school. Initially I felt frustrated that I’d devoted a couple hours to prepping my lesson only to have the child miss school. Then I learned that she’d gone to work that day. I was embarrassed by my initial reaction and was reminded that I don’t know what the kids and families go through.
Yesterday was one of those days where I felt incredibly moved by the women and their strength. I hope they feel the love and admiration I have for every one of them.
Trails And Travels 