I'm on my third 'house helper;' someone that helps me fetch water and washes my clothes. It's a luxury, I know, but I really miss them when they're not around. The borehole isn't close, and my clothes just don't seem as clean when I wash them myself.
My first friend was Rita. She has two kids, Elvis and Faith, and was estranged from her husband. She was living with her husband's extended family here, but the husband had taken a new wife elsewhere. In Uganda, the man gets the rights to the children when a family splits, so he had come back and was threatening to take the children away with him. She ended up taking the children to her home village and starting a tailoring business there. We still keep in touch.
My next helper was Lucy. She has 3 kids, Okello, Ojok and Rebecca. She didn't speak any English, but we still got along just fine. She'd even come over to 'hang out' when she wasn't working even though we had a hard time communicating. We would paint our nails and people watch from the porch. Her husband's job was relocated and she stuck around for a few months before leaving to join him.
I've been without help for the last few weeks and it hasn't been fun. I asked the ladies around if they knew anyone reliable, and a friend sent Lilian.
Lilian has 2 young boys and her husband passed away last August. She's relying on her garden but is struggling to find work during the dry season. She speaks English and goes to church. So far, so good... she came when she was supposed to and even 'keep time.' I hope that she'll stick around for the next few months!
Before I arrived in Uganda, I'd heard of people employing 'house help.' What a joke, I thought... that's awful. Oh how I've changed my tune. Even though I live in a one-room shack, it's a full time job keeping this place clean, myself clean and fed, getting to work and socializing with the locals. I provide an opportunity for someone to make a little money, and they save my knuckles from being raw and keep me 'looking smart.' Justify it as I will, but I sure do appreciate their help!
It's good you can provide work and money for those who can benefit a little.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived in The Kingdom, there was always a "room boy" to look after things when staying at a hotel, and a "tea boy" at work who made sure everyone had a refreshing beverage [I got yelled at one time for getting my own coffee!"]
I never needed a driver but the best was the "security guard" whom the Saudi landlord assigned to "watch over" the villa I leased since construction was not complete but I was living in one bedroom [still waiting for my personal effects to arrive, so it was like living in a hotel.]
I was to "just give him a few riyals every week; he'll be fine." [What the little guy actually did was sleep all day when I was at work.]
When construction was complete, I asked the landord what he was going to do about the security guard. His reply, "you can keep him!"
The moral of this story: check the fine print!
Keep the blog going; it's great to read about your adventure.