Baby is my house helper. Her story is a common one. It is makes me have compassion on her and want to help her, yet at the same time, she is one of the fortunate ones.
Born to a Muslim father and a Hindu mother, she is part of the muslim community, but she doesn't really fit in to either community and adheres to neither religion. She is the youngest of 4 daughters. Her father applied cement to the walls of buildings for a living and her mother was a domestic helper. Baby so desired to go to school that she enrolled herself in a government school when she was old enough and her father took on a second job as a truck driver. Baby had dreams of going to a private high school so that she could get a good job, but when her father died unexpectedly, she gave up on that dream. Shortly after her fathers death, her mother fell and dislocated her hip. The family could not afford medical care, so the three girls still in the home took care of her. Baby quit school when she was around 10 to go to work as a domestic helper. She was young and weak so she only took one job.
As time passed, the neighbors were all after the older daughter to get married- she was getting too old and it wasn't right for her to be single. The family could not afford a dowery so they determined that she must work instead. In the mean time, the middle daughter ran off with a guy for a "love marriage". When the family insisted on a dowery, the community pitched in to provide what they could. Shorty after the marriage, the husband and in-laws started beating the sister severely because she did not conceive a child right away. The man tried to divorce her but the community would not allow it. Now she is 4 months pregnant but the husband gives her no money for food or medicine. She must live with her mother.
So Baby alone works to support her mother and her pregnant sister. They get by on rations from the government of rice, oil, coal, wood (given at a discounted price). During the month if they have any needs Baby goes to a store and purchases food or medicine... on credit line, promising to pay when she gets paid at the end of the month. So when the end of the month comes she pays rent, pays off her debt, and is once again without money. Living hand to mouth. Baby normally walks 30 minutes to work without having eaten any breakfast. She goes to work for a woman who requires her to do the work of a full-time helper but only pays her the salary of one who sweeps, mops, and does the dishes. Baby has been taught to submit to her elders, so she does what she is told without demanding higher wages. The lady offers her no food or water to drink, so that by the time she reaches my house she is weary and weak. I am thankful that the Lord has put her in my life- to show her His love as no one else has done so before.
I say that she is lucky because I know what life she could have. The men and boys in her neighborhood all accuse of being a "dirty girl", they suspect that she must be a prostitute- as no other women in her society go out for work. But what can she do- there are no men in her house. But she does not do "dirty" work. She is a hard worker, and earns an honest living. It is not what she had hoped for her life, but I believe that God has a purpose for her.
My internet speed does not allow me to blog with very much design. Here are a few pictures from our house hunt. We saw one place that was so cool. It had dark wood built ins all through the house, wood beams, and the kitchen had a look through into the dining room. The outside had a beautiful garden, there was a preschool and a pediatrician right next door. But alas, it was too big for us. Other places we saw had fun colored walls, off centered tiles and fixtures, tacky built-ins, and no play outside area for the kids to play. Pictures of the place we chose will come later.
