Mari and Christine

Every day Mari comes to tend to the house. She arrives in the morning, wearing her traditional Guatamalteca dress, and makes the beds, sweeps and mops the floors, dusts, cooks lunch, washes the dishes, and more. She is reserved, sweet as she can be, and at the tender age of 18 (though she looks 13).

(I had to wait until today to take the picture so she could bring her pretty green apron for the picture)

I have had a chance to speak with Mari almost every day before lunch, while she prepares handmade tortillas (of which she lets me help!) and whatever the entree is for the day. Matter of fact, yesterday the host mom and her planned to prepare Malanga for me because it was my last day in the house (for atleast a couple weeks because I plan to go back). Her and I have become friends. I've learned a lot about her simple life and we talk about relationships, work, life, and the such. Talking with her, we all have the same problems, just intertwined in a different culture.


Her father works at the Municipalidad de Quetzaltenango and her mother sells vegetables and fruits at a local market. They have a small farm where they grow various products too. She commutes about 30 minutes each way to the house to work because her family lives in a pueblo outside of town where everyone wears the typical Guatemalan indigenous dress. She said she feels more comfortable in the typical dress, though on the weekends if they go out grocery shopping she will sometimes wear her jeans. However, because jeans are tighter and the shirts are a little more revealing, she feels more comfortable in her typical dress.

I was curious about what wage someone in her service makes. Since we've opened up a lot to each other, I was comfortable asking general questions about money. I learned that someone offering home services, like she, can make on average between 700-1000 Quetzals/month, or about $90-$125 dollars/month. Do the math, she probably makes about $1200/year, working 8am-4pm 6 days/week. She didn't attend school after the age of 13. At 14 she started working in other peoples homes, doing the cooking and cleaning. She's worked in about half a dozen homes and has been at our current home for about 4 months. She says she really likes it.

She's told me that when I go she will miss me a lot because of the bond we've created. What she doesn't know is how much I will miss her company too. She makes me smile and laugh on a so-so day and I make her laugh on her so-so days, because I think we both look forward to our chats. Because she is considered "indigenous" there sometimes can be racism within the culture towards the Mayans, dating back many decades. I have found the Mayan people that I know to be very reflective, spiritual people. She talks often about listening to the heart. There you find the answers to your questions, she says. Simple advice.....and advice we here all the time, but hearing it from someone who lives it and seems spiritually connected, it's an interesting moment to have and be reminded of.

Saludos,

Christine