Friday 18 April 2014

The housekeeper that nearly was

So for the past few weeks we have had no house keeper due to the last one going home for a wedding ( probably hers ) and never returning which has caused stress and frustration in our happy household.

So to hear the news that we had a replacement coming came as something positive. But the thing about good news here is that there is often a twist or a sting in the tail and this ones sting was the cost of getting her to Jakarta from Lampung on the island of Sumatra. Still spending 650k seemed wothwhile.

Rya was 19, married with a 4 year old boy from somewhere around 4 hours journey to the main crossing in Sumatra and had never been out of her villqge before.

Now I wrote all that in past tense because she went home tonight saying she missed her son too much. She stayed here 2 nights. We had hardly anytime to teach her what was needed or start to know her.

Our money has been refunded and we are still no closer to finding someone to be our housekeeper and carer of Jeremy but I am closer to understanding how little people know about how or what life is like in the middle of nowhere in Indonesia and there is a lot of that here.

My senior teacher told me or rather explained that there is an opinion that we should do more to help those in poverty in remote places but actually they are probably more happy than those with everything because they lead a most simple life. Rya was not forced to come rather she agreed to but I guess the distance and modern chaotic lifestyle of Jakarta and the fact she swapped her boy for ours to care for made her realise she should be at home.

Still as annoying as anything though and we still need a housekeeper.

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