Laundry or School?
As I walked through the village of Alobo Rom in Northern Uganda to check out an unprotected spring of water, I met Janet. She had a small pile of laundry in front of her and was washing her clothes by hand. When we started talking, she said that she did not go to school that day because her clothes were dirty. At age 13, Janet was washing her clothes rather than sitting in the classroom.
A lot of things ran through my mind at that point. Why would she be kept out of school for dirty clothes? Why were her clothes not washed the night before? Was there no one to help her? When did she stop being a child? Yet - I know this is part of life here. I know that the rest of her day is likely full of other chores, including carrying water for the family needs. I hope that some day this is not her reality, and that nothing will keep her from school - not laundry, not carrying water, and not illness. On the day that I met Janet, all I could do was share a smile and wish her the best when she returned to the classroom.
~ Pamela Crane, PhD., Africa Field Manager
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