Isabel

Hello again. Today I thought we'd tell you about our new friend, Isabel. Almost the moment we arrived in Maragogi, Sandro asked us if we wanted a maid, because he knew someone who was an excellent cook and cleaner. I kind of hedged a little, as it feels like you are condescending to have a maid come in. And in Canada, it is not as common. When I talked to Thacianne about it, she told me that everyone here has a maid come in. It almost seemed snobby to not get a maid, as in you were too good to have one. Now, when I look at this house it is a bit overwhelming thinking of cleaning it, as there is a lot of tile, the bathrooms are large and get sandy and dirty very quickly, and this house is quite large, probably triple the size of our house back home, if you include the upstairs. Also even the thought of cooking in this heat tires me right out. So I decided there were three reasons I could use when people back home imply it is weird to have a maid. First of all, I could pretend I was getting someone in as an altruistic gesture, offering employment to someone from our church. Next I could say I was doing it to fit in, as everyone has one and I would love to absorb the culture, yada, yada, yada. Another big reason is to learn the language, as we would have to talk Portuguese. And I found out all those reasons are true. Isabel came for the first time yesterday, and the first thing she did was take me grocery shopping. She makes a great effort to understand our bumbling portuguese, and also talks slow enough, even word by word, when she sees we are puzzled (which is a lot!). And she talks a lot, which is great. In fact, Shaun and I had talked about getting a Portuguese tutor but really feel like we are getting a two-in-one deal! Also we had said maybe twice a week (she works for someone else 3 times a week) and we decided to also get her three times a week, which was originally what Sandro suggested. Seth is already asking her to tell her what things are in Portuguese, she just takes charge and our house looks fabulous, I love that I get to just spend time with the kids, and I think that after two months three times a week then we will be able to see if we need a maid that much or if it is a helpful experience. My feeling is it definitely will be. And it has also been nice to meet another friend in the church here in Maragogi. And to tell you the truth...getting a maid is actually like a dream come true.