PERU | Friday, 5 July 2013 | Views [178] | View Larger Image
This woman is the definition of determination and resilience. She lives alone in a mud house with little to no food. Her children no longer take care of her, they have all moved to the city to find jobs and provide for their children. She is disabled and has very minimal use of her left hand. We visited her and brought her some food and offered to help wash herself and her clothing and bed linen. Initially she refused our help, out of sheer pride and weariness of five very pale strangers suddenly entering her home. After reassuring her through our translator’s broken Quechua that we were not going to steal her clothes, we washed them in the river and laid them on the grass to dry beside her house. I took this photo as she was coming around the corner to check up on us and ensure that we were placing her wet belongings in the correct spot for optimal sunlight - even though there was a language barrier all of us still respected the fact that she knew best.
