On the Streets

After a few times of going out with Jennifer and the street kids she works with, I've learned that there is no such thing as a "normal" day in any of their lives. Every day is something different, you never know what is going to happen in the next week, or day, or hour. I still don't know how I'm going to create my thesis or what I'm going to focus on, but tagging along with Jen has been very interesting, and I know that I'll come home with plenty of stories and memories.

I am more amazed every day at Jennifer and how she does what she does with these kids. She goes to dangerous parts of the city, hangs around people who do drugs and fight and rob, and dedicates much of her time to helping them as much as she can. She basically serves as their driver, doctor/nurse, lawyer, banker, counselor, and much more depending on the day. She advocates for them in places where they're discriminated against. She never seems afraid or nervous in potentially dangerous situations. Most of all, I admire the friendships she has with many street kids. They obviously respect and appreciate her a lot.

It's also kind of surprising how polite the street kids (usually) are. I know it shouldn't be surprising, because they're people and know how to behave like people, but it surprised me that manners are so important to them. They call Jen "Señorita" or sometimes "Señorita Jennifer." That word is a title and shows respect for her. Apparently if someone doesn't use it and just calls her Jennifer, the others will scold that person for their lack of respect. Greetings are also important. "Good morning," "good afternoon," or even a "hello, Señorita" is a must. Otherwise it is like they are ignoring her, or just jumping in asking her for something without being polite first. All of that is starting to apply to me too.

Also, the kids buy food and drinks for her all the time, or if they buy something for themselves they almost always offer some to her. She buys food for them sometimes, plus with everything else she does for them it makes sense. But now that I'm around, they do the same to me too. I kind of feel like I don't deserve anything from them, so I sometimes feel bad taking it. Plus a lot of times they buy food from the street that may not be safe for me to eat. But I'm slowly learning to just accept it anyway. I already know that it's rude in Bolivian culture to reject what people try to give you. Maite has told me that to them it's like you're rejecting the person, not just what they're giving you. So even when you're trying to be polite and unimposing on someone, you're really being rude. I'm trying to find a balance between saying yes and no, and trying to be okay with taking things from the kids when they offer them to me. Even sometimes if I do say no, they just give it to me anyway. It's sweet to me that even though I don't know them that well, they're so generous and nice just because I'm with them.

The first example of politeness I experienced this year: When Kati and I got to the Cochabamba airport, Jennifer met us with a carload of street kids, and Elena and Kaley picked us up in the Casa de Amor truck. The boys carried our suitcases and loaded them into the truck.

(Picture stolen from Kati :p)

Oh and they're also very protective of Jennifer and now me. Even though they sometimes fight among each other, and some of them steal from people, they would never harm Jen or steal from her. If 2 people are fighting and Jen is around, the others tell them to go farther away from where she is. My first night out with them, I was in the back seat of Jen's car and the 2 guys next to me started arguing and then elbowing each other in the face. I got a little nervous because I thought I might get hit on accident just for being so close to them, so I called to Jen in the front seat and she stopped it. Some of the other kids in the car yelled at those 2 guys, saying that they had no respect for Jennifer and that if they did stuff like that she would never let them in her car again.

Walking around here, just being a white girl usually gets lots of stares, whistles, and comments. Just yesterday I was walking around the market with Jen and some of the kids, and a group of guys we passed yelled out at me. The girl I was behind stopped and yelled at them, "Don't bother her, jerks!" It's funny to me because usually I just ignore it and keep walking, but they have to say something back in my (or Jen's) defense.

So those are some of my impressions of the street kids so far. As I spend more time with them, I'm sure I'll have more stories and insights to share!