It is a strange dynamic for us to have a "staff". We have a day and a night guard (paid for by the hospital). We pay Blessings to basically help wherever we need him, whether it is to coax along my vanity projects (vegetable garden and a chicken coop) or wash the dishes. We pay Brenda (one of our day guards) to do our laundry twice a week. When I told Blessings that few people in America have "help", he raised his eyebrows in disbelief and barely mustered a, "wow".
When Elizabeth and I lived in Kenya, we resisted having anyone help us in our tiny guest house. We really didn't need help keeping such a small place clean and thought washing our clothes by hand would be a great life experience. However, after turning down several hopeful applicants, we received wisdom from some Kenyan friends that informed us that employing people is an important part of the local economy. Every time we say "no" to help, we say no to another job created.
So, as we relented then, we have relented now. Not that anyone had to twist my arm NOT to hand wash my family's clothes or anything! What we pay is exceedingly generous by Malawian standards, but the amount would probably have us featured back home in some television expose on labor abuse. I have told Blessings that it is strange to have him doing work for us that we could otherwise do ourselves. He has a refreshingly simple response to our discomfort, "No. This is my job." And so it is. He is grateful for the work and we are grateful for his help.
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