giggling

12/03/23

It is not as hot today. I am sitting on my verandah. I hear giggling in the room vacated by the American. Two of the cleaning staff have been in there a long time now. The door closed. Finally they emerge. "Did you have a sleep?" I ask. Yes, they say giggling. They are both about 5 months pregnant. The one who is 26, it is her first. The other is 30 and it is her 5th. Her oldest son is 17. Yes, she was 13 when she had him.I say: "You started so young. You must have worked hard." referring to childrearing. Yes, she says, I worked in the fields in the rice and the corn. They finish off the room and take their things and leave. Giggling.