Tisa

The interview I edited today was with a 14 year old who lives in the Mitundu area with her grandmother and three younger siblings. Her mother passed away suddenly (collapsed while washing clothes, died that same night) when she was ten and her father died of pneumonia (she remembers him crying out in pain one night, and that he died after two weeks in far away hospital). Tisa goes to school three days a week and does piecework (temporary fieldwork) the other two days so that her family will have enough to eat. She was 2nd in her class of 32 students last term. When her mother was alive, she would sometimes buy the children clothes. Her father always encouraged education. She said that she will be able to face life's challenges if she can finish school.

I asked about HIV education in her school. Weekly focus groups, coed, where students discuss an assigned topic and ask the teacher for help as needed. She said that both girls and boys feel comfortable asking anything in these sessions, and that she’s never asked a question because she knows everything about HIV. If she does have a question, is there someone with whom she can speak in private? Her voice changes. “No, there is nobody.” Listening back today, I wonder what message I sent by following up a bit but not providing any good suggestions.

She mentioned that she didn’t have a uniform or school shoes and that, for the third year in a row, she and her siblings don’t have a blanket. Nights can be near freezing during Malawi’s winter months. Tisa and her siblings sleep in a sack and their chitenge (cloth) and their grandmother in her jersey. She estimated that shoes would cost 800 kwacha, slightly over $5, and I knew that a blanket was 1500 kwacha, roughly $10. Her calm and respectful request for assistance was met by awkwardness on my part as I wondered, Is it right to promise money quickly, as if even this amount is no big deal? I can buy the blanket; should I pay for the shoes as well? If I give money to her, is it fair to others who have been interviewed? Is the fact that I’m even hesitating related to my social class? ... Arichie is delivering the blanket and shoes to her with the photos from her disposable camera. It’s not enough, I know.

Tisa took great photos, both with my camera and the disposable. Not only does she have a good eye, but she clearly put a lot of care and thought into each picture. Oh and she bravely resisted her friends’ pressure and only took a few pictures of them so she could focus on documenting her daily life. This girl is so inspiring.