your family update
You Backed them and things began to change
“We live in a leaf thatched hut, but if we had tin sheets over it, it wouldn’t leak in the rain or blow away when it’s windy.”
Vaani lives with her husband and their four-year-old son in Aithiyamalai in the East of Sri Lanka. Right now she is pregnant, so she can’t do the work she used to do in the fields. Her husband does daily wage work, but he can’t work all the time because of a heart problem. Most days, he does whatever work someone calls him to do, but some days there is no work at all.
Their house is made of thatch, and when it rains, water comes in. Last December strong winds lifted part of the roof, and they had to patch it with wet wood and tape to keep it from flying away again. Food is not always easy either. They try to eat two meals a day, just rice and vegetable, but sometimes even that is hard. Then they borrow food on credit from the shop and pay it back when they get some money.
Vaani grew up with her father and seven siblings. Her father did hard work breaking stones by hand to support them, and they often had to wait until there was work before they could eat. She went to school only until fifth grade because the family couldn’t afford it.
Now, Vaani wants her son to grow up differently. She hopes he can study well and get a steady job, maybe in the government. She tries to keep their home safe patch the roof, and make sure he has enough to eat. Every small repair and every time they manage to work is helping them live a little better and plan for the future.