Walking With El Salvador

A small group of women are gathered in pretty purple house.  For a while it is quiet, except for the whirrr of a few sewing machines.  Then someone makes a joke and the room erupts in laughter.  Outside the house, thunder rolls and big raindrops begin to fall with loud plops onto the leaves of banana, mango, lime, and cashew trees.  Soon the laughter and the sewing machines are equally drowned out by the loud roar of a heavy downpour on the metal roof.  Everyone goes back to work. Sewing in the pretty purple Women's House This is a story of determination.  This is a story of community.  This is a story of creativity.  This is a story of women working together in support of one another across boundaries, across cultures and across languages.  This is a story which began with a need for girls and women to have good information about their bodies, which led to a connection with Days for Girls International, which led to giving away more than 400 Days for Girls kits, and

Sonia told me that her friend really wanted me to come to her house.  I was not exactly sure who the friend was, though Sonia insisted I had met her a couple of times. The friend wished to express her gratitude for the positive impact I had had on her family and the women in her community.  I was   genuinely touched by the invitation delivered through a friend.  We arranged a date, and on a sunny Sunday afternoon, four of us drove out to the farm. The farm is nestled in the hills, down a cobbled and mud path, well-hidden below the main road.  We stepped out of the car and breathed in the warm scent of earth and wet leaves.  Three little sheep blurted out their welcomes.  Beyond the sheep, the pastures opened up into two emerald bowls, framed by trees and wire fences atop earthen rims.  We followed our hostess down a little path toward her house - one of a few homes in close proximity.  This farm is actually a small community made up of members of one big, extended family.  A de