another day at the market

yesturday i was on my way to El Portillo....the bus terminal is directly situated in front of a market. this market sells a variety of goods, cookies, sweets (LOTS AND LOTS of sweets), fruits vegetables, toys (bought two little toys filled with candy to give away as prizes for a game the kids and i were going to play on the subject of self esteem) and there she was...out cold on the concrete right in front of the small plastic froggie and bear toys and peanuts. money was strown about. her skirt above her knees exposing her torn knee high stockings. her eyes closed. both arms crossed in front of her. one elbow still holding on to her straw purse. everyone standing around chatting. through the mur mur of the crowd i was unable to overhear what had just taken place. so, i asked the kind lady that just placed my two little toy prizes in my green and white striped plastic bag, "que paso?" The Chele (paler fair skinned honduran) just hit her!!!

everyone was standing around. well, my first instinct was not that some man just hit her. i thought surely she had just suffered a heart attack or heat stroke. that wasn´t toooo far fetched. it was, after all, really hot and she was an older woman. The Chele was propped up against a Mi Leche truck with a menacing grin.. looking on at his wife, girlfriend, sister??? who knows? i didn´t want to partake in the whole showcase of this incident, but i was stunned. i couldn´t believe it. the longer i stood there, the more stunned i was at the fact that no one did anything. clearly there were witnesses. her eyelids started to open yet her eyes were not there. they were literally rolled back in her head. only the whites of her eyes were showing. a lady to my right began to pick up her money that had been laying on the sticky mango juice covered floor. the lady that had placed the toys in my bag began to say in a harsh voice, "what are you doing? you better put that back on the floor before someone accuses you of stealing." the lady continued to pick up the money.

i have mentioned before the state of machoism in this society. the increase of child and wife abuse. cases of hiv growing (not with males but unknowing housewives), young girls telling me that "if i ask the guy to use a condom he will call me a whore," men asking woman out on dates and when asked "are you married?"the response is "yeah but it doesn´t matter," boys in the household getting treated like kings while the girls run around doing errands and household duties, bossed around by brother. whether the forementioned has anything to do with machoism could be argued, but no police were called, no one helped until finally the lady that picked up the money grabbed the older woman´s arm. their faces were shockless expressionless. she came to, startled, ready to fight. the market lady put her hand on her head. calmed her. said kind words. the older woman laid her head back down. closed her eyes. i walked away.

i wonder how the woman is today. did she finally say to herself "i´m leaving this guy!" or is she still forever tied down by her womanly duties of taking care of the kids, cooking the meals, washing the clothes, staying at home day in and day out because she is afraid of being alone, unable to take care of her 8 children with her $2 a day salary. rather suffer the every now and then hits and jabs for an "easier" life with the man she loved and now no longer loves yet needs...his manliness, his occasional drunken embrace that makes her forget the blackeyes and fractured ribs. it may all be worth it in the end for her or may very well not be, but one can never judge.