“It's hardly possible,” he dismissed, without even a second for considering her request.
“Why?” she questioned. She could hear him sigh on the other end of the phone.
“The people in bigger cities are more, sophisticated. I doubt they would want someone, like you.”
Lisa didn't understand. What did he mean by “like you”? Did he think she wasn't good enough? Wasn't sophisticated herself? What did he know about sophistication?
“I don't know if I can live like this anymore,” ahe answered, continuing to cry. There was another sigh.
“We will keep looking for a more suitableing family,” he assured.
She shook her head.
“How long is it going to take?” she whined.
“Lisa, please be patient, ” the man answered, hanging up the phone. Lisa put the phone back on the receiver, and crossed her arms on the desk. She gently dropped her head down on her arms, and looked to the side. She could see Nick in the yard, playing with his friends. She didn't know how long she could be hopeful for. All she knew was she couldn't keep living with these unbearable conditions.
Suddenly on Friday, Lisa got a request from a new host family.
Dear au pair,
We are a young family with our 5-year-old son Ben. We live in a big house with a garden in the city, which is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The city centreis only afew kilometers away.
As our au pair,you would bring Ben to kindergarten in the morning. In the afternoon he would be picked up again. The supermarket is only 200 meters from us. Possibly a dinner for Ben must be prepared. You have free time from 9 to about 4 o’clock in the evening and after about 7 o’clock (when we are at home). On weekends, you are also free.
You would help us with washing, ironing, and cooking, but overall you will work only 20-25 hrs. aweek. We like to do sports, excursions, or meet friends.
The subway is about a 10-minute walk from here,and it takes you 15 minutes to get to the center of the city.
You have a private room and an en suite bathroom that even has its own entrance, if desired! Books (including English), TV, radio, etc. are available. We travel a lot and would be pleased to be able to welcome a nice new "family member" as soon as possible, one who goes well with little Ben.
If you are interested, write us back.
Greetings,
Angelica, Marc, Ben
The man from the agency called Lisa and advised her about this host family. "In this big city, people are definitely tolerant of foreigners like you, as they are in the small towns," he said.
"Thank you very much!" Lisa was very grateful.
Lisa could not wait to see her new host family. After two months in prison,she would finally see civilization.
That night during dinner, the host family discussed Lisa's ingratitude. She understood everything that the host family had been doing to her. She understood that her friend had been correct. She also understood that she needed to get out of the situation as quickly as possible.
"That girl is so ungrateful. Why does she want to leave our family? We give her bread and apples. She doesn't have to eat any insects like she would back in her home land. She should be pleased that we brought her to our village. She should be grateful that she was given this opportunity to live and work in our mansion." She overhead the children saying to one another. She was fed up with the mistreatment she had been enduring. She was fed up with this so-called family.
22
Once the host family learned that Lisa was unhappy, they arranged to get a new au pair. They were going to find a more obedient one from Thailand. This was the conversation they were having at the breakfast table.
"Our new au pair will be less demanding than the current one, I'm sure," the host father explained.
"She must know her place. She will follow every order with a silent obedience and not question our hospitality. She will not speak our language and will not understand the contract," Clara added, sipping at her tea.
"I think she should be timid," the host father added to the conversation.
"Plus, our new au pair won't need any food. In Thailand, you can eat fried bugs. She can just grab a few from the garden and cook them in some oil," Clara added, giggling. It seemed the more she spoke of the idea, the more excited she was to be replacing Lisa. There was no sound at the table other than knives and forks scrapping against glass.
"I will take my vacation hours and go on a trip to Thailand. I will find a new au pair in person. That way, I will know what we are agreeing to as well. I don't want to take any chances," Clara announced after a few moments of silence. The host father swallowed loudly. Prior to Lisa's arrival, it was the father who looked after the children. If Clara was taking time off work, that meant he would be in charge of them again.
"Mom, Mom, I love you. Can I come with you?" Nataly asked, suddenly speaking in a sweet tone of voice.
Clara shook her head.
"No, Mom, please take me! I would love to go with you." Julia pleaded. Suddenly, all the children were shouting "take us with you" in unison.
"No. I am going alone." Clara announced boldly. Silence fell back over the table as the conversation ended.
23
At the end of the school holidays, Lisa bought a train ticker. It was expensive for her, but she didn't care. She wanted to get away from the imprisonment she had felt. She wanted to meet a new family and work for someone who appreciated all the effort she put forth. After two months of living with goats, Lisa was excited to finally see civilization. Lisa had never been more excited as she stepped off the train. There were people everywhere. There were bright lights and so many shops. Here, she could buy anything her heart desired. There was a supermarket with a great deal of food. It was everything she had imagined when she first arrived with her host family. Now, it was finally a reality.
It had been so long since she had been acknowledged that she had almost forgot how to speak to people. She found herself tongue tied at first. Her new family was more understanding and sympathetic. There was only one child in the new family. They also regulated her spare time. She was allowed to do anything she pleased when it was her free time. She was no longer a prisoner.
After a few months in this new home, Lisa called a friend of hers. She was now living in the same town as her previous host family. Her friend told her that the entire village was talking about her. They were talking about how demanding she was. How ungrateful. Lisa sighed to herself. She didn't understand how the family could have believed her to be ungrateful. She was locked up, with no access to the outside world. She looked after four children at almost all the hours of the day. How could they believe she was demanding? She was supposed to be a family member, yet she was treated very badly.