“The war in the 80’s was a nightmare for all of us. We were treated like animals. There was no education, no food, no jobs, no nothing. By the time the Americans came we had to split up our family. The boys who were fourteen and older had to pick up arms and were forced to fight in the army. Because the chances for girls to get raped were so high I had to send them to another part of the country. Those were very hard times.”
Nicaragua – Matagalpa
“Our coffee beans don’t have a fixed price. We’re completely dependent on our natural resources and the market in New York. This means that when the harvest is poor it directly affects our lives. We either have to cut down on education, food or investment.”
Nicaragua – Matagalpa
“My boy is doing very well in school but my daughter has problems reading because she is visually impaired. I talked with my husband about saving money to get her an eye surgery. Unfortunately he is dealing with an alcohol addiction so that’s where the money ends up going.”
Nicaragua – Matagalpa
“It’s important my kids get to go to school. I’m relieved to see that they are learning more and more everyday. I try to support them but it’s hard because I never went to school myself. Sometimes they ask me to help them with their homework but I just don’t have the answers to their questions. The only thing I tell them is to trust on their instincts then they often respond with: ‘Mum, you just never know the answers’.”
Nicaragua – Matagalpa
“I want to become an engineer.”
“Why do you want to be an engineer?”
“So I can leave the countryside and visit the big city.”
Nicaragua – Jinotega
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