Getting to know Wati

To those who's been waiting for the story on the "bad fish" in Jinmen, I apologize for not sharing it for so long. Had I tried to write about it sooner, it would have been terribly long with details and I would have gotten too emotionally caught up with it. Sometimes I wish I were a poet or a novelist, but [sigh] even when I share their sentiments, I just don't have the talent.

Now, two weeks later, I shall simply share the gist. The protagonist is Wati, a 21-year-old Indonesian domestic helper at our home-stay located in an isolated village in Jinmen.









Picture: Wati with Noah and Ben in the courtyard of my home-stay/B&B.


The home-stay hostess had been widely praised for her kind heart, great knowledge, outgoing personality, and of course, amazing hospitality. While all of these were true as we got to know her, over the three days, a dark side of her house slowly revealed itself.

Whenever we were at 'home', we saw Wati diligently clean. She always carried a sweet but melancholic smile and spoke few words. It turned out that she only came from Indonesia three months ago, and knew only a little Chinese. In separate occasions, we found some disturbing information through observation and through secret conversations: She had only one pair of socks which she found in the trash can after some guests left. Her clothes were clearly oversized (later we figured out being from Java, of course she had no winter clothes suitable for the windy Jinmen weather). She had not been paid, and she had no money whatsoever. She works nonstop from 5:30am to 8 or 9pm. She doesn't get breakfasts everyday. The original contract specified that she was to be a comfort-keeper to the owner's elderly mother in Taipei, but ended up in Jinmen cleaning the B&B (This outcome is very common about hired domestic helpers: on the paper they are hired to take care of the elderly but in reality they do whatever they are asked to do: cleaning, cooking, selling things, babysitting). Worst of all, she had not been in touch with her parents in any way, so they had no idea of her whereabouts.

For some reason, Wati was extremely fearful of the owner and would only speak to me when hiding somewhere. So we spent a lot of time darting from room to room with her pretending to sweep and me seeping tea so we could exchange a few words. On the other hand, our interactions with the owner had been fun, interesting, and happy. I was confused, scared, disgusted, and compelled to take on the bossy and nosy self to do whatever I could.

I asked her to write a letter and promised to mail it for her. (Obviously, a day later, putting the letter into the mailbox was the most profound "mailing experience" for me.) I also gave her a pre-paid calling card, encouraging her to try making a call when her boss is out. I helped her contact her placement agency to inquire about her salary.

Saying good-bye was really hard, as I knew I'll never know what happens to her. She was teary and hugged me with such a gaze of appreciation that I didn't deserve. I left with a bad taste in my mouth about the entire Jinmen trip.