Day ten covers the heartbreaking story of Letikiros Haiula, a 13 year old girl who hung herself on the return journey from gathering water, after she dropped and shattered her families water pot. It is incredibly difficult to do this story justice, so please take 10 minutes and read Scott Harrison's account of Letikiros' life.
We are told that suicide is not the answer. We are told that there is always another way. We are told that life is worth living. Letikiros did not see it that way. From a young age she had decided she was not going to accept her fate as merely a water gatherer. She was committed to going to school and fetching the families water. When she was old enough to begin the daily water journeys, she committed to going to school three days a week, and gathering water for her family the remaining four days. Seven days a week she made long, difficult journeys to either gather water, or attend school.
By the age of the 13 she had only completed school to a third grade level. On her journey home from gathering water, she mis-stepped and dropped her clay pot. The pot shattered, and along with it, the water that she had spent ten hours gathering for that day. In that moment, as best as her family can gather, the shame of her mistake, with overwhelming loss of a full day's work, was too much for the 13 year old girl to bare. Instead of returning home, she removed the rope from her clay pot, strung it through a nearby tree, and hung herself.
This story breaks my heart. I still can't find the words needed to express how much this hurts.
As a father of two daughters, both still very young, I can only begin to understand the pain of losing a child to suicide. I know that adolescent children will often struggle with depression, and I'm sure I'll have battles to face in the future, but the reality of my life, and my daughter's lives, is that they will not have to make daily journeys to gather water for the family. They will not have to make sacrifices that impact their schooling and career goals. They will have almost any opportunity that could be afforded them. When it comes to suicide, for my daughters, there is another way; can we say the same for Letikiros?
I don't think we can. What was her other way? Return home empty handed, face her family, and the same water and schooling struggles the very next day? How tiring. How hopeless.
Letikiros' story is a powerful one. A story that can inspire change, and hope. Water can be brought to Letikiros' village. There does not have to be another 13 year old girl, or any child, to face suicide due to water. It will require, action, conversation, and money, to fix these problems, but they are fixable. I hope this story speaks to your heart the way it does to mine.
I'm a third of the way through the challenge after today. I'm confident we will have no issues finishing. I'd like to leave today's update to Letikiros' story. It's more important than anything else I could share.
Remainder of day ten streams,