The “paisa” family

I started volunteering in the city of Apartado.
Apartado is on the Colombian coast, on the Caribbean sea, close to the border with Panama.
The project I am in is a private school holding English classes for the workers of the banana field and their families.
The family I am staying at is the same family that started 10 years ago this project.
The family is “special”.
The family is different. Different not only from whatever I have ever seen in Colombia, but also from what I have ever seen in my entire life…

The mom
Her name is Luz Dary.
She is from the mountains close to Medellin and moved with all her family to Apartado a decade earlier.
She is 47 years old but she looks much younger.
The 1st day, when I entered into the house and saw her with the daughter on the black sofa, I thought she was an older sister.
She always dresses up fancy, Colombian fancy: jeans, closed shoes and a T-shirt.
Her hair are always perfect. She and the daughter dry their hair even if outside is +40 degrees.
She is the one who, one day while, we were going to the school and my wet hair were drying wildly in the sun, asked why I do not use any special cream for my hair… Yes, my hair are not as coming out from a hairdresser but I am also backpacking since 5 months…
She always wears make up and makes her face paler than the rest of her body.
She always has a solar cream in her purse and takes it out very often to cover her face and her hands.
In her purse she always has an umbrella too and when the sun is shining during the day, She takes it out and cover herself with it. God forbid that she could get a bit darker…
She often smiles but often her tone of voice is a mix among a person being upset, sad and angry, all at the same time.
She touches my arm a lot while talking or walking together.
Whenever something is missing in the house, she turns to whoever is around of her entourage and asks this person to buy or get that same thing. Her entourage is at home her cleaning lady, in the school the secretary of the school or the cleaning lady of the school.
She calls the school, the business.
She is the one who doesn’t really want anybody to use the bathroom on the 1st floor, the bathroom next to her marital room.
She takes classes of English in the school.

The dad
His name is Luis.
He is from Medellin city and moved to Apartado a decade earlier too. He and his idea of creating the English school for the local was the reason for the whole family to move on here.
He is a teacher of the school and apparently tried to pass the C1 TOEFL but did not manage.
I never got to know his age but he definitely looks older than the mom.
He loves to make long speeches, asked of A-B-C, he will start with A move to L-M-N and eventually end with B and C.
He has a very affectionate relationship with the dog and his son.
Every time he comes home he lets the dog lick his head [the father is bald] standing on the previous last step of the stairs. And afterwards he goes hugging his son, telling him: “mi hijo, que tal? como te fue?” [my son, how are you?how was your day?]
He is very busy: Monday to Saturday he is from the early morning till late afternoon outside the house, just coming back to the house for a common lunch with the whole family and the volunteers of the time.

The daughter
Her name is Catalina or Cata.
she went to the University a couple of years in Apartado and a couple of years in Medellin.
she is 25 years old.
She is the director of the school and also a teacher for the very beginners.
To be Colombian, she is very tall [I would say 170cm] and counting that her parents are both shorter that her, she is surprisingly tall.
As all the Colombian girls, she is beautiful.
At the contrary of her mom, she doesn’t wear make up. But she does wear contact lenses that make one of her eyes constantly red.
As her mom, her hair are long and always fabulous.
As her mom, she always dresses up fancy, Colombian fancy: jeans, closed shoes and a t-shirt, while not on duties, she dresses also with very tied dresses.
she spends most of her time between the school and the house.
she never has friends over or never goes out with friends, not even a drink on the weekends.
Even on a Saturday night she rather stays at home with the brother, put a  brand new mask  to her face or a brand new conditioner to her hair; brand new products that have been delivered directly to her {parents’} house.
She is the one who calls me a taxi when it is raining and I have to go to the school.
She is the one who gives me the pesos when I realize the toilet paper is finished in the bathroom or the milk in the fridge and I want to go the shop next door to buy it.

The son
His name is Fausto.
He is 15 years old.
Even not fancying Colombians, I can tell he is a beautiful boy and he will be a very beautiful man.
He spends most of her time between the school and the house.
He never has friends over or never goes out with friends, not even on the weekends.
4 months ago he started to play piano, just listening and watching videos in youtube and now he already plays very very good.
He likes to talk with me.

The dog
His name is Joe and he is a German Sheppard.
I don’t know his age.
He often lies on the floor trying to chill on the colder pavement.
He waits on the father in front of the stairs and anytime somebody of the family or the volunteers come home, he barfs very loudly.
He just loves the father and from quiet and calm becomes very active and full of energy, when he sees him coming back home.
sometimes they put a red/white bandana on his neck.
Often he smells a lot but he is sweet, never enters my room, even if I [or L.] we leave the door opened.
I think he likes me, and of course I like him, I like to play with him and touch him and talk to him with weird voices, calling him laugh PERROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! [ doooooooooooog!].

The housekeeper
Her name is Disney.
Yes, Disney as Walter Disney but it is pronounced with the accent on the last vowels EY.
She has an undefined age, her older son is 22 and the youngest is 11.
She is super sweet.
She cooks magnificently. As I love to say to her after every lunch, she is the best Colombian restaurant I have ever been too.
She works Mondays-Fridays from 7:00AM to 5:00PM.
She cooks, cleans, does laundry, also for us, the volunteers. We are not allowed to use the washing maschine but we have to handly was our underwear.
She is the main point of contact for the mother/daughter regarding house related issues. she knows everything and does everything.
She works here almost  years but I am pretty sure before her, there must have been another housekeeper.

The house
The house is directly in front of the stadium in Apartado.
It is on 3 floor.
The entrance is on the groundfloor and the stairs led directly to the 1st floor, where there is the living room, the kitchen, the room of the parents, the room of the son with in between a bathroom.
From the 1st floor there are other stairs to the 2nd floor, where there is the daughter room, the volunteering room, a bathroom, a big terrace with a sofa and few chairs, the place where Disney does the laundry, where the kids make some sports and the dog eats.