Blind, Afraid, and Searching for Water

Water is scarce here in the Andes mountains where Maribel lives in Peru. Because she is blind, each day Maribel walks on a path she has memorized towards the SOUND of running water. “I learned to recognize the sounds of everything. Then, I learned to identify smells. But the water is not close to the house. I find the water by listening for it.”

Maribel is legally blind with only 5% of her vision left due to an irreversible condition called retinitis pigmentosa. But that doesn’t stop her from doing what’s needed to care for herself and her young son.  “I use a cup to collect the water and put it into my bucket.  I carry a full bucket, but because I stumble when I walk, the bucket is half empty by the time I get home,” she said.  

Maribel is raising her 2-year-old son while her husband works far from home. Her greatest challenge is collecting water, especially during dry season when her regular stream dries up.  Then she has to walk farther down to a river with a dangerous bank. “One day I misjudged my steps and fell into the river. I think from that moment on, I’ve been very afraid,” she said. 

Meanwhile, the water Maribel collects is not safe for human consumption.  Sometimes her son drinks it without her realizing it.  “Even though I try to give him boiled water, there are times when maybe he drinks the dirty water. I don't know. I can't see.  He gets sick with diarrhea and stomach pains and I have to take him to the clinic.”  

Then, thanks to YOU, Operation Blessing came to the community and built a water collection and treatment system.  We also ran pipes to the homes of all 26 families who live there— including Maribels.  “For me, it is a great blessing to have clean water right at my doorstep, clean water to drink to wash, and to cook. And they even built me a bathroom. What a blessing!” 

“May God bless you and may you never stop doing good in this world. Thank you very much.”  

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