Kiva Stories from the Field

One of the most memorable visits I had occurred while I was doing interviews in Duc Linh, Binh Thuan province. I visited a small house made of dirt walls and a dirt floor. The walls were crumbling and had holes in them. The family used some plastic to cover up the hole so rain would not get into the house. Sometimes, the plastic is not all that successful. The mother of the house is Pham Thi Xi. She is 38 and married to Nguyen Van Tam. The interview began fairly typically. I asked her about her day and explained to her who I am. I noticed a TV in the corner of the room and asked her if she just bought it. In Vietnam, it seems that no matter how poor, everyone owns a television and karaoke machine. I am always wondering, with all the needs of the family, why purchase a television. Xi responded to my question with a huge smile on her face. She had saved up money from her improved earnings to buy the television. She turned and spoke to the loan officer Chi Phu and said, “It’s thanks to you.” She then couldn’t hold back her tears as she told Chi Phu a story of how the other day her sons were scolded by another family. Her sons went to another family’s home to watch TV, and they were told to leave because their feet and clothes were dirty. Xi said she didn’t want her sons to feel ashamed about being poor, so with the money she earned, she bought them a TV. To her, and probably many other families, having a TV relieves them of the constant reminder that they are poor. It also may symbolize the progress that they have made through their hard work. I am extremely glad that Xi shared that story. While I probably cannot fully understand their struggles, the stories of the borrowers give me a better perspective on the definition of poverty.