Silvia with some kids in Baradero after toys were handed out to celebrate Children's Day.
Having conversations in the areas I work can be challenging. Family relationships are very complicated, with many men having multiple families and kids moving around a lot. Still, family is a very talked-about subject in this culture since most kids spend a lot of time with their families and have lots of siblings. In Baradero last week I met Juan (not his real name), a pre-teen who never wanted his picture taken. I tried to strike up a "light" conversation with him, and it went as follows:
Me: So, how many brothers and sisters do you have?
Juan: I don't know.
Me: Are you joking with me, or you really don't know because you don't all live together?
Juan: No, we don't all live together.
Me: How many are in your home?
Juan: (Thinks for a minute) Five.
Me: With parents? Or five kids?
Juan: Hmm...we're seven all together.
Me: Oh, do you live with your mom and your dad?
Juan: No, with my stepfather and stepmother.
Me: Oh, really? I have a stepmother and a stepsister. Where's your mom? (I wasn't sure that I'd understood him correctly, because I've never met anyone who lived with two stepparents.)
Juan: She lives in another village. My father is in prison.
