Then while i was tidying up my stuff in my room, the landlady's mother and sister came to talk to me. They told me about an incident involving the maid.
This late afternoon, the landlady's sister saw the maid acting sneakily in the kitchen and seemed like hiding something in the cabinet under the basin. She then checked it out and saw an unfinished bowl of baked beans hidden under the basin. She questioned the maid and found out that she secretly opened up the canned baked beans and ate it, but then she couldn't finish the whole bowl and decided to throw it away when the others weren't paying attention.
So as expected, she was reprimanded for it. And the landlady's mother and sister weren't really discreet when relating the incident to me; they were talking so loudly and in such an unhappy tone that the maid could easily guess what they were talking about.
Later on, i went to the kitchen to wash my cup, and then found the maid squatting at the basin (which would hide her from view from the others) and crying sadly. I've mentioned before that she has always appeared happy and cheerful, and even though i do not like her very much, i still felt really bad seeing her crying like that. I didn't know what to do but just patted her on the shoulder and asked her if she was ok. She nodded and continued weeping. I didn't wanna make a scene out of it and so i just walked away.
Then after a while, i saw her packing her luggage in her room (as her room was direct opposite of mine). She was still weeping while she packed. I went to her and passed her some tissue papers and tried to console her. She then told me that she wanted to leave, for she felt that the family had no trust in her at all. She said she would never steal anything from anyone but the landlady and her family was constantly monitoring her, as if she is a dishonest person.
Well, in situation like this, i of course didn't ask her about the previous incident when she lied about boiling the water, nor did i mention the afternoon incident. These are not for me to probe, as i'm not her employer. Only the landlady can question her on these incidents. So all that i did was just pat her back and told her not to cry anymore.
I could imagine that it would be quite a scene when the landlady returned, so i went to the mall opposite where i stayed and shopped for groceries. When i returned, the landlady was already back and fuming in the living room. She asked me what the maid told me, and i said that the maid was crying and wanted to leave. I said she felt that the family distrust her.
The landlady then said that the maid hasn't been behaving in the manner that was worthy of being trusted. She said she told the maid the same thing, that if she wanted the family to trust her, she shouldn't have done the things that she did. The landlady then told me that the maid wasn't leaving. She packed her stuff because she thought the landlady would send her away after being informed of the incident (because of the three rules that the landlady had told her earlier). The landlady also told the maid that if she is hungry and wants to eat anything, she can just ask instead of stealing.
Frankly, i do not know how this whole thing ends. Basically the maid is still staying, but i'm not sure if she would bear any grudges on the landlady. The kids are left alone with the maid most of the time, and she handles everything in the household. We've read too many news about maids playing a fool with the food and drinks as vengeance on their employers. I am just worried for the kids.
See, i'm also one of the persons who have no trust in her too. On one hand, i have my reservation about her and feel that she isn't really that sincere in her behaviours and words. On the other hand, i feel really bad seeing her being scolded and crying so sadly, especially she is all alone here in a foreign land, working hard as a maid to feed her family back home.
I am always torn between two different opinions on people and things. Gosh, i'm such a contradicting person!
Labels: life
