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Quote from Andean Lives: “He kept on traveling, and since many people knew I washed clothes, that’s how I’d earn a little money for my belly, because he wouldn’t give me a single centavo or even let me see the money he earned.” (pg. 117) Hi loves! This quote is from the mere 25 pages of Asunta’s account in Andean Lives. The man she is referring to is her first husband Eusebio. After the death of her first child, her husband became even more absent than before. His job selling merchandise gave him a reason to be continuously on the move. Amidst the tragedy of losing their child, the coping mechanism is distance. Him refusing to share financial accounts with her further adds to the separation of their lives. This sentence introduces financial abuse, which is typically intertwined with intimate partner violence. Asunta and her husband are already living amongst poverty, and her having to work to feed herself goes against the supposed social contract of a marriage where she is the childbearer/caregiver and he is the breadwinner. The use of the word “belly” is interesting to me because she is not only feeding herself but also her growing child once she gets pregnant. Even though her children aren’t surviving infancy, she is still upholding her side of the marriage while her husband isn’t. She makes money doing laundry, which is an extension of household duties. “Womanly” tasks like laundry are typically undervalued so her survival is harder because it’s more difficult to earn adequate compensation. Her already emotionally precarious marriage is further destroyed by financial stress and isolation.