5′-6″ (1.65m) Tall or Short?

As a kid growing up, and now at 5’-6” tall I’ve always been on the short side, among friends, classmates, teammates, you name it! As I walk around town and meet people in my new town, I noticed I’m actually a tall person around here. Never thought being a Kiva Fellow would make me tall… anyways, what is interesting is that it depends on your reference point.

We know that the earth is round but can you tell from your window? Maybe not. Is 40 degrees Fahrenheit (4.4 C) cold or just chilly? Depends on what you’re used to. Are you tall? Well, now I can say it depends.

Take the same point of view for $25, what do they represent for you in your hometown? Here in Nimasac Guatemala, home of Kiva Field Partner ASDIR, you can buy three small pieces of bread for Q1 (13 cents), a bottle of locally produced shampoo for Q5.45 (70 cents), two dozens of small bananas for Q3 (38 cents) and a lunch (not pictured but pretty tasty) for Q15 ($1.90). The things you can buy with $25 are different in every country, but what I would like to know is the value of a loan for a Kiva borrower.

I believe Kiva loans represent so much more than the actual value of money and hope to learn, understand and share that with you while I work in Guatemala as a Kiva Fellow… so, join Kiva and Team Viva Guatemala or your favorite team and let’s make a difference together.

Carlos Cruz Montano is a Kiva Fellow working with ASDIR in Nimasac, Guatemala.