Sothee is a hard-working woman who creates handmade products using leaves from the Palmyrah tree. She lives on a rural farm with her two children, a boy and a girl. Sothee’s husband has medical problems, which means he is unable to provide for the family. After doing Palmyrah work for the last two years, Sothee has risen to become a rural entrepreneur, and a model for the other village women to aspire to. She is now the head of 57 women in the Rural Women’s Development Group in her area. Before doing this work, Sothee’s life was very different. As Sothee says, the handmade work with the Palmyrah leaves has given her and her family a powerful chance in life.
The products she creates from the Palmyrah leaf are varied and colourful, like coasters, trays, handbags and purses. Sothee grows the Palymrah tree in her back yard, and dries the leaves for three days before she begins the process of weaving them into beautiful items. The products she creates are 100% natural.
Using the income she earns from weaving the Palmyrah leaves, Sothee supports her family and is able to help her family pursue opportunities that they would otherwise be unable to achieve. The income from the Palmyrah products also supplements a small income from farming that the family also do on their leafy farm.
Sothee’s children have both completed high school and are pursuing advanced education, or are in the workplace. They are the first in the family to do this. Sothee’s young daughter, Rahini, helps her mother with the weaving and creation of the Palymrah products. Rahini has just completed high school and is about to embark on her college course, where she is studying to be a teacher. As Rahini emotionally explains, “I have watched my mother struggle for so long. She has worked hard to provide for our family and give us the best opportunities she could. I want to do everything I can to help my mother”.
Both mother and daughter enjoy the hands-on work of weaving the Palymrah leaf into gorgeous pieces. As Sothee explains, “I like to do things with my hands. It is great to create with your hands something original”. The work with the Palmyrah leaves has come about after a long period of struggle for Sothee and her family. She remembers a time when her family could not afford to eat properly and had to eat the same food every day for every meal. The hardship her family faced was also compounded by the displacement of her family during the civil conflict in Sri Lanka’s north. After a long struggle, Sothee’s fortunes have turned around. Her work with the Palymrah leaves has changed the direction of her life and given her a new sense of confidence and hope for the future.