It's been a long time...

without internet. So I haven’t been up to date with blogging, but here I am! Still alive, breathing, enjoying life, getting up early and going to bed at 9AM. I feel like an old lady for going to bed so early but it does me good and I can get up feeling refreshed. =)

Drip drop Pour.

Rainy season has started. For those of you who don’t know, we don’t get the 4 seasons of spring, summer, fall, winter like in the NE. We get the dry season and the wet season. Therefore, each and every day, the clouds gather and water pours from the sky. Sometimes it pours and thunders and strikes lightning like there’s no tomorrow. But after half an hour, all turns quiet and it’s back to being tranquilo. Only, after a rain, the leaves shine a brilliant green and the bark a dark coffee brown, and the ground, soft and mobile under your feet. Sometimes it just drizzles in fifteen minute intervals, continuing throughout the afternoon and into the evening. The air turns crisp and cool and I put on the sweater I thought I would never use in a “hot” Central American country like Guatemala. Should have done more research which would have told me that yes, it does get cold, especially when you’re 2100m above sea level. There are many sites that are even colder than mine; it gets below freezing, as high as 4000m above sea level. So, back to rain. When it rained in Philly or NYC, I would feel grimy and, well, dirty. Here, I actually enjoy getting wet. It feels fresh and kind of fun. Just need to make sure my laundry isn’t still out on the line when the water starts to pour.

Ironic how when it pours water from the sky, the water from the choros (faucets) runs dry. There’s no water to drink, wash the dishes, do laundry or take showers. We went longer than a week without potable water because the rains actually clogged up the tubes that carry the water to the houses with debris. My family has huge buckets to collect the rainwater and a tank underground as well. However, this water is usually filled with dirt, leaves, sticks, bugs, etc etc and is not used to drink. This does not happen to the whole community, however. The houses in the Center did have water during this period. The houses where I live didn’t. Something I never had to think about when I was living in the States because 99.9% of the time, water flows from the faucet. Clean water, with varying temperatures, flows from the faucet. Yes, I was involved in PGWI (Philadelphia Global Water Initiative), but it wasn’t until I got here that I’m appreciating how precious and sacred water really is.

La comida.

I’ve shared my food experiences with many of you because, well, I love to eat. I love food. Here, the main staples are maiz and frijoles. So, that’s what I get everyday. Thought I’d get sick of it—and did in the beginning—but now I’m used to it and actually crave tamalitos. Tamalitos are made out of the same masa as tortillas but are wrapped in leaves or the corn husk and steamed. Food here tastes different too. For caldo de gallina, my host brother and sister got two chickens from the coop and my host mom snapped their necks and prepared them to eat. The meat is chewier and tougher but tastes absolutely amazing. When, not if, I prepare my own chicken from scratch, I’ll definitely write a whole blog about it. We actually made our own granola! It’s pretty easy after you’ve peeled out all the seeds for the granola. I want to learn how to make jam from my host mom. She uses the peaches, blackberries, and zoico? from trees around the house or in the forest to make them. Sorry, I have no idea what zoico is in English and don’t think I’m spelling it right either. Rather than using a stove or an oven, most of the families here have what you call a plancha in which you make a fire with wood and cook on top of what looks like a metal table. One evening, I was home by myself and had to prepare my own dinner. I had the pleasure of failing to start a fire with the wood and one match that I could find. Apparently, they keep whole new boxes of matches in the cupboards but I didn’t open those up. Now, I know for next time. In fact, my 10 year old brother showed me how to start a fire. Sighs. Also, can’t complain about eating fresh fruits and veggies from the farm. In addition to the obvious corn and beans, there’re avocadoes, tomatoes, lime, clementines (incredibly tiny), apples (definitely not perfectly shaped like they are in grocery stores but still perfectly tasty), onions, cabbage, lettuce, peaches (lot smaller than the ones in grocery stores), blackberries, chilacoyote, guicoy, and others which I’ve forgotten the names of…….

Yesterday I had the pleasure of cutting some zacate, a grass, to feed the sheep. My host brothers and sister always help out on the farm and I wanted to try some of the work they do. It was fun the first time, but definitely is physically hard. No wonder they don’t get fat off all those tamalitos. I’ve got to say, even though I walk a lot (30 minutes up and down unpaved hills and roads), I am getting a bit round in the middle. We also prepared a lunch and took it up for a picnic! It was a beautiful day with a bit of a wind to keep us cool from the sun.

Education.

One of my jobs as a PCV in the aldea is to give environmental education to the elementary school and middle school and to the community. When I brought up the idea to the two directors of the schools, they both showed a lot of interest in English classes. Actually, many people in the community have interest in learning English. So, I’ve started giving English and environmental classes to two 4^th grade classes, 5^th grade, 6^th grade, and the three grades in middle school. There is no high school here and the middle school is just three years old. Every time I step into the class or encounter my students outside of school, I learn something new. First of all, lots and lots and lots… LOTS of patience. Not only on my part but the students as well, especially when I have to explain things in Spanish with my accent. I need to learn how to adjust my teaching methods with each grade and each class because they all have different dynamics. One 4^th grade class is absolutely rowdy and hard to get quiet. The 9^th grade class has very good behavior but is also very shy and hard to get to talk—even in groups with each other.

In the beginning, I was very frustrated with the fact that many of the students arrive to school late or don’t come to school at all. There are many parents who don’t push education on their children. I know of several people who stopped their education before completing middle school. For some, they cannot afford the uniforms or books and therefore, stop going to school. Others (females… girls) get married. Still others don’t want to go. But now, with the kids who do go to school and who I work with… because there are plenty of students who have dreams of being teachers, police officers, environmentalists (woot!), secretaries, businessmen, etc. and want to continue their education. To go to high school, they will need to move out (usually at age 15 or 16) and go to a city. Same goes for university.

Looking back, I definitely took my education for granted. Really. Other than the Cold Stone job I had senior year of high school and the little bit of tutoring I did here and there, I never work-worked before college. And even then, work study does not compare to the work some of the kids here do. During school hours, they want to play soccer and want to talk about dramas during school because when they’re home or even during the weekends, a lot of them have to work. The kids who live in the Center (thermal baths, hotel, schools, salon… where the tourists go) work in stores, selling chips, candy, ice cream, soda, French fries, and other snacks. The kids who live on the outskirts of the Center aren’t exempt from work either. Fourth graders wash the dishes. A six year old washes her own clothes and shoes in the pila—which is hard work, MUCH harder than stuffing the clothes into a washing machine. I never washed my own clothes when I was living at home with my mom. The kids plant corn and beans, feed and give water to the dogs, pigs, chicken, sheep, cows, and whatever other animals they have. They clean the animals’ houses and cut firewood. They sweep the floor. I was horrified when my 12 year old sister told he she could sweep my room here; I said No no I can do it. I had been sweeping everyday anyway. It’s amazing how much dirt gets indoors here. It would be better to understand if you could imagine a house with a front, dirt yard, and the rooms with doors that all face the front yard. The rooms don’t connect from the inside. So, to use the bathroom, go to the kitchen, or go to a bedroom, you need to walk outside. With wind, rain, and the fact that people wear shoes here, dirt definitely gets into your room every day. The other day, I was shocked to see one of my 4^th grade students sanding a bench. Found out he works for the carpenter. Two of my middle school girls work at the hotel, cleaning the rooms, cooking for the restaurant, and caring for the baby. For working and living at the hotel, the owner pays for their education. I’m not saying the parents don’t work at all. They do! The kids just work too. In other towns, bigger towns or tourist spots, I see 6 or 7 year old boys walking around shining shoes. I see them selling ice cream. In Panajachel, I saw a girl who literally looked 5 selling bracelets. There are many kids walking around, selling artesan products such as paintings, jewelry, and woven cloths.

Definitely, family dynamics are different here. Families are bigger (7, 8, 12?!?!?!?!?! Kids) – there are more mouths to feed, more work to do, more laundry to wash, etc. So, the kids help out with the work by doing their own laundry, taking turns washing dishes and cleaning the floor. My host brothers and sister rotate who feeds which animals because, I’m assuming, it’s a lot harder to feed the four cows than it is to feed the two sheep. One of the 6^th graders has his own four sheep so they’re his responsibility. Simply put, there are students who are smart and want to pursue further education. They also have a lot of chores and work to do outside of school. That affects how much time they spend on homework and studying. Up until high school, I had all the time in the world to study, go to hakwon, and spend hours chatting online and going to Starbucks. The students here are definitely tough. BUT, they are absolutely sweet and love going on hikes with me, taking pictures, and laughing at my mistakes in Spanish. Loved it when they gobbled down the three bags of marshmallows I bought so we could make smores. Had to make them on grills (a bit unconventional, yes) but we kept pushing the day back because it kept raining. So I said, “We’re going to make smores on grills.” And it was rico.

There are a few other issues I have with the schools such as the fact that frequently, the teachers find reasons why they cannot teach. They need to go on strike for two weeks or have a meeting in the city or it’s Mother’s Day so the kids need to miss three days of classes to spend.. all.. day.. preparing for that. Or it’s the school’s anniversary, so the students need to prepare a full week for it and then spend another week with the show and then rest and take the day off on Friday. There is no consistency and either one teacher is not available to teach or the whole school gets random days off. BUT, that’s for another day. I’ll have to dig into it a bit more.

Reading: I… Rigoberta Menchú: An Indian Woman in Guatemala by Elisabeth Burgos-Debray.

Listening to: Julieta Venegas