Campfires on the Caribbean

(Originally posted August 2007)

Hi Friends and Family,

This week’s update comes from the costal town of Casitas, Veracruz. Yesterday we finished the tanks that we’ve been building in Copales and decided to visit the beach on our day off. Yesterday, we left Copales on foot, caught a bus to Ayotoxco and two buses later, we arrived at the Gulf of Mexico. It’s a nice, little touristy beach town. We found a cheap room to rent for the night but ended up sitting on the beach until the sun was rising. It was a great bonding moment for our group, spending hours just chatting.  

I’ve felt a little homesick this past week as I watch my city of Minneapolis every night on the news. My thoughts are there in Minneapolis for all those affected by the tragedy of the bridge collapse. I first received a message via e-mail from some of my University cohort friends on Thursday morning when I was purchasing more materials for the ecological stoves in Ayotoxco. When I returned to Copales, I was talking to a family about the collapse and they had already heard about it on the news. Many people in Copales now know that I live in the city where the accident occured and have been inviting me to their houses to watch the daily news. The accident has been one of the feature stories for the past few days on the Mexican news. I’ve honestly been surprised how much news coverage it’s received here. Interestingly though, the coverage is much different than I imagine it is in the U.S. right now. After the initial information, pictures and videos, the coverage has focused on the Mexicans and Mexican-Americans involved. One of the people who died in the collapse was a Mexican man from the state of Guerrero. There have been several features on his life and interviews with his wife, parents and children in Guerrero. Also involved in the rescue efforts was a Mexican-American traveling on the bus filled with children. Another featured story related to the accident was his personal recount of the events. I hope that everyone in Minneapolis is recovering from this terrible accident.

I’ve spent some time this week with the family of twelve year old Antonio. I was originally called to the house to translate an article that appeared in a local paper in the U.S. about his family, his life in Copales and his sponsor through the Christian Children’s Fund. For the last nine years, Antonio and his family have received money, letters and gifts from his sponsor in the U.S. The money allows him to study, have a pair of shoes and helps his family eat a better diet. The letters and gifts have created a lasting relationship between the families. The only difficulty is that the letters are read to him one time when he receives them. After that, the momentos are of little use since no one in Copales can read English. I spent several hours with the family the other night, drinking coffee and rereading and translating years of letters. Another day, Antonio used my camera to take pictures of his family, friends, house and community that I’ll burn onto a disk and mail to his sponsor in the U.S. so that he can share more with her.

This week, we had a little party for all the señoras in the community. For several weeks, they have not been able to participate in our workshops because of a semi-mandatory government literacy program in Copales. Instead, we focused on children and teenagers but now we’re able to spend more time with the women in the community. On Tuesday, we hosted a coffee and cookies gathering in our house (yes, the one room house we live in). We had 35 women in our house and everyone enjoyed chatting and snacking all afternoon and evening. Many of the women also brought food and soda to the party. Also, the majority wanted to learn how to make the friendship bracelets that we’ve taught the kids (and are the biggest trend to hit Copales). It was quite difficult for some of the older women, but the kids helped and now just about everyone has a new bracelet.

A big issue that we´ve been discussing in our group is the machismo in the community and the culture here. It was less obvious in the first few weeks, but as we began the construction projects it quickly became a big issue. Sometimes, it’s obvious and other times, the machismo is very subtle. I’ve experienced people that do not speak directly to me related to construction stuff, but rather only speak to the men in my group. I’ve seen men not trust women to do the same work. I’ve been told, “Ohh, you shouldn’t do that, you’ll hurt yourself…have one of the men do it instead.” It’s been difficult for me to accept the difference in gender roles and opportunities in the community but through discussions with my group members, I’m learning a lot and my eyes have been opened to the unfortunate reality that the majority of women face in the world as they are limited in economics, politics, and education. I had never considered myself a major feminist before, but rather an equalist. This experience makes me appreciate even more the opportunities that I’ve been given in my life, especially the opportunity to study and choose my own career path.

A few other notes from this week:

* I ate armadillo for dinner the other night. Thank goodness Juan didn’t tell me what it was until after or else I would have been more hesitant to try it.

* Some of the ladies in the town have hanging out with us a lot this past week. We now know where to purchase a half liter of aguardiente for 90 cents.

* The very pregnant cat that we live with had her babies. We now have 3 very loud kittens living with us too.

* I saw my first snake this week. It slithered past a few feet from me. No harm done but I don’t think actually seeing a snake has helped my phobia at all.

That’s all for this week´s update. Tomorrow morning we start building stoves. The community is very excited to learn how to build them so they can continue the project after we leave.  

I miss everyone much and I am looking forward to seeing everyone very soon in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Bye!

– Megan