Broccoli Salad

It is Tuesday and therefore around 9 a.m. women start arriving and wait outside my door. I scurry to get everything prepared and the women chat and laugh on my porch and their kids rip apart my plants.  Today we're making broccoli salad; the kind with raisins and bacon. 

I have the bacon cooked when the women arrive, ready to chop. One by one, they approach the bacon and pick it up daintily, with thumb and forefinger and look at the other women with a concerned look on their faces. "It's called bacon", I tell each one. They look at me, still concerned and then talk in K'iche to the other women, as if they don't believe me. "It's from a pig", I say. Then the light bulb comes on. One woman said she thought it was from a chicken. The word for chicken in K'iche is ak'. 

The women are in a good mood today and the class is small, only 7 women show up. Ela is gone today so Raquel is translating for me, and she has some spunk. 

The women laugh after each photo. They tell me to advise them if I'm going to take photos because some of them only came dressed in t-shirts and not guipiles, like the woman on the far left is wearing, which is the traditional clothing. I show them the photos after each shot and they laugh and make fun of each other. I tell them to look good next week because I'll be taking more photos.  

I wasn't sure how the salad would go over. I have rarely seen anyone eat a vegetable raw, and this whole salad is raw. They had also never used vinegar before.

 Most of the women were scared to try it. One didn't, she just carried her styrophom cup away with her as she went. Those who did try it, even if timidly at first, really liked it.  

Things Work Out

I’d never seen this driver before; standing next to his truck, shirt half-way unbuttoned and front teeth outlined in gold. There is a fleet, maybe four trucks and two vans that run from Chirijox to Nahuala, and I am familiar with this fleet but this guy was new. He must know me though (not that I’m hard to miss in a crowd of 5 1/2 foot tall black-haired people), watching me and calling out “Chirijox” as I walk down the street in Nahuala, my arms full of produce.

I get in the back. We stop and pick up two more women near the entrance of Nahuala. The view of the road is out the back only as there is a canvas tarp draped over the metal cage on the bed of the truck in case of rain. The ride was tranquil enough but before I know it we zoom past Chirijox. I start banging on the side of the truck, as is the customary signal if one wants the driver to stop; and the two other women start banging as well. But the driver doesn’t stop. I figure he can’t be headed too far, maybe to Ixtauacan Nueva at the furthest. I ask the women where they are going and they tell me to Ixtauacan Vieja; the next stop. They cheerful assure me that there will be other cars to take me to where I need to go. I know Ixtauacan Vieja as I have just started working with a women’s group there, and know that it’s only a 15 minute walk through some corn fields to get to Chirijox from there.

The driver stops. The other women and I get out and I ask the driver ,”What happened?” Remember, you told me Chirijox? The driver’s eyes got shifty and his shoulders lifted in a shrug and a small chuckle leaked out of his mouth.. My eyes rolled. I told him don’t worry about it, I can walk from here but I’m not paying.

So I started on my way through the corn.

I am fond of this path. Like I said I am familiar with it. I walk it now at least twice a week as I head to and from Ixtauacan Vieja. It is well established and wider than most paths and currently has tall corn stalks on both sides, guiding the way.

I enjoy my walk and decide to take the back way to my house. I nearly reach the juncture where I turn from the road to the path when I see a woman walk out of her house. She is old and small and I see that her eyes are damaged. I assume she is blind. She carefully inches her way from her front door and as I pass I say “je’ba”; good bye. She responds the same but continues to speak in K’iche to me. I don’t understand what she is saying but she is making motions with her hands. So I take her hand. Just in front of her door is a ditch with water streaming through it. I help her over the ditch and we begin to walk together down the hill.

She is so small, maybe 5 feet. Her hair is white, wrapped around the back and tied in a knot at the crown of her head as is typical in this area. She has a walking stick in one hand, also small. Maybe 2 1/2 feet long and well polished on both ends from use. In her other hand is my hand, feeling the paper-thinness of the skin of a woman her age. She has a good grip and is surprisingly sure on her feet, which makes me think she has some vision. She continues to chat with me in K’iche and I tell her I don’t understand. She nods. We continue to walk and I begin to wonder how long we will walk together. How will I ask her where we are going? How do I tell her I have to go home? Before I can ask another question she begins to put steady pressure on my right arm, holding her left hand, gently guiding me that way. I help her over the ditch again and onto a path. I say “good bye, talk to you later” in K’iche and she responds with the same. 

Test Time

A large portion of the women in the women's group I work with participate in a federal literacy program called CONALFA (Comite Nacional de Alfabetacion). The term runs from March to August and classes are held in homes once a week. Although the focus is basic reading and writing, as participants progress through grades the curriculum elaborates as well. 

Today was test day, the term is over. We wanted to have a small celebration for the women participating in CONALFA and since the test was in the morning, we thought we'd make donuts. Around 30 women and half as many kids showed up at my house at 8:30 this morning and we began to make donuts, using a recipe that yielded 60 of them.

The giant bowl of donut batter.

In the middle of cooking the women had to leave to take the test, the Regional Director had arrived to administer them. With a lack of desks some women kneel on the floor and use plastic stools as desks.  

And once all the tests were done, it was time to celebrate. One woman, walking into my house after her test and seeing the pile of donuts said "I'm hungry. I'm going to eat all of these. I will fight the other women so I can eat all of these". 

And of course each of the kids received a donut as well, but it's 'to each her own' here apparently. 

A Visit To Doña Tina

Doña Tina lives about a half hour's walk from Nic's house. She lives where the road splits with her husband, Don Pedro, a dozen chickens, half a dozen cows, 4 dogs, 2 cats, a donkey and plenty of visitors. Doña Tina is always feeding someone, human or animal, and she always has a smile on her face and a hug upon arrival. Needless to say she is a joy to visit.  

Although her yard is small she has a vibrant garden. Here she crawled through the leaves to show us a beautiful white begonia.

When I got out my camera it reminder her that she had photos too. She brought out a small box, sat us down and began to show us all her photos. Behind her are two more people who came to lunch as well. 

Passing photo after photo, some of them were quite old. When she saw Nic's hat she laughed and said "Puro Quiche!" which roughly means that Nic is a man of his town.

Reaching for more photos...

Doña Tina. One hell of a lady.

What To Do With A Saturday Afternoon?

Recently Nic and I found ourselves on a beautiful, tranquil Saturday afternoon in the Guatemalan countryside with no plans. As such, we walked to the top of the hill behind Nic's house and looked out over the valley. We picked a field, packed a bag and started down a trail. 

With only a slight detour over a creek, we found the field we were after. Bright green grass with a big round tree for shade and a sprawling view. 

We spread out a sheet and commenced in a game of Canasta.

Nic wasn't too happy with this hand. 

Before long, as it goes here, the dark clouds began to roll in. We decided we should probably head home but, why not, let take a few photos before we go. This is what came out of those 'few photos'.

Nic has nearly perfected the shoulder roll. Observe his form.

Nic's ridin' the pony!

By the way, the stick that turned out to be a great prop was originally carried as a guard against any lurking street dogs that may pop up on unfamiliar paths. Luckily, we only had to use it as a prop.

Although we did get caught in a light shower, it was worth it to see the rainbow at the end of a dirt road.

New Cooking Classes in an Old Town

Although things are good with my group of women here in my community, I've been wanting to work in other communities as well. A few months ago I visited Santa Catarina Ixtauacan Vieja. It is placed in a drooping green valley, about 20 minutes down a winding dirt road. It, like my community is 100% indigenous and has a recent history of defending indigenous rights. Needless to say, it is a beautiful and interesting place to visit. So, on my visit there a few months ago I met a sharp young woman, Antonia, who helps out with a women's group. I finally gave her a call and 5 days later I was working with a group of 17 young women, preparing to make chili.

Some women wait patiently while others chop veggies.

We cooked on a wood-burning stove. This thing puts out soo much heat! It made for some good chili.

Chopping veggies while the pot simmers. Served with hot tortillas this made for an excellent lunch. One woman told me she's never had anything so delicious. 

Me and a few of the ladies. Most of them were too shy for the camera, although they weren't shy in the group. These ladies are enthusiastic and friendly and I'm excited to continue to work with them and to learn more about their community. 

One Year Anniversary

Yes, loyal blog-followers, I can't believe it either but it is true. I arrived in-country one year ago. It has been a year full of growth, experience and change and it has gone by so quickly. I still feel good (on most days) about my time and work here and although the thought of another year plus here is intimidating at times, it is also exciting. 

So, to celebrate our anniversary, much of our training group got together and spent a night at a beautiful natural hot springs outside of Xela. You have to travel high into the mountains through agricultural fields to reach it but once there it is so beautiful and so relaxing.  

The pools from the patio. There are three pools; the source (and therefore the hottest) pool leads into the middle pool and then leads into the kiddie pool that is in the forefront of this photo. 

The source pool. Behind me is a small waterfall of geothermic water. This pool was just right for the early morning soak. 

We each stayed in a bungalow that had a fire place! So nice after getting out of the hot springs and into the chilly mountain nighttime air.

The view from the walkway. You can see the bungalow with grilling area. You can also see how high we were. This area is a strange and beautiful mix of mountains and jungle. 

Prehistoric plants. Each leaf is about 3 feet across. 

When I arrived home after my relaxing weekend with friends I found Spiderman had been scoping my house while I was gone. I was under attack within minutes of return. 

A Visit From the Ambassador

Last Friday I received a visit from the United States Ambassador, Stephen MacFarland and Stephanie Pollard, who works in the embassy handling visa applications. Both are new to Guatemala; the Ambassador arrived about a year ago, and Stephanie only three months ago. Ambassador MacFarland has an interest in the lifestyle and work of Peace Corps Volunteers in Guatemala, he also happens to have an interest in the people, language and history of the area that I live. As such, he and Stephanie took a day trip from the capital for a visit. 

We started in the next town over, Nahualá, where Tim is a volunteer in the Youth Development program. We stopped in the radio station and schools where Tim works and took a small tour of the town. 

Afterwards we arrived in Chirijox. Here we hung out with my family for a while eating peanut butter cookies I had made and visiting the garden of one of the women from my group.

Stephanie Pollard, Ambassador MacFarland, myself and Tim Slattery. 

Benancio, Hendrick, Ela with Elkin (Elkin with peanut butter cookie), Ambassador MacFarland, Doña Ana, myself and Isabel.

It was a fun visit and Ambassador MacFarland is a very down-to-earth and generous man. Both he and Stephanie brought us treats; Ambassador MacFarland brought us fresh-baked (although not by him) brownies and Stephanie brought us a bag full of Snickers, Oreos, peanut butter, Ritz crackers, potato chips and other goodies.