Week 5-6 Report and Some Comments

These past two weeks we helped the school prepare for a big football marathon/fundraiser. Unfortunately it was cancelled at the last minute because the prize money that was promised by Eden Martinez didn’t come. We continued working on the mural for the library that is now in its final stage needing only a few touch ups and then it will be finished. We are still pushing the gardens and are about half way finished. We have asked the principal Mr. Ac if we can use his truck to get wood from the abandoned lumber yard for the families who need fences. Once this is done many families will be ready to plant. This was also graduation time and we helped Mr. Ac set up for his daughter’s graduation party that was on Saturday. It was quite the party to prepare for. We now have two women who are committed to doing literacy classes, math classes, and computer classes. This is a part of starting the Otoxha Women’s collective where the women can work together to be empowered and independent. We are hoping that a few more women will join but are focusing our attention on those who are motivated to learn. We also began a nursery of orange and lime trees, we were aided by a few local children who took great joy in helping us.

Comments:

Since last reporting our time has been much better spent in the little village of Otoxha. We were reeling from cultural shock for nearly two weeks and now all is settled and better. I think it's a rare thing for people to wake up in the morning and see so many different varieties of baby animals(including humans) walking around making all sorts of noises and wobbling behind their mommies. It's something I am always grateful to see and will cherish it because surely this is one of the few places to have such a joyous experience as this. In the U.S. agro-business has destroyed the humbleness of the small farmer and the lives of the livestock, so they can make a sickening amount of profit while hiring the least amount of Americans possible. Baby animals can be sure to be tortured their whole lives in a pen the size of themselves, but here it is different and even though this last week I experienced the slaughter of 5 grown pigs I was grateful to see them roam free and happy for years before we enjoyed them.

Till next time, Brian