January 19, 2012

January 19, 2012

I did not sleep well at all last night. For some reason tonight was the night that the barking and snoring came through my earplugs. Once I finally fell asleep I was awoken by the cold and I tried to become warm within my sleeping bag.

For breakfast, I had a tortilla with grape jelly. We started class and the debate was on same sex marriage. I thought both sides did well in thought-out arguments. I'm so glad that I did not have to debate on this topic because I just get sick to my stomach just thinking about it. Luckily, the topics that I have to debate are topics that I don't really have a strong stance on. I was excited that Dr. Skon told our class to talk to the Mayans with the intent to learn a Kechi word. That's a great way to encourage the group to spend time with the cooks and surrounding families. I really enjoy conversing with people of other cultures and I think many people miss out on the opportunity because they are comfortable with their own people. We ate rice and beans for lunch and then everyone except for three of us went to Punta Gorda to shop. I stayed to finish my paper, reflection, and research the other projects. I was able to get a good amount of things done. Then I spent the rest of the evening with the family that takes care of the camp. I went into their house to find an empty room that served as the kitchen. There was a miniature stove at one end of the house and at the other end was a counter top with a small sink. I was happy to see that there was dish liquid and hand sanitizer by the sink. The next room was a little bigger than the average walk-in closet. There was a single hammock and a medium sized TV in the corner. The 6 children and myself gathered in the small room and we watched a few minutes of Bambi. I looked into their bathroom that was more primitive than our showers in the dorms. Everything was blocks and mortar with the bottom of the shower rough concrete. They did have hot water which was evident by the electrical cords running to the shower head. I think there was a small sink behind the door, but it was so small and full of things that I did not even try to enter the room. I learned that there was a small bedroom where the 6 children and the mother sleeps. I was unable to see the bedroom, but I was told that there is one bed that they all share. The father sleeps in the hammock in the “TV room.” Their home was very small, but everything seemed to have it's place. There were no seats or furniture. There was only concrete and gray block walls. We went outside and the children pointed out that their kitchen is actually outside under a thatch roof. There were three small concreted squares that served as their oven, they build a fire and lay whatever they are baking around the fire. There was a small chicken coop made out of wood and a thatch roof. The yard was muddy with tall grass due to the rain. The house is blue with a silver tin roof. The children showed me all of the trees surrounding their house that bear fruit. I learned about plum trees, mango trees, orange trees, coconut trees, crabapple trees, banana trees, and two other kinds that I was unable to identify. They showed me all of the naturally growing herbs that were in the yard. Although I cannot remember all of the (Mayan) names, I was able to recognize some of the scents, particularly cilantro. I feel so dumb because I never knew that coconuts aren't brown and rough when they are on the trees. The coconuts are inside of these big, light green melon-looking things. When the coconuts are ready, the big green things fall and crack open which reveals the brown coconut that we recognize. I didn't know that there are different types of mangos either. During our walk around the yard I was attacked by ants and now I have many tiny bites on my feet. I learned many Mopan Mayan words that are very hard to say. It seemed like every time I repeated a word I was doing something wrong. Their words are very accented and it's difficult to accent them just right. After we ate hamburgers for supper, we listened to a speaker who volunteers in Belize as a teacher, business woman, and leader in the church. I learned many things about her ministry and her dreams to help the Mayan people of Toledo out of poverty. I learned that for one year of high school it costs $1200 Bz which covers the tuition, 4 uniforms, books, lunch, and other fees. That's $600 U.S. Each family here has at the least 5 kids. The parents do not work jobs that bring in consistent money. They farm, they make crafts to sell, but they are unable to make a lot of money due to their location and the worth of their crops. Many of the farmers go into Guatemala to sell their crops because they can get a better price. However, many fathers have been murdered and their money stolen when they are walking back from the market. The Guatemalans watch the farmers go by with their crops and then they wait until the farmer is coming back through with the money. I wish that I had money to give to the children of these families because with a high school education, these kids could have the opportunity to get a good job that will help to pull their family out of poverty. For at least 2 hours, the 13 year old girl, Jostina, looked at my wedding pictures on facebook. We looked at them together as I told her about my family and American wedding traditions. Then we looked at Scott and Haley's wedding pictures. She then wanted to look at mine again and then she ran to get her mother and aunts. The whole family and the cooks looked at my wedding pictures forever, so I showed her how to use the computer and then I went to take a shower. They kept saying everything was so pretty and I felt a little guilty because I did not know if they were making comparisons or not. I hope that I was able to give Jostina a dream for her future wedding, but I hope moreso that it will come true. I am trying to encourage her to want to go to high school, but I know that her reluctancy is because of the cost. She did not go to school all week because she had to babysit all of her siblings. I hope to write her a letter of encouragement before we leave. We started a Euchre tournament and I have 18 points after 2 games.