Last Wednesday, we had a group come to sing for the ladies, but there isn't one today. Instead, we do the arts and crafts day that we missed yesterday. I smuggle in the toilet paper for Alicia, but happily realize she already has a new roll. I hope she didn't steal it from someone else. Two women (in wheelchairs!) begin fighting over a bowl of crayons, each holding onto one side and pulling! I have to separate them like children. I go room to room and talk to a few women after this is over, then it is time to go. The further I get into this trip, the harder each day is. Though the women aren't sporting black eyes or split lips, it's obvious that most, if not all, hate it here. Some don't have families at all, and those that do often don't ever get visited. The most difficult thing to come to terms with is that I feel I'm not really making a difference here. The place is fully operational without volunteers, so our job is mostly to help build a connection and allow the inhabitants to feel loved, and heard. But, even then, I know that I am only here for three weeks, and that even if they remember me forever (which most won't), whatever shred of happiness I brought them for that time will go when I do. If there is any woman whose life I really changed by being here, then her heart will be broken when I leave. So, I listen to them, I show them pictures of my family, I hug them, hold their hands, and, sometimes, we just sit and look out of the window. In only another week and a half, I will be home with all my loved ones sharing pictures and souvenirs, and they will be here in the beds and wheelchairs that they will die in, and nothing will have changed.
Macadamia Nut Farm
It has been a hard week, not only for me, and our cultural activities today are a welcome break in the gloom. I now understand why CCS chooses to have volunteering in the morning and a schedule for the afternoon - today it was pouring down rain and the weather fit everyone's mood - sometimes we just need some cheering up. Today was perfect for that. We began with a very brief tour of the Val Halla Macadamia Nut Farm (as I said, it was pouring down rain). The nuts are sorted into different sizes - they make a point to not have "clones" as the woman puts it - some trees produce large nuts and some small. The tastes are supposedly even slightly different (though I couldn't tell the difference). The nuts are shelled with a simple machine engineered from a flat tire - something to help keep equipment costs low. After, we get to sample Macadamia Nut oil, chocolates and nuts. Delicious.
San Antonio
After the Macadamia Nut Farm, we head to a small village outside of Antigua to learn about how the Mayan villagers weave all the beautiful crafts we see & buy in the markets. The process is long, tedious & confusing. The woman who is leading the workshop tries to show Sharon & I can hardly follow along. After just the background is finished, the brocading & embroidery often takes more than 6 months to complete.
After the weaving lesson, we are informed we are going to have a traditional wedding. A bride, groom & parents-in-law are brought up from our group. In this village's tradition, the wife-to-be makes a shawl for the mother-in-law to be worn on the wedding day. The couple is married & purified with incense and flower petals. The family goes into the kitchen after the wedding, and the new daughter-in-law demonstrates her cooking skills by making tortillas and coffee. The family eats wedding bread with their coffee, and the mother-in-law gives the bride an apron that she made to show she approves of the union.
We all get to learn how to and make our own tortillas and even get to eat wedding bread with our coffee. Then, we have the option to buy from the 5 families of the village. I've been eyeing the beautiful aprons that the natives wear since I arrived, and am thrilled to find one with just enough embroidery to be gorgeous, but still plain enough to be useful in the kitchen. The Mayans make everything beautiful and durable. This has been a great end to a long day.
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