Mission Statement

My Mission

See Beauty: 

My mission is to recognize the beauty and the blessing that is each new day, to humbly accept the challenges and hardships as opportunities for growth, to find inspiration in both the ordinary and the extraordinary, to be moved, to be grateful.

Dignify:

May my light shine unabashedly and thus invite others to allow their own inner light to shine through. May I always dignify in thoughts, words, and actions the lives and sanctity of others.

Be: 

I will embrace my restless spirit and seek transformation of myself and the world around me while trying to be present in the moment and to those around me. Live intentionally, go deepr, be gentle, do no harm.

Feel: 

Strive for empathy- to feel your feelings. Accompany. Listen with my whole self. Serve and be served. Create a safe space.

Love:

Hold myself, my community, and my students lovingly accountable. Open the doors to my home and heart, reflect the love that I have been shown. Love unceasingly and without descretion.

Love this journey, this experience, this life- ¡Qué bonita es esta vida!

This Crazy, Beautiful Life

La Ciudad Heroica

Fierce

It seems like I´m always saying the same, but I´m really not sure where time has gone. I realized that the last time I updated my blog and thus updated you all with things going on in my life was about four months ago! Far too long! Therefore, utilizing the pictures, I´m going to give a few "snapshots" of my life over these past few months. August was one of the most fun months that I´ve spent here. It was filled with lots of action...mostly in celebration of the reintegration of Tacna to Perú. Tacna at one time was a part of Chile, but years ago was reintegrated into Perú, hence the celebration every August. I have mentioned before that Peruvians have a lot of pride, but I´d almost say that people in Tacna are equally, if not more, proud of being Tacneño than being Peruvian. It´s a fierce pride and so are the celebrations! It was a month filled with lots of exciting events. My roommates and I decided last minute to participate in a 5K that was being held in honor of Tacna Day. It was tons of fun to all run together. Afterwards we went out to eat ceviche with the mayor. He has taken a liking to the volunteers and likes to spoil us every so often with a delicious ceviche meal. Thanks Mr. Mayor!

     A highlight of the Tacna celebrations was participating in the parade. I spent the vast majority of my weekends and many evenings learning to dance "Saya". It´s a beautiful dance that many people near the tri-frontera of Perú, Chile and Bolivia dance. The dancers use these incredibly ornate, beautiful costumes. The women´s part is lovely, but I have to admit that I like the men´s part better! It´s just so energetic! They jump and stomp and spin like crazy. The bells on their feet make it all the more impressive. There are actually some women that do the men´s part, but I decided for my first year I´d just do the normal women´s part. It turned out to be a wonderful and truly unforgettable experience. The best part though, was actually participating in the parade. It was incredible being cheered on and it meant so much to me especially to have some of my friends and my roommates there supporting me. They were running along the parade route cheering and bringing me water. The only downside was the high-heels we had to wear for several hours, which would have been bad enough itself, but the situation was only worsened by the fact that approximately one minute after starting my strap broke! I tried to tie it and did the best I could, but I really messed up my feet. Just some battle wounds though!                  

     The day after the parade is when all the Tacneños hit the streets for the "passing of the flag". Early in the morning the people line the streets of the center of town. The streets are decorated with "alfombras"...literally "carpets" of flowers and painted sawdust. They make these incredibly elaborate pictures and sayings on the streets that are subsequently ruined during the procession, but they are beautiful while they last!!! Later in the morning women from Tacna pass through the streets carrying a giant flag. As I understand, it is done by women because during Chile´s occupation here only the women were allowed to carry the flag of Peru through the streets and only in silence, so that same tradition continues. Now though, they celebrate Tacna´s reintegration to Peru, and the celebration is anything but solemn. As the flag passes, Buganvillas (the flower of Tacna) rain down from the rooftops as the people cheer and wave, and a sense of pride for being from Taca is almost tangible in that moment.

A time to Relax                                                       I don´t think I´ve ever appreciated vacation time as much as I do now...nor have I ever needed it as much! Recently my roommate Rose and I took a trip to hike in one of the deepest canyons in the world, Colca Canyon. They were several really special days just being out in nature, enjoying the incredible views and especially the site of the condors flying high above. It was interesting learning about the different communities that inhabit the canyon. We jokingly said that the next Jesuit Volunteer community can be in the middle of the canyon where the only way you can get in and out is a pretty intense climb or by way of   mule. :) It was also interesting learning about some of the native beliefs. Although Catholocism was imposed on the people by the Spaniards in many parts of Perú, and in many of the communities in Colca for example, the people continue to practice their indigenous beliefs. One obvious example was their respect for and devotion to nature, such as the piles of rocks that could be found in parts of the journey. These piles of rocks were actually offerings that people made before crossing the threshold of the mountains for example. As I understand it, rather than simply entering they first make the offering to essentially ask permission from the spirits of the mountains. 

In Arequipa, before heading out to the Canyon.

Pretending to be condors :)

the offerings

La Casa Embrujada

Look what our students have done to us- made us go crazy
and turn into zombies....hahaha

The JVs here in Tacna like to connect with their students in a unique way during Halloween....by scaring our kids and (unintentionally of course) making a few cry! It is the tradition that every year we transform our house here in Habitat into a haunted house! Through the years and with the help of a lot of generous people from the states and locally we have accumulated a lot of stuff that we use to help with the transformation. We spent the majority of Saturday cleaning and preparing the house and then when the time came we worked on our own transformation as well. We painted our faces, dressed in old clothes and then went to work scaring the kids. The story this year was that the volunteers had all gone crazy (thanks to the students of course) and our house was actually the psychiatric ward of a hospital. I actually had a lot more fun then I expected. I´m not a huge Halloween fan, but it was actually tons of fun getting into the act. It was neat seeing how much the kids enjoyed it, too. Basically this whole year they´ve been bugging us about when we were going to do the haunted house, and when the time came I realized just how much the kids love it! Over 200 kids came! But not just students, some random kids from the nighborhood, and some adults, too! We collaborated with the other volunteers that were here visiting, our boss from the U.S., our neighbors and friends. It was a definite success, and all the money we made (we charge the kids a small fee to enter) is donated to Mes de Misión. So the kids actually help contribute to their classmates´ upcoming service trip. The best part of the night was afterwards when many of the students entered our house to take pictures with us, to talk to us, and a few poor kids in search of some loving because they were scared. It was also a highlight to hear my kids tell me they were going to behave better since they now know how scary we can be! ; )

My head was Miss Maureen´s "surprise" when the
kids opened the box.

The mushy veggies were worth it...

We didn´t let being in Perú keep us from
celebrating our Independence Day! We celebrated the
4th of July by sharing our U.S. flag jello with some
friends and setting off fireworks. 

As I have mentioned before, we have a rotation of chores and cooking as well. I was a bit terrified for my roommates´sake when I found out that I would be cooking on a weekly basis for all them, but as I think my roommates can attest to- I have improved! I have made some pretty tasty dishes and I have been feeling more confident in the kitchen...until a simply veggie curry crushed my confidence a few days ago. I was chopping away and had some vegetables steaming away on the stove when I had several visitors stop by. I sort of forgot about the food and ended up with a big pot of veggie mush. I was dissapointed and being hard on myself when my roommate Seamus reminded me that I wouldn´t remember the messed up dinner, but I would the conversations. I have made huge strides in spending more time with people and trying to make my life more relationship-oriented rather than task-oriented, but I definitely slip back into my old habits of being too busy and so it´s nice to have friends to remind me of what really matters, and the importance of quality time...even if that means the veggies get a little mushy.

Abandonment

During the social justice retreat that I also wrote about in the other entries we broke up into different groups and talked about various social issues that were pertinent to our own situation. We decided to delve deeper into an issue that we here in Tacna have become really familiar with- abandonment. Lately I´ve been thinking a lot about the value of family. I have always been grateful for my family obviously and incredibly appreciative of all they have done for me, but I do think at times I have taken for granted how fortunate I was to grow up in a very loving home with both parents and my sister. It has become so painfully obvious to me the grand difference a stable home situation truly makes in the lives of kids. What we see all too often here in Tacna is that one or both of the parents leave home to search for work elsewhere. Since we are on the border that means a lot of people head south to Chile, or elsewhere in Perú. The result is that the kids are left alone or with an older sibling. Many of the students are also abandoned more directly in the sense that (usually) the father has simply given up responsibility and thus the kids are left with only their mother. Granted there are some cases in which the mom has left, but those are extremely rare. Many of my students live with just their moms or an older sibling.

This certainly is not to say that having only one parent or being raised by a sibling or other family member means that the kids are gauranteed to have problems, because there are many people that have grown up just fine in these circumstances. However, there is definitely a connection with many of my students that are struggling in school with their behavior or grades and their home situation. One student for example whose mom works outside the country and whose dad is hardly ever around simply has not come to school in a week and a half. He is lacking that control at home, somebody to make sure he is completing his duties as a student first. Another student whose mom works outside the country and whose dad works elsewhere in Perú is leading my homeroom in failed classes. His seventeen year old brother and I conversed the other day about the situation and he expressed his frustration and his own helplessness about his brother. I felt for him...how difficult it must be to have to take on the role of the father of your 15 and 8 year old siblings at the age of 17. It has also been really tough seeing a lot of my students form really unhealthy relationships especially with the group of teenagers in the neighborhood that are involved in drugs and petty crime. ( A nurse yesterday was talking about how a lot of kids here start drinking at age 10...yikes!) Without the supervision at home they just sort of do what they want. The mother of one of my students for example moved away for a year to work in Chile and by the time she got back her daughter had already become so close with this group of delincuents and so much happened in that year that it´s hard to try and get her daughter back on track.

While there are numerous similar cases at Miguel Pro, at Rose´s school- Fe y Alegria the issue of abandonment is remarkably common. Rose has remarked how mature the older kids are, because by the time they reach seniors in high school many of them have already been essentially on their own or acting as the head of their household for several years.

The problem is very complex and comprehensive, related to issues of the job market, the economy, Lima-centralized policies, etc. etc. Beyond just feeling down about some of the situations there are some things I can do in my role as teacher. Many of these kids that live in more difficult circumstances are those I really need to focus more attention on. I need to do what I can to provide support and encouragement and to hold them accountable...things they might not be getting from home.

La Pachamama

Another topic that we talked about during our retreat was not only justice for humans, but for the Earth in general. We read a really interesting article from Bolivia about the "Global Crisis", based in Indigenous beliefs and an intense focus on care for the Earth. Here are some interesting (translated) lines from it: "Another mandate is the respect for Mother Earth, because the earth is our home and our life...the land cannot be understood as merchandise. Who can privatize or rent our Mother?" "Everyone and everything is interdependent. It is the right to live together in equilibrium with human beings. On the Planet there are millions of living species, but only human beings have the conscience and the capacity to control our own evolution to promote harmony with nature." "The development...means anti-development that provokes huge imbalances, not only between people, but also between people and nature." "We try together to save the planet Earth, and if we save her surely we will save lives and humanity."

Beautiful view of the church from the

retreat house in Andahuaylillas

As a community we have evaluated our own actions, too. We are trying to figure out how we can live more justly and peacefully, while making less of an impact on this Earth. Our current issue that we´re addressing is the problem of food waste. It is just so incredibly wasteful and silly to put all the food waste in the garbage in a plastic bag. So we tossed around various ideas. One of my personal favorites was the idea of buying ourselves a chanchito...aka a little piggy. Pigs eat anything so it´d be perfect! As fun as it would be to have a little piglet living on the side of our house, the idea was vetoed by the boys who reminded us that pigs would be a lot of work and what if future volunteers didn´t want a pig. meh. We also thought about simply composting, but unfortunately the dirt here is really not ideal for that...it´s more like sand. Our next idea was to use these little magic bugs that eat garbage and then when they´re plump people here consume them, believing in their curative powers. Unfortunately that was also a failure when all the bugs died the first day we brought them home...I think they may have been crushed by all the mandarin peels. oops!  Finally we think we have an actual plan for dealing with the waste...somebody else´s pig. Success in solving the food waste problem...however, I still want a little piggy of our own. :)

Friends

I had some alone time hanging out in the bell
tower at the church.

So one thing that admittedly I´ve been struggling with here is friendships...or the lack thereof in my case haha Undoubtedly the most incredible aspect of my experience thus far has been the relationships that I have fostered with people here. Peruvians are incredibly hospitable, open, welcoming, and loving. I have been so blessed to be surrounded by so many people that indeed treat me with so much care and love. It´s different though, and that is what I´m having to come to terms with. Although I have a lot of people that treat me wonderfully and that are certainly friends...it´s not like my old friendships. Many of my friends are in their 30s and 40s. I hardly have many friends that are my age. I realized that our situation as volunteers just isn´t really conducive for making a lot of friends. I spend the vast majority of my day at Miguel Pro, and then almost every night I have responsibilities with my volunteer community. Also, we live about 15ish minutes from the main part of town, and with sometimes limited mobility coming to and fro can be challenging. Aside from the issue of time and location is that of money and communication. Obviously friendships aren´t based on money...but it can be helful in terms of finding things to do. There really isn´t a plethora of things to do here, so mostly people go out to restaurants, bars, clubs, pubs, the new movie theater, etc. Not exactly being made of money we can´t always be going out that often. Not having a cell phone also makes it challenging. I truly enjoy not having one and it has absolutely made me more present to the people that I am with. I love that I can be present in the moment not thinking about who I need to call or who I just got a text from. Not having one makes me realize just how rude it is when you´re talking to someone and they pull out their cell phone to answer a call or a text. Nevertheless, it can be difficult in terms of maintaining friendships. I don´t really talk to my friends here on an especially regular basis to tell them things, to be able to listen to their stories, problems, etc. I´m working on developing that sort of relationship with some people, but with the various aforementioned challenges...progress is slow. I feel like after being here for 9 months I should have a ton of friends, but that just simply isn´t the case. So I´m trying to be ok with the slow-moving progress of building friendships, while being satisfied with the amazing relationships I do have. It has been undeniably tough, because I had so many incredibly wonderful, close friends all through college especially that the transition to starting over in a new place is still difficult, even 9 months later. But I´m trying to be at peace with my current situation and try and work on those friendships I do have, while being willing to put myself out there and reach out to others while reminding myself that nearly everything is different here...including friendships.

Poquito a poquito

On vacation I did several hikes- this one was
up to a cross above Andahuaylillas.

One of the mottos for Megan Kush and I when we studied abroad together in Costa Rica was little by little as we faced the challenges of language, culture shock, and just all the changes that come with being in another country. Likewise that is something I have to continually remind myself. I sometimes get frustrated feeling like after being here 9 months now (wow!) I should feel so much more comfortable, have less problems with students, be able to dominate Spanish...and these certainly aren´t always the case. I know I´m making strides in all the aforementioned areas, but progress is slow sometimes and it can be incredibly frustrating but a good reminder too to let go and just "be"...the goal I initially set for myself. I know that things will continue to improve, even when progress seems painfully slow at times.

During vacation I also visited some Incan
ruins in Pisaq...so incredible!

Social Justice Is...

The topic of our most recent retreat was social justice. An activity we did on the retreat was coming up with our own definitions of social justice. Here is what social justice means to me:

Social justice is...

...A recognition of the innate dignity in all people.
...non-descriminate.
...love in action.
...meeting the needs of all people.
...more than just charity, but dealing with the root of injustice.
...a change in the system so that rights do not depend on where you are born, how much money you have, or     the color of your skin, but based instead on your humanity.
...a shift in prorities, lifestyles, and concerns to favor those most in need.
...God´s kingdom on Earth.
...recognizing the offensiveness that is poverty and fighting for a world in which that doesn´t exist...however
    idealistic that may be.

Letter to Humanity

As part of an activity that we did during a recent retreat we each wrote open letters to humanity. Here is my own letter:

     Why is there so much hatred in this world? With hearts filled with hatred we cannot progress as a society. Each day we are killing our best resources; we are pushing our brothers and sisters to the margins of society. We have forgotten what it means to love. Sure we love our friends, our families, but what about the beggar on the street...the sex worker in Thailand...the migrant farm workers laboring away for a few dollars a day? They are our brethren. It is time that we change our perspective, open our hearts, and let go of the egotistical facade that hinders our ability to care. We must transform our understanding of what it means to be a member of the human family, as well as members of a broader family that includes animals and plants. We are not Kings and Queens of this world. We are near-sighted people. We have the tendency to care little about those or that which does not immediately or directly affect us. But we are fools, for we are all connected- bound by our humanity. And in this increasingly globalized society in which we live, we are more intimately connected. We sometimes forget this, though. No, we all too often forget this. We are blind to the reality that the decisions one person makes can and do affect others, even if they may be on the other side of the word. Our near-sightedness is destroying us. We should strive to be far-sighted people- willing to look beyond ourselves as well as willing to look into the future and see how our actions today will affect the future of the world. The connection that binds us humans around world today stretches far into the recesses of history and far into the future. A recognition of this unseen and sometimes unspoken human bond necessitates a change in mind-set and corresponding actions. Love and compassion naturally flows from a shift in views. Thus, the hope for our society lies in our ability to see the dignity in humans, to see them not just as strangers, but as brothers and sisters-part of one human family, one body in Christ. 

Musings

I´ve had a lot on my mind lately, so rather than picking just one theme to write about, I decided to include a bit of various aspects of my experience- the good, the bad, the frustrating, and the heart warming.

Market Day

Choclo

Of all the chores that we have on our chore chart (we have a rotation of cleaning, cooking, and planning spirtuality/community nights) my favorite is grocery shopping. Going shopping for food here is unlike anything else. It is both a cultural experience, and a sensory one! Mercado Grau resembles a maze in which there are people selling their food in not just every "aisle", but also every nook and cranny both inside and outside of the building. The best way to describe the market is a farmer´s market on steroids. If you are not a seasoned Grau shopper or paying close attention you may find yourself walking in circles as shoppers stream by and the colors and sounds of the madness of the market blur together. Also if you´re not on your A-game you might likely run into the body of a pig swinging from a hook or some entrails dangling about in the meat section- my least favorite area of the market. (Admittedly I had to leave a market one day when I was shopping for beef heart with a friend. The smell was overwhelming, and I frankly had just never seen anything quite like it. My stomach rejected the smell and sight of the Señora filleting the heart. Although I´m still not a big fan of intestines or liver or heart or chicken feet you´ve got to hand it to the people. There is little on the animal that gets wasted.)

An outsider may view the market and wonder how in the world anyone could get their shopping done with so many people selling things...the options are overwhelming! After numerous trips there I´ve figured out where things are, and what makes it easier is that nearly every shopper has their "casera/o". Here in Peru, shoppers refer to the person from whom they are buying something their "casera o casero" and in turn the vendor uses the same term to describe the shopper. There seems to be more of this sense of a relationship between the two, as well as a sense of loyalty. Every week we buy from the same people, and you come to know one another and rely on one another as well. Your casera/o is someone you could ask advice about how to cook a certain vegetable or herb for example. And often they will provide you with the "yapita"...a little extra of something as a thank you for your loyalty and to encourage you to come back the next time.

My roommate Maureen and a vegetable casera.

The market experience here is polar opposite from that of the super markets that most people from the U.S. are accustomed to. In Grau the food is out there in the open, not packaged; the fruit is not waxy or clean, but imperfect as it should be. You get a chance to interact with the people that grow the food rather than merely picking something from a shelf without giving a second thought to where it came from. I love that the people park their trucks outside and sell directly from there...and that food comes directly from the farms. I appreciate the fact that there are fewer middle men...that the exchange of money and goods is personal. I love how the experience is just so REAL. For all of these reasons and so much more going to Grau beats cleaning the bathrooms any day ;)

"Where you invest your love you invest your life."

These lyrics of the song Awake My Soul by Mumford and Sons have really resonated with me here, and given me reason to reflect on the decisions that I make. I have become keenly aware of the importance of the investment of ones time. In certain moments I have made decisions that were for my own well-being, without keeping in mind the needs of others. While I certainly recognize how incredibly important self-care is, I find that it can be easy for me to do more for me, less for others under the guise of self-care. For example, staying at home to relax rather than visiting a neighbor that has been struggling with financial and personal issues or spending time on the internet at school rather than playing with the kids during recess. Just like with soo many things in life it is a tricky balance setting aside time for the things you want/need to do for yourself and not closing yourself off to others.

In the past several weeks I made a few decisions to spend my time being present to the needs of others rather than my own, and after the experience I do not regret a bit what in the beginning felt like a "waste" of my own precious time. Case 1. A friend of mine invited my roommates and I to have lunch with her family one weekend. Knowing that lunch is an all-day affair I initially hesitated, but decided to go. Just as I expected the "lunch" extended well into the evening, but my concerns about the things I wanted to do at home disappeared as my friend´s mom gave us the most sincere thank you for coming to visit her. She slaved away preparing us a meal, and she was the one thanking us. She looked at us, and remarked that she spent the whole afternoon smiling. We made her happy, she said. Case 2. One evening when all I wanted to do was curl up on the couch and watch a movie with my roomies (somebody donated a TV to the JVs awhile back, but we made the decision to store it elsewhere so as to try to live more simply, but it gets brought out occasionally). However, I had promised a friend that was kind of struggling with some stuff that I would visit her that day. I had gone to her house earlier, but she and her husband were out. I could have easily told them that, but it was sort of gnawing at my conscience that I should go back. The visit initially felt like an obligation rather than something I wanted to do, but as in the other case those feelings soon disapppeared during the conversation. They ended up sharing some personal stuff with me, and I feel like our friendship was brought to a new level as a result. They expressed how grateful they were for the visit, and I know they meant it. I think they just wanted someone to listen, and I was able to fill that role for them. I truly enjoy spending time with them, but sometimes I get caught up in my own life, and don´t make the time for other people. But then I must remind myself why am I here. Who am I here to serve, and in what way? It really comes down to a question therefore of investing your time in a way that is an extension of your love.

Plaza de Armas in Tacna

A question of vocation

Frankly, I´ve been feeling down about teaching. As odd as it may sound, I fear that teaching has not brought out the best in me. I consider myself to be a pretty loving and caring person, however, this side of me is not easily transmitted in the classroom because of my preoccupation with discipline and control in the classroom. This is so much the case that I´m beginning to doubt myself and what I thought to be two very present characteristics.

Teaching has been a huge challenge for me. There have been numerous days in which I have left Miguel Pro feeling disheartened and pretty miserable about myself. Monday was one of those days. Upon finishing up one of my more difficult classes (9th graders) feeling a bit downtrodden, I sruck up a conversation with one of my colleagues and was absolutely awestruck by her comments. She was telling me how teaching is her therapy; how she may be having a terrible day and when she enters the classroom all her problems melt away. She even named my most problematic student as a source of comic relief for her. Her sincerity and obvious love for her job and the students moved me.

I shared this with one of my roommates and told her that I was concerned that I don´t feel that same love for teaching. Entering the classroom is generally a source of stress for me rather than a way of relaxing. She listened carefully and responded by reminding me that it sounds like teaching is our colleagues vocation. That that is in fact what she should be doing...the career in which she´s supposed to be in. She pointed out simply that teaching may not be my vocation. Indeed I didn´t choose to be a teacher, but was rather selected to be a teacher in order to fill a need here. It may not be something that I look forward to, that I love, or even something that I´m particularly good at, but nevertheless I am here...giving it my best shot for better or for worse.

Last night at a meeting, another of my colleages commented, "Estoy enamorado con mi trabajo." I am in love with my job. Although I may not be able to say that about teaching in the present moment, I´m going to hold onto the hope that one day I will be able to make a similar comment about my job. How beautiful to be in love with what you do.

Kids say the darndest things

Not as a means to poke fun of or exploit my students, but rather as a way to share with you some of the joys I´ve experienced correcting their work or in the classroom with their funny comments, I wanted to include some samples of the work that students have turned into me as well as some comments.

• 1st grader: "Tia, I stayed up allll night working on a drawing for you. I didn´t go to bed until 7:00 p.m. trying to finish it!!" 
• 1st grader: "Tia, preciosa profesora de inglés!" translation: "Tia, precious English teacher ."
• 1st grader: "Tia, I love you...I´m never going to forget you." :)
• 1st grader: "Tia, are you 500 years old?" Me: "No, I´m a little bit younger than that." Other 1st grader: "I know...you look like you´re 40!"

(Tia is the word young kids use to address their teachers, although it translates as "aunt.")

One of the best comments related to age I´ve heard thus far was directed to my roommate. One of her fifth graders informed her that his dad gave him permission to marry her in 10 years. When she asked him if he knew how old she´d be in 10 years he responded by saying that she´d be the same age as him (obviously!). She informed him that unfortunately in 10 years she will be in fact 32 years old. His response: "What?! That is OLD! That is SO old! You are going to be as old as dirt. In fact you´re going to be dead!"

Precious.

¡Qué Rico!

During a recent silent retreat that I was taking part in, I was staring out at the mountains in the distance in the early morning hours where life seems a little bit simpler, the hustle and bustle has yet to begin, and a pleasant quietness has yet to be interrupted when a common Spanish phrase came to my mind...¡qué rico! This phrase directly translates as "How rich!" I realized that I really love this saying. It´s used ofen to describe food that you like, but also other things. For example, a cool breeze on a hot day may prompt someone to exclaim...¡qué rico! or when you tell someone that you´re going on vacation they might respond with the same comment. I really love this usage of the word "rich" that in this sense has absolutely nothing to do with money or material value. It is used to describe the richness of experiences or beauty, which certainly represent a wealth of sorts, but one that can so often be overlooked.

Here in Peru there is a lot of pride, and also a lot of recognition of richness in other facets of life outside of material wealth. I have heard many times over comments about economic struggles, but how despite that they still are incredibly grateful for the blessings that they have. Despite hardships, the people here remain proud and incredibly generous. At the same retreat we sang a beautiful song that really verbalized this facet of life here. There may be poverty, but the people are wealthy in other ways. Regardless of hardships or problems, many people remain joyful and it´s true that they just keep on dancing.

Danza a mi pais
Vivo en un pais maravilloso, lleno de riqueza y voluntad. Dios pintó mi alma blanco y rojo, y por nada cambio este lugar. Mi pueblo es valiente y generoso, pobre pero rico, en dignidad y ni el sufrimiento ni el enojo, le han hecho que deje de danzar

Coro: Y así, danza, danza, danza, con sus penas, con sus alegrías, con su caminar. Danza, danza, danza porque espera que el Dios de la vida lo liberara.

Si vas a vivir en otros tierras, diles lo que pasa aquí en verdad, cuéntales que el odio y la miseria no nos han podido doblegar. Habla de toda la gente buena que ha dado su vida por la paz, y que tras su muerte los que quedan se han unido para continuar.

Here´s my English translation of the song...(not perfect-sorry!)

Dance of my country
I live in a marvelous country, full of richness and willpower. God painted my soul white and red, and I wouldn´t change this place for anything. The people are valient and genorous; poor but rich in dignity, and not suffering or anger has made us stop dancing.

Chorus: And like that dance, dance, dance with your sadness, with your happiness, on your journey. Dance, dance, dance because there´s hope that the God of life will liberate.

If you go live in other lands tell them what actually happens here, tell them the hate and misery has not broken us. Speak of the all the good people that have given their lives for peace and through their death those that remain have united to continue.