Home again...

Friday morning found us up at 3:30 AM for our 4:30 AM departure from the Pastoral House, the two hour drive to the airport, and the two flights home. All went well with Steve in a wheelchair all the way and VIP treatment. There was one small incident...I won't go into it but I will say it involves a lost backpack and, of course, a missing Erickson camera! It's safe to say that by the time we got home we were "dog tired".


It was a successful trip by nearly all standards and we returned grateful for the opportunity to connect with the friends in El Salvador. We never fail to learn new things and return with new perspectives of the world.

We miss the people of Munoces and think of them daily. Their lives have impacted ours in many positive ways.

Thank you to all who encouraged us and supported us in making this trip. I hope that this blog has given you a small window into life in El Salvador.

A post script.....When Steve Hopkins visited the doctor Saturday, he found that he had broken a bone in two places and is now in a removable cast.

Fiesta!

After lunch and a final meeting with the directiva (city council) it was time for fiesta! With the help of the Pastoral team we hosted a party complete with gifts....a raffle of hand-knit items from ladies in our church, clothing and hats from Skiff Medical Center, and other donations. We had enough items that every family in the community received something.
The community provided music with their very fine band and the ladies of the community made enough tamales for everyone!

Of course their were pinatas...one for the girls and one for the boys.

And Warren produced a slide show of pictures and video clips from our time in the school. As you can see he drew a large crowd of our students...and a few parents and grandparents to watch the show.

We provided a drink and some cookies. Steve Hopkins was in the thick of the action as he handed out the goodies from the door of the church while keeping his injured leg propped up.

The oldest man in town...Jose...danced with Kathy, the mission co-worker and Linda Anderson played a fiddle with the band. Farewell speeches of gratitude from both our delegation and the community were heartfelt. Most of the community turned out for the event and I think it's safe to say that a good time was had by all! Before long it was time to say goodbye....until next year!

Last Day in Munoces

Thursday was our last day in the community of Munoces and we spent the morning visiting some of the elderly residents who would be unable to attend the fiesta in the afternoon.
We visited with about six residents...all in their 70's and 80's and with their families. They all suffer from health issues and are dependent on family to support them. The most common health problems are arthritis and breathing problems. Even in the midst of pain and poverty they can still enjoy a joke or tell a funny story.

Most of the time they have family very nearby...like next door...who care for them. This next picture is of Juana Fuentes and one of her sons. Her two sons live on either side of her.

Paulina and Jose are the oldest residents in Munoces... both are about 86. Jose is completely deaf and Paulina has constant pain but their daughters nearby do their best to make sure they have enough to eat...even though there's nothing they can do to help their physical issues.

Jose's sister lives down a steep path with her son and grandson. She appears to have hearing problems, too, and her distance from the road makes leaving the house very difficult. She says she gets up the hill to visit her brother a couple of times a year.

As my mother used to say..."Getting old is not for sissies!" and this more true in Munoces than any place I know. Although we had no magic wand to make life better, we enjoyed our visits in their homes and hope they enjoyed telling their stories and sharing their lives with us.

Fertilizer!

Wednesday was a busy day in the community of Munoces. Warren caught the "new" Tortuga early in the morning and spent a few hours walking the road and meeting the families who are new to the community since we were here last year. The family below lives at the highest part of the hill where they have to walk more than 30 minutes each way to get to any source of water. They are still in the process of building their house. I think they need to replace that cardboard before the rainy season!
Others in the group accompanied a group of cattle for sale down the mountain to Mercedes Umana where the cattle were sold and 44 bags of fertilizer were picked up. We then accompanied the fertilizer to Munoces where a bag was distributed to each family in the community.

They worked together to distribute the bags and to help get them to each household. The bags weigh 240 pounds so some of the strapping young men of the community did most of the carrying.

It took 3 Iowans to lift one bag! I did see several 40-something men from Munoces carry bags on their backs to nearby homes. Of course, they are used to hard labor and carrying heavy loads of wood every day of their lives.

We visited one of the new "fish farmers" in the community. He said that this size fish will grow to about 12-16 inches in 2 months. They are to share some of the small fish with others in the community if others want to start their own fish farming operation so now there are 5 fish ponds in the community....next year maybe 10!

The afternoon was spent in a meeting with the farmers of the community. Nearly all the families of Munoces were represented. They explained the process of farming by hand on the steep sides of the volcano....very different from farming in Iowa! We talked with them about beginning the process of developing the use of organic fertilizers and they expressed interest in getting training in that area. We are excited about the possibilities of what "permaculture" concepts could do for farm life in Munoces.

Munoces!!

We spent our first full day in Munoces on Tuesday. After a greeting by the community...complete with a band and singing...we spent the rest of the morning at the school. We reviewed a little of their English skills and did a drawing project with the students drawing something that they liked and writing both the Spanish word and the English word for their drawing. Unfortunately, the older students did not have class that day because their instructor was unable to find transportation to the community, but several came to join us in spite of having a day off. We ended the session with a game of Twister...a big hit!
I can envision many fun times at the school playing Twister...especially during the rainy season when they can't go outside to play.

After lunch we met with the directiva...kind of like the city council...to learn of the projects underway in the community and their hopes for future projects. We finished off the day with a community soccer game. The only two of our delegation with the courage and fortitude to join in were Steve and Peder Hopkins. They represented us well but....

Unfortunately, Steve had to be carried off the field with a sprained ankle. He is being treated by our resident physical therapist, Linda Anderson, and will be demonstrating the use of the emergency evacuation chair donated by Peter VanElsWyk when we go back to Munoces later this morning.

As I write on Wednesday morning some of the group are in a neighboring town picking up the fertilizer that we will deliver later this morning. Warren took "La Tortuga" to Munoces this morning and will be interviewing the families new to the community before we arrive with the fertilizer. More on all that later......

El Mozote

Monday we took an all-day field trip to the northeast of the country....the department of Morazan... where the war was particularily fierce....about 10 miles from Hondouras. One of the worst massacres of the war occured in the small canton of El Mozote where more than 1000 men, women and children were murdered by the military in 1981. Our guide told us the horrifying details of the 3 day event. The men were taken to one house, the women to another, and all the children were taken to a church building. The children were all murdered with knives and machetes and the building was burned to try to hide the crime but a wall fell, protecting some of the bodies for later discovery. The building with the murdered men was burned so badly that the bodies could not be found. The women were all raped before murder. The numbers in the little town were swollen by people from the countryside fleeing for safety in the community. One woman survived...Rufina Amaya... and she told the story all over the world. There is a memorial wall in the town with the names of the known members of the community but the number of victims continues to grow as excavation is still going on and bodies are being found to this day.

There is a rose garden near where the children were found and a children's memorial wall on the side of the church. The names of the children are listed there...the youngest being 3 days old. Three members of the pastoral team accompanied us on the trip and scriptures and prayers were offered in the rose garden. The team indicated that from the ashes of the tragedy have arisen hope for the people of El Salvador....what a price to pay!

From El Mozote we drove to Perquin, a nearby town that was a guerrilla stronghold during the war. There we toured the war museum dedicated to the guerrilla fighters and a mock guerrilla camp where we learned of how they lived during the fighting.

We climbed down into tunnels where the fighters could hide.

And walked across stick and rope bridges.

The day was sobering and troubling to say the least. I ask myself questions.....like "How could I be oblivious to all this going on in El Salvador in the 1980s?" and "What am I oblivious to today?".

Sunday

We began the day on Sunday in San Salvador with worship at Our Lady of Guadelupe Bascillica...a new church for all of us.

It was gorgeous inside and out...a great way to say goodbye to the city.

After lunch in Suchitoto we spent the afternoon at an organization that promotes and demonstrates permaculture. We were interested in learning more about sustainable farming practices in El Salvador with an eye toward decreasing the dependence on chemical fertilizers for our farming friends in Munoces. It was a fascinating walk through demonstration fields with all kinds of crops, innovative water conservation practices and organic fertilizers, to name a few things. We wish we could move the program into Munoces to be a constant inspiration for our community! We will be taking to the farmers this week about learning about and implementing new fertilizer approaches and we hope that they show some interest. Cecilia, a member of the pastoral team, is being trained in many of these sustainable farming techniques and she will be able to start passing on her training very soon. Because we were so fascinated with the permaculture demonstration we were a little late getting into Berlin. After a quick supper we did find time to explore the big festival of San Jose that is taking place around the square. There are carnival rides, music, fireworks, and....unfortunately....loud firecrackers that go on until the wee hours of the morning and resume again about 4 AM. We got very little sleep on Sunday night because of noise.

The queen's float got caught in a tight spot and we watched several men lift a car and just move it to the side. Just like the Iowa State Fair you can find lots of foods on a stick. One item is corn on the cob that is covered with mayo, catsup, and some kind of brown sauce. I hear it's very good!

Delegation!

We tore ourselves away from the beach yesterday and headed for the airport to meet Kathy and the delegation from Newton. They arrived right on time and we headed to the guesthouse....Villa Serena Flor Blanca....a really lovely place....probably the nicest place I've ever stayed in El Salvador. There's even hot water at the tap!! This morning after breakfast we left for a day of visiting important sites in San Salvador. We began with Cuscatlan Park (above) where there is a fabulous mural depicting the history of El Salvador and a wall with thousands of names of the dead and missing from the 12 year civil war. While the group moved on to Divina Providencia, the site of the assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero (see blog post for Monday, March 5), Warren and I broke away from the group for an hour to visit our Salvadoran family, Carlos and Yolanda.

They looked great and the hour flew by with lively conversation....and I could even understand much of it! We rejoined the group and went on to the UCA, the site of the assassination of 6 Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and her daughter. We took time for lunch and shopping at an artesenia area and then visited a military museum...a first for all of us. We encountered an English speaking military man who gave us much food for thought and discussion about the war and the role of the military. Our driver, Alfredo, suggested a drive around downtown where we saw the National Cathedral....closed and occupied by veterans protesting the lack of pensions.

We also visited a nearby church that we have often noticed but never visited....well, Warren had visited but it was new to the rest of us. It looks like an old train station or war bunker for the outside but the inside is magical. The stained glass lights up the interior like a jewel. It is very modern in design and contains many unusual works of liturgical art. The name...Iglesia El Rosario.

Meals are a delightful opportunity to try new foods and enjoy discussion of the events of the day. It's great to have the group all together in El Salvador and we're looking forward to more visits tomorrow and our arrival in Berlin tomorrow night.

A Day At the Beach

So....what do you do with a day at the beach?? Well....you get up whenever you want to. When you're in the mood you go to your favorite restaurant for breakfast...preferably with friends.

Then you go for a walk on the beach....or go back to the hotel and sit around and talk a while.....and take a nap...and work on computer projects...and read a book....or whatever you want to do. Before you know it, it's time to take an evening walk around town....and walk on the beach...and stop for a drink...and watch the sunset...

And maybe a dinner of lobster or shrimp might taste good....while you listen to the wandering musicians.....and watch the neighboring table dance to the music....and have another drink....

After dinner you might just fall asleep early....exhausted by the sun and the heat and the day. You sleep a long, deep sleep....and awake with a desire to walk the beach at sunrise....

You savor the colors of the sky and the light upon the waves....before you meet your friend once again for breakfast overlooking the ocean.

And another day begins with a walk on the beach.....

We are forced to suffer through another day at the beach after saying goodbye to our friend, Steve, this morning. It's tough without him....but we're managing. Wish you were here.....

To the Beach!

The election observation program officially ended with a press conference about our observations and recommendations. Several of the Spanish speaking observers participated in the press conference which was led by the director of CIS, Leslie Schuld (in the center in white).

Following the official presentation, the representatives of print media as well as radio and TV swarmed the table for more interviews with the group. There was an excellent turn-out from the media and a great deal of interest in the CIS report.

A few hours later we were off to the beach with a few friends from the observer group. Steve arranged van transportation to Tunco, a beach west of La Libertad that is known for surfing. The sand here is black and sparkling and there are lots of well-rounded rocks on the beach. Warren got to try the water but I had to watch the "stuff"...

because I didn't think to bring a suit with me. I looked in the shops here but the only swimsuits for women were bikinis and they didn't seem suitable for ladies of a certain age. At least I didn't have to take three showers to get all the black sand off me like some people did!

We topped off the evening with shrimp dinners overlooking the ocean. It's still El Salvador but it seems a long way from Munoces. I'm guessing the the people of Munoces have never seen any place like this although it's just a few hours away by bus.

Election Day!

Election Day began at 5 A.M. as we waited outside the voting site along with more than 100 volunteers who had come to make democracy happen in El Salvador. Our group of 10 divided into 3 smaller groups to observe in 3 of the 20 voting centers in Illobosco. Warren and I were teamed with a young woman from Sweden....Ida... who is bright, fun, and completely fluent in both English and Spanish as well as numerous Scandinavian and European languages. Our voting center had just 10 tables which made it easy to observe the whole center as well as the one table we each chose to watch intensely. A group of 5 people are the officers of the table and then each party has a vigilante that watches the process on behalf of their party. It makes for a crowded voting area...we had 11 people around my table... but they all worked together diligently from the time they picked up their voting materials until the time they returned those materials 16 hours later.

When the voting center opens for the public the voters must find their name and picture on a list posted near each table.

Then they get in line for the opportunity to cast their vote. After their credentials are scrutinized they receive the ballots and vote in cardboard voting booths nearby. The breeze caused the voting booths to blow over from time to time. After they put their ballots in the cardboard voting boxes they sign the log of voters, have their finger tinted, and get their credentials back. The crowds were heavy in the morning but tapered off in the afternoon.

We stand near the tables and watch most of the day but now and then we just have to take a break and sit down. Because it was a small center we were able to get together to eat and just confer from time to time. There was shade and a breeze so it made for a nice day. Other than a few conflicts now and then and some confusion about the process, voting went smoothly and even the counting went well so the evening ended earlier than most anticipated. Not all voting centers went as smoothly as our center but the election day was mostly calm all over El Salvador.

After the materials had been returned we said goodbye to our new friends at the voting tables and the police that had watched over us all day. It's interesting to contemplate the progress that has been made in the 20 years since the peace accords. Twenty years ago these same people were shooting each other...and yesterday they were trusting in democracy and each other.