Why We Can't Wait

2008-10-31T11:02:00.000-07:00

Go Vote! Thanks, Nole, Carrie, Cole, and Amy! We had a great time filling out the ballots and discussing the issues with you!
I came across this today and couldn't help but throw it up.

Thought for today

2008-09-16T13:44:00.000-07:00

We never know how high we are
by Emily Dickinson

We never know how high we are
Till we are asked to rise
And then if we are true to plan
Our statures touch the skies--
The heroism we recite
Would be a normal thing
Did not ourselves the Cubits warp
For fear to be a King--

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." -Nelson Mandela, 1994

Stumbled upon a thought-provoking treasure

2008-09-15T13:28:00.000-07:00

As I searched the web for relevant (and worthwhile) poetry to use in the classroom, I found this. Perhaps too controversial and sensitive a subject for teenagers, but I thought you might be interested...
Andrea Gibson article

One with nature...

2008-08-15T16:11:00.001-07:00

August 15, 2008
Tonight Ron and I head out to Devil's Lake for our first camping trip! It's quite embarrassing that we have waited so long to bask in the beauty of Central Oregon via camping, but I guess life has its way of distracting us. This spring I agreed to pay Cole and Amy $100 if we did not pitch a tent before fall. This will be Ron's first trip... Pray for him??? We will hike up South Sister on Saturday (it's supposed to be 100 degrees- yikes). I've heard the climb is long and strenuous, but the vistas spectacular and worth the labor... We'll see.
In other great news- my sister is coming up Sunday for a long visit! I miss that girl!

August 18, 2008: WE MADE IT! The hike was probably the hardest thing we've ever done!

Setting up Camp!
We woke up bright and early to begin our trek.

The false summit near Teardrop Lake.

There are tiny dots in the background. Those are people! The final hour is by far the most difficult. You sink back two steps every time you put a foot forward. And - oh- the sun!

We finally made it to the top after about 6 grueling hours. A beautiful expanse of snow and glacial pools awaited us.
We were saved when a stranger filtered some water into our empty bottles!

Karl taking a rest. That's Mt. Bachelor on the right and Broken Top on the left.

Finally- Las Fotos!

2008-08-05T15:11:00.000-07:00

Este ha sido una experiencia profunda...

I am going to miss these two! Ruth will be moving to Quetzaltenango in a month or so... Christina and I might have to plan a trip back to visit her.

We learned about the coffee growing & harvesting process at a finca near La Escuela de las Montanas. We also heard from local workers about the struggles they faced as a result of the Coffee Crisis in 2000. Many communities went without pay for years as European owners declared bankruptcy and fled the country. The communities organized and fought for justice. Eventually they received meager compensation.

My classroom at La Escuela de las Montanas. Gracias, Ani.

Amazing picture, verdad?
Cooking class and cooking together...

The traditional Mayan "chu" that Christina and I fired up one night. Que smoky!

Fuentes Georginas- Incredible hot springs near Xela.

"Sow the seeds of truth and justice and harvest reconciliation" - Monsenor Jose Gerardi.
This man was a Bishop and leader of the National Reconciliation Committee in Guatemala. He worked to uncover the horrible truths about the massacres, and was assassinated in 1998.

Paque Central in beuatiful Xela.

At the market in San Francisco El Alto.

Out on the town... La Rumba.

Thursday night futbol game!

Vamos Equipo! At the Xelaju Super Chivos game. Why doen't America get behind soccer like the rest of the world?

Final farewell...

2008-08-05T13:56:00.000-07:00

I said goodbye to Guatemala yesterday.

I left Xela on Saturday, and with it, two amazing friends. Ruth and Christina were phenomenal travel mates. I couldn't have asked for better compatibility (although their faithful blogging did put me to shame).

I journeyed to Guatemala City by chicken bus, desiring to remain immersed in the culture for as long as possible. As I squeezed in with about 100 Guatemalans, I caught myself smiling. I felt the cool breeze of the countryside, admired the vistas of volcanoes and lakes, and gladly passed crying babies back to their abuelas when asked. As we maneuvered our way through road construction, I let the dust of the Pan-American Highway powder my face, and I considered both its history and the symbolism of its current expansion. I relished the feeling of being able to communicate with the man sharing my seat, realizing how language learning has opened new possibilities of friendship. I will miss those chicken buses, the excitement of taking turns at high speeds and the instant sense of commraderie shared between passengers.

After this (possibly overly-romanticized) ride to Guatemala City, I realized I wasn't very prepared for the urban jungle that awaited me. To make a long story short, I was screwed over by a taxi driver and left in the wrong neighborhood.... during a torrential downpour. I wandered around through the ankle-deep puddles, and eventually happened upon a young couple who instantly invited me into their home. Thank you and thank you, Alejandro and Estefani. I am so grateful for your hospitality and generosity.

And now I am back in the States... With a husband who has been nothing short of amazing this entire time. He encouraged me to go on this trip even when I had my doubts. Sometimes I think he knows me better than I know myself... Cliche, but so true. I come home to find that he has opened our house to our two best friends and their dog, and that we will be living in community for the next few weeks. I come home to a job that is challenging, exciting, and new. I come home to a community of friends and family here in Bend... and I couldn't be more grateful.

Guatemala 101 (kind of)

2008-07-19T12:44:00.001-07:00

After a week of Spanish classes, cultural exposure and historical-political discussions, it´s a relief to finally post a bit about Guatemala. First of all, the school has exceeded all of my expectations...
A little background: In 1988 two students were kidnapped (in broad daylight), tortured, and murdered. Despite the abundance of witnesses, it was extremely rare and difficult to prosecute assailants during this tumultuous time in Guatemala. The PLQ language school was founded in order to support the families and pay for the lawyers´fees. In its early days, PLQ was dedicated to exposing others to the horrifying reality of Guatemala (more on this in a second). Young students from powerful countries (like the U.S.) needed to take extreme caution as the military realized that the school was teaching more than the Spanish language. Social activism and cultural understanding remain at the heart of PLQ today, and it is a challenge and honor to inherit such a righteous tradition.

So... I am probably doing this backwards, but here is a little history of Guatemala for those who are interested and have the time to read. Again, this is just a brief introduction, related from notes I took at orientation. I thought about waiting until I could present a more thorough and precise history, but then I realized that the longer I waited, the less likely I would be to post anything. So here it is:

Incomienda: By the time the Spanish arrived in Guatemala, their diseases had already brought destruction to the Mayan people. Guatemala was quickly divided into plots of land that were given to the settlers. Along with the land came any indigenous people living on it. The Mayan were forced to work for the Spanish, first as slaves and later as indentured servants. In 1821 Guatemala gained independence from Spain, but the indeginous people remained oppressed, with little to call their own.

By the 1920´s, much of Guatemala was owned by the United Fruit Company. Needless to say, the company was more than a little corrupt, mistreating and exploiting the Guatemalan people. (There is a gap in my notes here- I might have spaced out for a minute)

Democratic Spring: 1944-1954 is known as Guatemala´s ¨democratic spring¨and brought both education and land reform. Leaders of the people were actually OF the people, and they sought to bring justice after years of oppression. The government ordered the United Fruit Company to SELL back to Guatemala any land that was not being used. They used the tax claims of the U.F.C. (which were fraudulent) to set the prices of the land. They began to give land back to the Mayan people and the poor rural farmers.
Here´s where it gets really interesting: At this time, the major shareholders of U.F.C. included Guatemalan officials, a man connected to the CIA, and the U.S. Ambassador. The U.F.C. was enraged by Guatemala´s request for the IDLE land and proceeded to hire CocaCola´s marketing director to ¨paint¨Guatemala as a Communist country. Americans, in the midst of the Red Scare, fell for it. In 1954 the U.S. sponsored a coup d´etat and ended Guatemala´s democratic spring.

From the 1960´s-1990´s, Guatemala knew little of peace or democracy. The presidency was corrupt and the indeginous people were once again oppressed and massacared. It is estimated that around 200,000 people were killed, 50,000 went missing, and hundreds of thousands were displaced (most refugees fled to Mexico). The peak of the violence took place during the 1980´s, when PLQ was founded.

There are a million more details I could divulge, but a beautiful day in Xela awaits me. I hope I have perked your interest and that you go on to read and research more about Guatemala´s history. The people here are strong, vibrant, and stand behind the mantra: ¨Guatemala Nunca Mas!¨(Guatemala Never Again). May that leave you with a feeling of hope rather than despair.

I also hope that you will consider, and perhaps question, the role of the U.S. in Latin America. There is a lot to say about this topic... a million stories, theories, opinions, and disagreements. I feel that we are obligated to research and learn about what our country has done in order to prevent it from happening again. Perhaps our country needs a ¨Truth and Reconciliation Committee¨ similar to that of South Africa and Guatemala. Perhaps our generation should be the next to protest the School of the Americas, now under the name ¨Ïnstitute of Security for the Western Hemisphere ( I need to look up the exact name... I think it is a mothful for a reason).

What do you think?

Rigoberta Menchu

2008-06-17T12:41:00.001-07:00

In preparation for my upcoming trip to Guatemala, I have been reading the biography of Rigoberta Menchu. As an indigenous woman in Guatemala, Rigoberta campaigned for the rights of Indian peasants and spoke out against the internal colonialism taking place in Latin America. We know that the United States has exploited and oppressed the Latino people, but we often forget that there is domestic oppression, segregation and even slavery present in countries like Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Mexcio. Indigenous populations must choose between acculturation and isolation (the latter of which may lead to extinction due to unjust land seizure and violence). Here's the link to a brief bio.

2008-06-10T09:42:00.001-07:00

Take Two

2008-05-28T22:33:00.000-07:00

After 16 months of simultaneously working and earning my Masters, I wondered what I would do when I graduated on April 26th. I made a list that looked like this:

- Yoga
- Garden- start
- Read [books I WANT to read, as opposed to textbooks]
- Yard!
- Blog
- Listen to good radio shows
- Learn more about politics
- Learn how to sew
- Paint fireplace
- Volunteer - LCA [Latino Community Association]

Needless to say, these past two months have been soul-nourishing. I am working part time at a local high school teaching 9th grade English, and have leisurely been crossing the items off my list. I have fallen in love with Vinyassa yoga, Kurt Vonnegut, and the feel of dirt between my fingers. My garden is trying (oh how it's trying!) and I subscribed to the Democracy Now podcast earlier this morning. I am making a second attempt at this "blog thing" not simply because it is something to cross off my list (although I do LOVE that feeling), but because I have seen the way in which it enriches the life of my husband. Ron cherishes his virtual community, and his perspective and confidence have grown as the result of it.

So here I am. I hope to learn from and add to this continuous conversation.

I gotta go find that list and a pencil- BOO- YA!