Happy Fourth of July!!!
Although that title has nothing to do with what I am going to talk about, I figured I should give some recognition to the day that it is...
That said, it has only been a few days since my last update, but I had a couple interesting days. On Saturday, the family and I went to the beach in Las Breses and gave some food and money this Señor who lives there and is pretty poor. It was really cool, I think that Niña Graciella checks up on him every month or so. I think what struck me most about this was that I came to El Salvador to experience the life of the people, a people who have far less matieral goods than myself, and here they were showing me true compassion and charity. It blew me away.
Then Sunday was such a typical day that I have to share it with you. I woke up and had my morning coffee, I walked to the beach to do some reading and journaling and have some alone time (it was a beautiful beach day and the beach here is always deserted, so it was exceptional!), then I came home and helped around the house. We had atole, which is this sweet corn milk soup that you eat with corn on the cob (which I helped shuck), and a typical lunch (beans, rice, eggs, avacado, and tortillas with mangoes to finish it off). Then we went to mass, which I understood most of, and then the girls and I went to watch the weekly fútbol game on the conch by our house (El Porvenir was playing La Granita Palmera). After that I helped Niña Graciella with the pupusas for dinner and before I ate Neli asked me if I wanted to go riding with Juan Angel (Heck yes!). So, Juan Angel and I rode his motorcylce to El Zapote (another community that is by the bay) and we took a canoe across the bay to Santiago - it was SO GORGEOUS!!! It is at times like this that I wonder how a country that is so rich in beauty and nature and life can be so poor by worldly standards. It was probably the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life. Then we rode back, ate dinner, chatted for a while and went to bed.
It was such a typical weekend, but it was so pleasantly tranquil and relaxing. Then today, I headed back to the city because we have a meeting tomorrow. There is something comforting in knowing that I can make it across a country alone when I do not necessarily know the language, the subtleties of the culture, or the craziness of the bus system. When I got to the city Nelsón (my jefe) and I went to this youth organization called, Next Generation 21, which was so inspiring. We had just gone to take a box of paper, pencils, supplies, etc. and the guys wanted to sit down and chat. They wanted to know why I was here, what I knew about El Salvador before coming, what my reality has been, what I think about the politics, etc. It was so interesting because as I shared, they shared their reality. It was so cool to hear the different opinions on the change that is necessary for this country and how people think the change should come. I think it was here that I realized the hope of the next generation, the hope for change, the hope of the youth. It was here that I got the same sense of passion that I have when I am working in the states with social justice organizations. This touched my heart and really gave me strength to keep going through my time here whole-heartedly.
The moments of clairity such as this remind me that God has a purpose for me here, and yet, I must remember that that purpose is not necessarily in what I do, but in what I learn.