Santiago, Vina del Mar, y Valparaiso

On Sunday around 2:30 am Andrea and I got back from our trip to Santiago, Vina del Mar, and Valparaiso.  This was a trip that made me completely fall in love with my life!  And with life in general.  So many little moments happened that both surprised me and took my breath away, and I found myself breaking out in smile or laughter at completely random times.  We spent a lot of time in different artisan fairs, wandering the streets, and watching live music.  

We stayed in Santiago for a few days with Judy, a Maryknoll lay missioner.  While there we went to Cafe Brasil, where we listened to two women sing while we drank bottles of wine.  Their voices were rich and sensual and powerful and resonated deeply in my body along with the musky red of the wine.  Cafe Brasil has live music most nights, and used to be a place of resistance during the Pinochet regime.  

the next day Andrea and I went wandering through the markets in Santiago, where we saw street performers singing opera, drank jugo natural, and were followed by trails of men asking what country we were from.  It was so exhilarating to feel like anything possible could happen, and we had the time and space to be present to it all.  

THEN!

We went to see the Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera exhibit at La Moneda!!!  These are probably my two most favorite painters of all time, and it was incredibly moving to be in the presence of their work.  It was nothing short of monumental.  

While passing through the Metro station, I convinced our friend Felipe, who is a violinist, to break out his violin and play with the street performers in the station.  It was so fun to watch them create music together.  I love how music can create community anywhere, at any time.  It again filled me with a sense of how wonderful the world is, and how everything is possible.  

That night we went salsa dancing at a charming, old, dark place with white taper candles on all the tables.  

The next evening we took off for Vina del Mar and Valparaiso, where we stayed with Mimi's friend Janie. Vina and Valpo are hilly coastal towns.  All of the hills are blanketed in house upon colorful house and full of secret passageways and murals.  In Vina we spent a lot of time lounging on the beach, wandering the artisan fair, and watching the majesty of the ocean waves crashing on the shore.  After sunset we saw animals jumping in the waves!  We also went to an old mansion that is now a public park, and explored the music stadium where Juanes will be playing in February!  (BUt I'll be in the States so I'll miss it :( . )

In Valpo we wandered several of the big hills, took a little boat ride and saw seals, and ate a fantastic meal in the garden at a restaurant.  Although the place was out of our price range, we were lured in by the Brazilian waiter and the amazing ambiance.  We sat amidst fuchsias and hibiscus overlooking the ocean bordered by the coastal towns with the mountains in the distance.  Thanks to Andrea speaking Portuguese, we were able to get a $60 bottle of Chilean Syrah for about $20.  Since we had only been eating one meal a day due to our economic situation, we figured we deserved a more fancy meal.

We went back to Santiago for Christmas.  On the 24 we went to mass and had dinner (Calf tongue!!!) with a family, and on the 25 we went back to Judy's for a light meal and wine.  One highlight of our second visit to Santiago was visiting the artisan fair of one of Felipe's friends.  Let me tell you, this place was a hippie paradise!   As soon as we arrived, various instruments were thrust into our hands (I ended up with maracas) and we made a hippie-band procession through the local markets playing "music" and handing out flyers about the fair.  Oh, my life is so random!  I love it!  Another great moment was seeing Arak Pacha, the Andean music band in which Felipe plays violin.  The "bar" that hosted the event wasn't clearly marked and we probably would have missed it if not for the neon strip club across the street.  The music was fantastic, and the band is really dedicated to nature, human rights, politics, and social justice.  They were very involved in singing out against oppression when Pinochet was in power.

Our last full day in Santiago we went to Isla Negra, where the poet Pablo Neruda had one of his homes.  We took a tour of the house and spent the rest of the afternoon on the beach there and watched the sunset.  I highly recommend this beach to anyone who comes to Chile!  I'll post some pictures so you can see why :)

End of the Year and a hot Christmas

The year has come to a close at Casa Ursulina.  Each class celebrated together with a special little meal and secret santa activities, and we had the end-of-the-year party this past Wednesday.  Most of the classes performed little skits reflecting what they had done and learned in class over the past year.  I was in several acts: circle dance, reflection and art, yoga, and the girls' english class.  Lots of costume changes :)  The highlight of my outfits was what I wore for the english skit.  We did a runway-themed sketch and the girls dressed up as different fruits or different styles.  I got to be an emo man, which meant that I had to wear lots of black eyeliner, black nailpolish, black tight pants, and a black and red striped shirt.  Since I'm both poor and creative, I safety-pinned red ribbon to a black shirt to make my stripes.  My look was a big hit with the girls, who informed me that I should be emo all the time - I looked so "bakan" (cool)!.  

Last night we had a big goodbye party for Kristy and Caryn, and the rest of the weekend/beginning of next week will be dedicated to more goodbye parties and gatherings.  They really have made such an impact here, and will be missed by all.

When Kristy and Caryn go to Santiago on Wednesday, Andrea and I will accompany them.  We'll be in Santiago until the 20th, and then head to Vina del Mar and Valparaiso for a few days.  Then it's back to Santiago, where we plan to celebrate Christmas with some volunteers who live there.  If all goes well, we'll spend the following weekend at the beach!  

It's SOOO freaking hot here in the afternoon, which makes it hard to remember that Christmas is on the way.  I put up and decorated the tree yesterday, though, and we've been blasting Christmas music pretty much constantly, so it's starting to sink in a little.

Now get ready to be jealous of me and my fabulous life:

On January 17, Andrea and I will be getting on a cruise ship to Laguna San Rafael to see GLACIERS!  We'll be spending a week on land in the Aysen region exploring national parks and seeing more GLACIERS, and then going to the island of Chiloe to see PENGUINS.  It's going to be a little expensive, but I figure it's worth it to see glaciers while they still exist on this magnificent planet that is being terribly destroyed.

Recently we went on a really fantastic retreat about water, but I'm going to write about that in a different blog since there is just so much to say about it.  

I'll be home in Chicago from Feb. 19-27, and I'm looking forward to seeing all of your smiling and freezing faces.  

Anyways, just wanted to let you know what I'll be up to... don't know what my internet access will be like over the next couple of months.  But I wish you all the best as you play in the snow and brave the malls!

one more:)

some of our work at San Rafael teaching creative arts

I used to think...

I used to think I was born in the wrong decade.  I should have been born in the 40's or 50's so I could have been a hippie and made change and revolution happen.  But sometimes I have moments of clarity where I realize that the world is constantly in need of change and revolution, and even though we're in the 21 century I can still have some pretty zen experiences.  Besides, women have it a lot better now than we did 40 years ago.  

Last Saturday we had a Chakra workshop the entire day, where we learned chakra 101 and discussed all of our different energy centers.  We also reviewed different exercises that help develop and harmonize the chakras.  I realized that I feel most connected to the first 2 chakras; earth energy.  And I also discovered through one of the exercises that it feels really good to stomp my feet on the ground as hard as I can to the beat of drums.  Every day I find more reasons to join a drum circle when I get back to the States :)

That night we went to the Victor Jara music festival in the plaza.  Victor Jara, from what I can understand, was a truly iconic Chilean folk singer who was brutally tortured and assassinated during the 1973 coup.  He was born near Chillan, the city where I live, so every year they have a huge music festival in his honor.  Let me tell you, there was some great people-watching!  Lots of young dread-locked Chileans "volando" (flying).  At times I felt like I was in a mosh pit, but the energy was contagious and the music helped create a sense of community and laughter. We sat and drank cheap beer and tried hard not to get knocked over by people who had consumed far too many altering substances.

This past weekend was also exceptional.  Apart from other things, on Saturday we went to the sub-20 women's world cup game between the U.S. and Argentina.  Since Obama won, we felt patriotic enough to dress in red, white and blue.  We all put our hair in pigtails and tied them with red, white and blue ribbon.  We even made signs!  Although we looked ridiculous, we were pretty awesome and I'm confident that everyone in the stadium agreed.  Thanks to our support, the U.S. team won 3-0!

After the game we went to the campo for an asado (bbq). Sandra and Juan, thos hosts, had gotten up at dawn to start preparing.  The killed two sheep, skinned them, and prepared the meat.  I did eat a little bit of it, since they worked so hard to prepare such a feast.  We had plenty of time to wander in the fields, sharing conversation and laughing constantly.  After dinner we all sat in the garage drinking wine and mate, watching the sun set and the stars come out.  

I'm beginning to feel more of a sense of community here, although it's sad to think that Kristy and Caryn, the other volunteers, will be returning to the States soon.

In other news, the greenhouse is fantastic and we've been enjoying fresh spinach, parsley, lettuce, swiss chard, and cilantro!  The tomato plants are turning into monsters that could win blue ribbons at a state fair, as are the nasturtiums.  

Also, if anyone knows anyone who has ever been to Patagonia, put them in contact with me!

la primavera

Spring is truly spectacular in Chile.  It's not like spring in the States, which is all wrapped up in the smell of wet earth and industrious worms and tender green.  Chile is dry, thanks in part perhaps to the hole in the ozone layer right above the country.  The sun glares pretty fiercely in the afternoon, which I'm imagining will make for a fairly brown and dry summer. But for now everything is soaking up those rays of heat and you can see the sun dancing in the brilliance of everything that is blooming.  Burgeoning. That's really the only word for it.  Roses are literally spilling over walls and gates with cala lilies peeking through, snapdragons are towering higher every day, and the hills in the campo are carpeted with pink, yellow, orange, purple, and white wildflowers.  One thing you have to understand is that the words we have to describe colors do no justice to what these flowers actually look like.  

We went to the campo on Sunday to ride horses, and looking around me I couldn't help but feel more connected to the earth mother.  Imagine looking out over rolling hills with the snow-capped mountains in the backdrop.  The hills are literally every shade of green and brown imaginable, from chartreuse to hunter green, from terra cotta to dark chocolate and coffee.  The smell of eucalyptus is carried on the breeze, and in that smell you can even see the calm blue-green of the eucalyptus leaves.  Willow trees gracefully bend into glittering streams, and pine trees add a hint of spice to the air.  The sky, of course, is always a clear bright blue.

Also, I allowed myself to be surrounded by bees, which is pretty amazing.

dulce o travesura

So much has happened since my last post!  We've gone to all-night festivals, handed out candy on halloween, seen Michelle Bachelet (Chile's president), seen the first ever futbol game at Chillan's brand new stadium (which will be hosting the sub-20 women's World Cup soon - and we have tickets!!!), gone to a wake and funeral, started new projects, and helped ELECT A NEW PRESIDENT!!!  And so much more:)

Halloween has only become popular in Chile in recent years.  Halloween candy started getting imported here, and in order to sell it they had to create the holiday.  It truly is a consumerist thing here:)  Ironically, last month Chile decided to make October 31 an official Evangelical holiday, so we had the whole day off.  There weren't a whole lot of kids, and it didn't feel quite right since there was no smell of fall in the air, but I think Halloween is a tradition worthy of importation.

Obama is big news here right now... there have been special programs on tv and it's all over the news in all medias.  At one of our meetings, all the women in the house came and gave us big hugs in celebration.  Tonight we volunteers will be having an Obama celebration with funfetti cake and maybe some macaroni:)  I know there are some people back home who aren't happy with the results of the election, but literally everyone here is.  It's great to be able to say I'm from the United States and actually feel good about saying it!

As far as projects for the rest of this year and next year, things are starting to fall into place a little bit.  On Wednesday mornings we are all teaching creative art at San Rafael, a school/centro laboral for youth with different developmental capacities.  Some have mild learning disorders, some have down syndrome, some have autism, and there is a wide range of others.  On Thursday afternoons we all will be teaching circle dance at Los Heroes, another school along the same lines, and right from there Andrea and I walk over to San Rafael for a faculty meeting to discuss how class went on wednesday, how our development objectives are going for each student, and so forth.

If those activities work out well, we can continue with them next year after summer break. We'll also be doing basic skills reinforcement at Libertador, where we now go with Kristy and Caryn to teach English.  We'll be able to do some home visits and keep tabs and build connections w/ the kids there in a more personal way.  We also plan on doing a self-esteem and creativity class with the girls at the Casa, a reflection and art class, and of course oil painting!

Now the big thing is planning our summer activities.  I'm hoping to be able to go to Peru to visit a friend there, we're doing a dance retreat in January, and Andrea and I would really love to go south to Patagonia or something along those lines.  Time is flying by!  Every day gets busier, and every weekend we have more activities than would ever be possible to do.

Andrea's video

Andrea, my fellow volunteer, just made a video update about being in Chile.  You can find it on youtube in 2 parts if you're interested.

part 1:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVQ55Z_GuhU

part 2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKLjAjIeviI

hopefully those will work.... I can't figure out how to just post links on here.

jugando en el campo

digging for treasure...

here are some of the things I found while digging the hole for the compost pile :)

greenhouse

REMEMBER TO VOTE!!!

So it's pretty obvious to everyone around that I'm from the United States.  Everywhere I go, someone will invariably ask who I am going to vote for, and who I think will win the elections in the U.S.  Of course I respond with a resounding "OBAMA," and the questioner always cheers.  EVERYONE in Chile that I've talked to - the women at the Casa, strangers on the street, vendors at the market, mechanics, neighbors, park employees, etc etc etc - is rooting for Obama.

For better or for worse, U.S. policies have a huge impact on the rest of the world.  Now is our chance to decide what kind of impact we want to have!  We are so fortunate to live in a country where we can vote without fear of persecution, and where we actually have some kind of choice.  Let's all make that choice and participate in the democratic process.  The world is waiting and hoping for change!

mi vida normal

So much to catch up on!

The weekend before this past one, Andrea and David and I went dancing Saturday night.  We stayed out all night and then went back to David's house in Chillan to talk and rest for a few hours before heading to his house in the campo to ride horses all day!  Dancing was.... fun... I guess...  We went to this place called Bronco, where we were surrounded by a younger, chain-smoking crowd illuminated by erratic strobe lights and smoke machines.  We were also treated to several young women shaking their bare asses on the stage.  We almost slipped on all the drool from the men in the audience hahaha:)

Riding horses was a different story, though.  We rode through vineyards, fields of cattle grazing (including the tiniest calf I have ever seen!), and pine forests.  After a while we got off our horses and scaled a large rock to check out the view.  When it started raining we hurried down and mounted the horses again.  As we galloped down the hill it started hailing!  We were all hooting and hollering as the rain and hail pelted down, and it was truly exhilarating!  Needless to say, we returned to Chillan completely exhausted but feeling enriched and fulfilled.

This past weekend we spent several hours hanging out with a couple of the women who come to yoga and danza circular, and ended up going to a stunning dance performance.  We also went to a fiesta costumbrista (like a traditional festival thing) on Saturday, and back to the town of Lota and the botanic garden on Sunday.  Andrea and I are hoping to have a quiet weekend sometime soon!

So I realized that I've only been talking about weekend excursions.  For those of you who think all I do here is party and go to festivals and ride horses, here's an idea of what my days look like:

MONDAY

breakfast at 8:30

I go to Carola's to practice Spanish for a couple of hours

Lunch

Reflection and Art class (right now the women in this class are making Christmas cards to send to our donors, but last semester they made some absolutely beautiful books of art projects).

English class for the girls at the Casa - Kristy and Caryn do this, but we sometimes help out or sit in on the class.

Dinner

Kill slugs

TUESDAY

breakfast

go to Libertador (the school nearby) to teach English to 1 and 2 grade with Kristy and Caryn

Andrea and I make lunch, and we are really amazing cooks

lunch

Yoga

work in the greenhouse

dinner

Kill slugs

WEDNESDAY

breakfast

Carola's for Spanish, and as of tomorrow the other volunteers and Ruth and I will be going over there to learn how to do macrame.

Andrea and I make lunch

lunch

Go to the church to hang out with elderly adults and play games

danza circular

Ursulina meeting (this is where all of the women who are really involved with the Casa come together to reflect and discuss any important issues or upcoming events, and eat onces - a light dinner).

Kill slugs

THURSDAY

breakfast

Libertador to teach grades 3 and 4

Lunch

Reflection/baking class

Dinner

Kill slugs

FRIDAY

breakfast - on Fridays we eat garlicky scrambled eggs with bread

House meeting

Carola's for Spanish

Lunch

weaving/photo project with girls

dinner

Kill slugs

In the free hours we weave, work in the greenhouse, devise new ways to kill slugs, run errands for the house, and do anything else that needs to be done.

Life feels pretty busy, but I know that it will only get busier as we start and become involved in our own projects.  Right now we are looking into volunteering at a residential home for teens who are addicted to drugs, as well as doing something at a special-ed school.  Some of the students came to visit the Casa and they were awesome, so it would be really great to go and do some art-therapy inspired projects there.  I think it would be beyond fantastic to do a vegetable garden at the residential facility!  We're going there on Friday for another meeting and to observe some of their activities.

small wonders

Following our recent trend, Andrea and I went to the campo this past weekend (albeit a different part of the campo).  On friday afternoon we left with Sandra and her daughter Valentina to visit Sandra's partner Juan, who lives in the campo just out of Chillan.  The purpose of the trip was to continue shearing the sheep; luckily we did not have to actually participate in that activity other than as spectators!  

This seriously was one of the best weekends ever!  I got to play with so many cute baby animals and took part in some really amazing experiences.  I fell in love at first sight with a baby goat who just romped around like crazy!  He was so fuzzy and soft and just beautiful!  We watched some eggs hatch - the hen already had chicks and wouldn't stick around to hatch these, so we had to keep them warm and safe while they fluffed out their feathers.  I spent much of the weekend with my "pollito" snuggled safe and sound in my hands. By the end of the weekend he was trying to climb all over me!

The lambs were also beautiful, and although watching the the sheep being sheared was difficult for me, I thought about how wonderful it will be to have all of the wool at the Casa.  Some of the women here clean and card the wool and then spin it into yarn.  

After the sheep were sheared, we went to town for ice cream and some shopping.  Back at Juan's house we learned how to tell, by looking at the eggs, whether they will hatch into chickens or roosters, and what color they will be.  While walking through the campo we saw tons of what looked like little mud chimneys poking up from the ground.  Valentina told us that a species of shrimp live in them!  I never knew there were earth shrimp.  We also saw a kind of owl that lives underground.  So many miracles in this world that I never even knew existed!

On Sunday we went to San Nicolas for their cabalgata, a procession where everyone rides their horse for about 15 kilometers to the school, where they stop for a typical breakfast and some Cueca music and dancing.  From the school they ride 15 kilometers back into town for lunch and live music performances.  The event starts early in the morning, and the day started out chilly and windy.  We decided to ride in car to the school and meet up with the rest of the procession there.  There were over 600 horses in the cabalgata, as well as horses pulling carts for people to ride in.  David, our new friend here in Chile, found an extra horse for Andrea and I to ride.  For the first part of the trip I rode in a horse-cart, and for the second part I rode the horse.  The path was just a dirt and rock road, lined with cypress trees and the mountains in the distance.  I was nervous to ride the horse, since there were so many experienced riders swarming all around and I had to keep pulling over for cars to pass.  Luckily for me, my horse was extremely patient and did not go crazy even once - which for some reason they usually do when I ride them.  

After lunch we found David with some of his friends.  We started out listening to the music, but then decided to take a little ride on the horses again.  This ride was literally one of the coolest things I have ever done.  We rode through the town, passing through traffic, and down a hill to a river.  We got to ride our horses into the river as the sun began to set!  I learned how to gallop as we rode up huge hills covered in wildflowers.  It was completely exhilarating!    I can't even begin to describe how great this weekend was.  David told Andrea and I that we could come visit anytime, and he will teach us how to ride better.  He also said he would take us out dancing!  This is especially exciting because it's so difficult to form a peer group here in a community of older women with families and lives of their own.

On a side note, the greenhouse is going really well so far.  The other night, after it rained the entire day, all of the snails started sneaking out.  I was outside until almost 11 hunting them down, and in the end I had gathered a ton - probably at least a hundred!  They are so cute, but they will kill all of our plants.  In the morning I went to the corner store and bought beer - snails like beer so much that they will literally drown in it.  I have the dead ones stored in tupperware containers until I have time to build the compost pile:)

Also, I mentioned tonight that I wished I had my oil paints with me, and Mimi got really excited!  She has some supplies that I can use, and she said that it would be great if I could teach a class on oil painting!  Now, I'm certainly no expert but I could definitely teach a short course on the basics while incorporating a reflection and therapy aspect.

My Spanish is starting to improve (I hope!).  With all of these trips to the campo, I've had more chances to practice.  I'm also starting to meet with Carola, Kristy's host mom, to practice three times a week, and reading the newspaper and children's books.

A Continuacion

Vilches:

On Monday morning we departed for Vilches, a campo town relatively nearby.  Vilches in pretty much in the foothills of the Andes, but we could still see the snowy peaks rising above the green hills.  Fortunately for me, Ted and Maruja's family is mainly vegetarian, so we got to enjoy lots of healthy dishes made from fresh vegetables.  

Our time with Ted and Maruja was, for me, a time of rest, discernment, and discovery.  We watched documentaries about La Vida Campesina (the life of people in the country - i.e. farmers) and Victor Jara, who was a folk singer brutally tortured and assassinated in the 1973 coup.  I was able to ask a million questions about the dictatorship, Chilean culture, life as a Maryknoll missioner, ecofeminist theology, gardening, alternative approaches to healing, etc.

I learned that big corporations came in and paid the poor and indigenous peoples who had worked the land for generations a small sum for their land.  The corporations ejected the people from their land, destroyed the native crops, and planted pine and cypress trees.  The pine trees, which are not native to the region, deplete the soil to the point that it takes over a hundred years to regenerate.  In a twisted irony, the very people who had worked that land before are now working for a pittance for those corporations, as there are no other opportunities.  Essentially, they are forced to contribute to the destruction of the land that used to be their heritage, the land that holds all of their memories and the memories of their ancestors, in order to survive.

The community in Vilches is connected to communities in Santiago and to our community at the Casa Ursulina, and all together there is a great emphasis on the exploration of ecofeminism and different approaches to healing and building community.  After talking with Maruja, Andrea and I determined that one of our projects at the Casa will be to work in the little greenhouse we have here. The greenhouse has kind of fallen into a state of disrepair, but we have plans to plant vegetables and herbs that we can eat at the Casa.  We had been thinking about doing that anyways, but after my time in Vilches I feel even more inspired to  carry that out, as I'm thinking about ecospirituality and ecofeminism.  I'm reminded of how important it is to me to be in tune with these cycles and rhythms of life, and how I felt in Nicaragua on the island of Ometepe.  

I believe that the sacred nature and heritage of women has been buried and erased over the years in so many ways.  I know that I carry that sacred history and heritage within me, and it's something that I've always wanted to access and explore more.  Maybe here in Chile I will learn how I can live my life in that pattern, in communion with the earth and the connectedness of all living beings.  I would like to find ways of connecting with that divine nature and energy, and I have so many ways right at my fingertips here!  Rhythm, art, dance, planting, harvesting, cooking, natural healing, energy work, etc.  There is such mystery and miracle in all of this, and I want to be a part of that.  I want to find what is inside myself and bring it into the light.

In talking with Maruja about my desire to delve deeper into the sacred and divine feminine, she told me that the Vilches community offers a workshop of the four feminine archetypes, and part of what they do is look at the divine feminine throughout histories and cultures and myths.  This sounds SO exciting and perfect!  

We met with the other Maryknoll missioners on our last morning in Vilches, and I was struck again at what a great opportunity it is for me to be here.  They are starting a women's center there that will be a retreat space for women who are suffering from different forms of violence and abuse.  Sarah, one of the missioners, wants to start some art therapy there.  Judy, another missioner, is very active in learning more about the divine feminine and uncovering women's lost history.  Talking with them was such a great meeting of our passions!  It was so inspiring and rejuvenating to have some of my strongest beliefs and goals recognized and reciprocated.  We all plan on staying in touch so that we can collaborate throughout the year.

In Vilches we took advantage of the nice weather and amazing location.  We walked down to a beautiful river in the middle of the foothills and saw the adjacent campground.  If anyone wants to come down to Chile and go camping, let me know!  There we saw the lovely spiders that are in my other blog:)

We also hiked up into the mountains, passing through budding trees, appreciating the signs of spring all around us.  We saw these gigantic woodpeckers - they are the size of crows and pure black except for their heads, which are a brilliant scarlet red.  We also saw a young eagle soaring and swallows darting through the air.  Sitting in front of all this majesty, we discussed culture shock, our lives, our backgrounds.  

During one dinner we talked about what Chile was like during the dictatorship.  I asked how it would compare to Nicaragua, since I'm more familiar with that, and they made the point that there was never any armed resistance in Chile - there was only one power, and more than anything it was a psychological war.  Maruja remembers peeking out the curtain after curfew and seeing long lines of military trucks pass by filled with people - soon to be the disappeared.  After hearing her and Ted talk, it's not surprising that people don't really discuss those times.  With Pinochet dead only recently, people have still been wary of sharing their feelings and experiences.  I wonder what will come to light about those years as people become more comfortable opening up.  

viajando en el campo

Last night Andrea and I got back from our trip to the campo (country).  From Friday through Monday morning we were in San Dionisio visiting a family Andrea stayed with for a week when she was in Chile before.  From Monday through Friday we stayed in Vilches with Ted and Maruja, to Maryknoll lay missioners who are closely connected with our program at Casa Ursulina.

San Dionisio:

The family has a small farm where they have chickens, ducks, milk cows, horses, bees, and of course the requisite cats and dogs.  We stayed with Pedro and Alicia and Pedro's grown children.  It was amazing and beautiful how welcoming the family was - they were so excited to see Andrea again, and they gladly accepted me into their life.  When we arrived Alicia was sick and staying with her family up the road, so Pedro was in charge of feeding us.  He had set up a little grate over a fire and cooked us ribs from the pig they had recently slaughtered, and longaniza (a kind of sausage that Chillan is famous for) that we had brought as a gift.  

As you may know, I haven't eaten red meat or pork in over 3 years....

I thought about my main reasons for not eating meat: generally the animals are fed with grains and hormones to make them grow faster, which is an unnatural and unhealthy process.  It takes approximately 8 lbs of grain to obtain 1lb of meat, and all of that grain could be going to feed human beings...  I thought of the negative impact meat production has on the environment as well as poverty and hunger throughout the world....  And then I looked around and realized that the ribs I was being presented with had come from a pig that this family had raised, hormone free and grass-fed, on their own property.  I knew that Pedro was offering us, his guests, the best he had.  I wanted to share in the celebration and spirit that the food was being offered.  SO, I ate 2 ribs and a slice of longaniza.  

It actually was really fun to sit outside on tree stumps in the dark, warmed by the coals of the fire, watching the stars flood the sky, sharing companionship and food right off the grill.

The next morning, we ate pork steak for breakfast!  And more sausage for lunch!  Oh dear, my poor body just couldn't take it anymore.  The rest of the weekend I found ways to beg off of eating meat, but it wasn't easy.  I realized that meat, even if it's locally grown and grass-fed, is no longer something that is even appetizing to me, and is no longer something that my body can digest.

But don't worry, there was more to the weekend than meat!  I watched Pedro kill a chicken, and I watched as they cut the body open.  That may sound morbid, but it was actually really stunning.  As they opened the body, these two goldenrod globes slipped out, followed by a full membranous oval.  Out of this membrane glided a fully formed egg!  It was such a surprise!

We spent so much time sitting outside and taking in our surroundings.  The Andes mountains lined the horizon, and the blue of the sky highlighted their snowy caps.  All of the flowers and trees were in bloom, and the soil was a rich coffee brown.  

Our second night in San Dionisio, we went to visit Alicia's family for their independence day celebration. Her family is very musical, so after a GIGANTIC asado (bbq) involving pig, cow, and goat meat (which I was thankfully able to avoid despite much protest from the entire family), everyone broke out their guitars and accordion.  Those who didn't have instruments used forks, hands, and voices.  It was such an amazing experience to share in their passion and companionship as they sang folk songs, protest songs, and dance songs (MORE CUECA!) as the sun went down and the sky began to twinkle with the light of the milky way and distant galaxies.  While others danced, I stood under the stars and talked with one of Alicia's relatives about constellations, other worlds, politics, social justice, etc etc etc.

Isn't it fascinating to think that I am seeing a whole different sky!  

Me "dancing" Cueca