lessons in panzal

the village of Panzal...an hour drive over ruddy gravel road. there we were greeted by a woman holding her child while an older one timidly peeks around her back. we put our things in the simple cement building where the usual meetings take place. women beginning coming in one by one many with their baby in the colorful cloth slings hanging down on their back. "C´llain tud" we greet them...me in my miserable attempt at Pokom but Eva greets them smoothly as it is her native tongue. Eva teaches our classes...audrey and i help..taking attendance, passing out crayons and papers, putting together some of the teaching aids. though today... i am going to play a bit with the children that dare interact with a tall giant blonde white woman. but we brought long balloons to make animals. these are very well received with giggles and sweet smiles by the women and by wide-eyed children slightly smiling through their shyness. we wait for quite a while - for we are early and the Pokomchi come in their own timing. so we make crowns for the women, puppies and bunnies for the kids. the once bare cement dingy room is transformed by the brillant colours of the cortes and wipils (traditional Pokomchi dress), the vibrant multi-colorful woven cloths that hold their children or things, and the multitude of odd-looking blue, red, green, white, orange...balloon creatures. the meeting begins with all rising and praying all together, the room has now been transformed into sounds of women seeking and thanking God. After a one lady lead the women in a couple songs, eva begins to teach them about parasites and worms and how to prevent them as well as get rid of them. I step out side into to the little dirt yard with stone steps, baby ducklings waddling, a stray looking dog curiously poking around. three little girls and i settle into coloring a picture of a lady holding her baby. meanwhile brad and cristobal return from hiking up to all the homes to check if the families had collected and started drying firewood for the stoves that will be built in their homes this next week. but no one is home for them to speak with...they are in the building learning how to keep their families healthy. so brad and cristobal sit and talk together...a ever helping cristobal continue to learn english.
the lesson ends... women are in and out of the building...cristobal steps in to give the reminder about the preparation of the firewood to the women...soon a couple women come carring baskets with mugs filled with hot drink. we all partake of this cornmeal sweet drink (i don´t remember the name of it). when we finish, we pack up, give several thanks-yous, smiles, good-byes and head back to the truck to journey back to nisnik, the village where our mission is based.
that was tuesday morning. that is a glimpse into our work in the villages.
tomorrow afternoon (saturday) we meet up with a group from Texas that has come down to help build water tanks and stoves for those homes in that village, Panzal. most of our ASOSAP staff and the team will stay at a hostel in a nearby village for the week while we work there. next friday, the team leaves and we, b&j, will return to san cristobal. until then....