Yadira and I practiced conversation for two hours this morning! A very engrossing and ultimately inspiring conversation it was, too. She is a social worker and has worked for the past five years or so for the government. She has seen the dark realities of poverty and racism, the underbelly of alcoholism, drug abuse, child abuse and violence of our unequal system. It hurts her so much to see the tiny children with bruises, in all their innocence looking out at a world that seems to care nothing at all for them. She sometimes asks God why He allows such things, though she knows God is responding with another question--why do you DO them? It is hard sometimes not to despair, not to feel alone, not to feel hopeless about things ever being better.
And so, we took a trip around my "holy stones"--the images and words that those who have gone before have set out as beacons to show the way. As we touched each one, the tears came--for both of us--the darkness so great, so overwhelming. Yet it has never been able to extinguish the light. We might believe it will be extinguished soon, that the darkness is stronger, but the light continues to shine. She gave as examples her father and his older brother. Her mother died when she was ten. He has been responsible for her and her many siblings ever since, taking care of them, being tender with them, being a father. She feels so lucky when she looks at the children she worked with and their parents lost in violence, addiction and suffering. She takes her children to see how the other children have to live so that they will not take their "luck" for granted. Her uncle raised his 8 siblings, caring for them after their mother died when he was thirteen. In spite of his belief that "to be happy, one must not know anything," those 8 children came to adulthood, knowing they were cared for and had a roof, food and beds.
One of my touchstones is the quotation from Martin Luther King, Jr., someone who certainly had experience in pushing back the dark (in the words of a popular Christian song). "The arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice." (It sounds lovelier in Spanish). In spite of the darkness of loss of parents, poverty, and many other obstacles, people manage to do what they can to make things better for everyone. God takes all that we do and weaves it into a beautiful tapestry--here Yadira gestured with her hands. We cannot see it except as an image in our minds, but it is there and will be there and has always been there. We are simply a part of the universe wanting to create itself whole. All that we have to do is begin, God will provide all the assistance we need to make things as much better as we can make them, then take our efforts and weave them into the whole.
Moreover, each person influences at least ten other people, who in turn each influence ten and so on. When those around us see that what we do is making things better, they are inspired themselves to do what they can. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has never been--and will never be--able to put it out. When capitalism and individualism come to their necessary dead ends, it will not be the end of US. There are better ways to care for the needs of everyone--money is not an end in itself, it isn't even real. Many of the abuses fostered by the current system (so Yadira and I think, you may form your own opinion) stem from confusing money with well-being, even health. The system itself is built to foster over-consumption, inequality and poverty, selfishness and ignorance of others. It is unsustainable. What we do in the meantime, as history bends ever closer to justice, is think of new ideas.
For example, today we spoke of neighborhood newspapers, in which we could share ideas for cooperation to make a better neighborhood (not the vigilantism of the past, but fresh ideas for creating something better than we now have), a store to which people could bring unwanted possessions and take away things they need, staffed by volunteers from the neighborhood. There are many more such ideas floating around waiting to be snatched up and employed. No one solution will be enough, we need many local solutions, and many discussions as we change our minds from within. With tears in our eyes, we vowed silently to begin in our own little corners. I probably lost ten pounds of worry this morning!
Afterwards we spent two hours going over vocabulary words that I might need in the artisan interviews--materials and processes of crafts like weaving and carving. It was quite stimulating, as I began thinking a little bit in Spanish during that time. Immersion has begun!
Vincent and I went to a vegetarian restaurant in the city center this afternoon called Paradise (Paraiso). It is one of several. For $2.20 per person, we had a very nice meal which Vincent loved. He couldn't get over the value. Afterwards, we met with Carlos, who demonstrated and explained the three types of Andean musical instruments. Villages people, remember the charangos? He had a real one, made of the armadillo shell, an antique, as they are mostly made of wood nowadays. He is a skilled string player and also very good with the flutes (quenas) and panflutes. In addition to his teaching, he has his own band. Both of us thoroughly enjoyed this exploration of a new kind of music. Afterwards he brought us to the strangest "museum of art" I've ever seen, I don't know about Vincent. It was full of bizarre representations of the grossest kind, but the people of Cuenca are stoutly defending its existence. It has become a symbol of free speech in a somewhat repressed society. Carlos said even his mother, who started to pray as soon as she walked through the door, accompanied him to the protests to prevent it being shut down. "I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." That's the general attitude. The authorities, of course, think it a blemish on the body politic and want to terminate it. A bit difficult to do, since it is in a private home!
Afterwards, Carlos brought us to the university grounds where we saw many types of birds, including the ever-present picaflores (hummingbirds), flowers and a stunning fountain created by the ceramic artist Eduardo Vega more than ten feet tall entitled "Tree of Life." (Árbol de la Vida) We were simply overcome by the power of this creation, the women at the base of the tree, the amazing colors--terra cotta, turquoise, green, orange, the sound of the fountains bespeaking life to the ears as the picture did to the eyes. Surrounding us the whole time was the amazing variety and vividness of the natural world, the air so clear, birdsong chiming through the sounds of traffic, the liquid sounds of spoken Spanish, a couple embracing on the sidewalk.
This is such a spiritual place, so beautiful the trees, green valleys, mountains, flowers, rushing rivers (there are four in Cuenca), the hanging houses over the river Tomebamba. Our spirits are first overwhelmed with beauty, then lifted, refreshed, encouraged.
It was just such a fun afternoon. We really appreciate our teachers, our hosts, all who have worked so hard to make us welcome and help us acclimatize to Cuenca and to Ecuador. To them we say, "Gracias, and keep on pushing back the dark."
No comments:
Post a Comment