Morazan June 2009

A clay dream comes true and I didn't even know it existed.
A change in plans means that we will not revisit the route of the amazing clay. But free little spirits are ready for an adventure and we trace our steps back, only to find that the mahogany was closer to the real road than we thought.
The peaks of the mountains seen from San Miguelito are barely poking through the fog as we run excitedly through the rain towards our colorful treasures... well, dirt, mud and soil.
When we come upon it, we act as scientists taking samples. The colors are rich. The children run up ahead as we head back towards their home that is made up of this same material we were seeking. They sporadically throw themselves on the ground in fits of laughter.
I watch them and then run through the mist to catch up. I feel so completely alive in this moment!

Remembering Election Day as the New President Steps Into Office

On Monday of this next week, Mauricio Funes will finally take office and begin to take on the many challenges that lie ahead.

The following was written the day after the elections back in March.


At Monday’s morning meeting all of the Fundahmer employees showed up with fresh ink on their thumbs. They had not committed a crime. They had been out to exercise one of the rights that is given to them in the Salvadoran constitution. They had to voted the previous day and had had their fingerprints taken in an international effort to avoid fraudulent voting.
When I arrived in El Salvador in January of 2008, the political campaign between the right wing party, ARENA, and the left wingers, FMLN, was already going strong. I had never seen a political campaign quite like this one before.
The right wing party gave away free chickens and tin for roofing in exchange for votes, and inundated the media with insinuations of a strong alliance between Mauricio Funes, the FMLN candidate, and Hugo Chaves and Fidel Castro. The left wing party had very limited funding for campaigns, but had an incredible following and people, rich and poor, who were dedicated enough to give their time, efforts and talents free of charge in order to support a party they believed in.
Finally, for the first time in El Salvador’s history, they have their first leftist president and have managed to achieve a relatively democratic voting process.
In this same meeting, we spoke of the elections and the joys and sadness that were such a part of this day. I would rather let the words be unchanged, so I will quote co-workers, friends and international observers bellow who participated in the process and the celebration so that you can get a better feel of what the post election environment was like.
Javier:
“Sentí miedo por estar tomando en cuenta que el gobierno derecha en este momento todavía tenia todo el poder, pero alegre y emocionado para ir a votar.”
“I felt scared because I was aware that the right wing government at this moment in time still had all the power but I was happy and excited to go out and vote.”
Ana:
An older woman from Italy who came to observe the elections assured the Fundahmer staff and others present that they are never alone.
Pat from Canada:
“I had many powerful experiences yesterday, but one image that I will always keep in my heart is of a young girl who was wearing a red FMLN hat. When she voted she folded the paper and kissed it. So, (she says to the Salvadorans in the room) your youth are going to be the hope for the future.
A friend of Pat’s, Jean, who was at her side, shared that “in Canada, not many people actually go out and vote, so this has been an inspiration of democracy for many of us.”
Miguel Zepeda:
“Sacacoyo es un pueblo mayoritariamente Arenero pero cuando gano FMLN y empezamos a festejar, se fueron a esconder con la cola entre las patas. Muchas veces la comunidad ha sido insultada por ARENA, pero nunca nos callamos. Pero ahora encima de ARENA es donde callo.”
“Sacacoyo is an area that is mostly pro-ARENA but when the FMLN won and we started to celebrate, they all went and hid with their tail between their legs. There have been many instances in which the community has been insulted by ARENA, but we were never silenced. Now, the Areneros are those who are silenced.”
Armando Marquez (my boss):
“Hermano Mercedes Ruiz murió sin ver sus sueños realizados de una realidad mas justa. Nosotros como herman@s le prometimos que seguiríamos luchando por el. Ahora se cumple parte de esa promesa.”
“Brother Mercedes Ruiz (the man who the organization was named after) died without seeing his dreams of a more just reality come true. As his brothers and sisters, we promised him we would continue to fight for him. Today part of that promise has been honored.”
Armando also expressed excitement about the strong youth presence in the election and the celebrations of victory.
“Después de recoger a las delegaciones de observadores/as, yo ya me quería dormir. Pero mi esposa me dijo que saliéramos un ratito para ir a ver a las fiestas. Aunque resistí un poco, me convenció. Cuando fuimos a ver a las fiestas, 90% de la gente celebrando eran jóvenes. Estaban celebrando toda la gente que habían dado su vida para este día.”
“After going around and picking up all the delegations of observers, I wanted to go to bed. But my wife said that we should go out for a little to see the celebrations. Although I resisted for a moment, she convinced me. When we went, we saw that 90% of the people celebrating were of the younger generation. They were celebrating all the people who had given their lives for this day.”
Abraham, a friend who works in the self sustainability department of Fundahmer told us an impressive story:
“Yo me levante a la 1 de la mañana para ir a la Feria Nacional para apoyar en el proceso. Con Juanca y Casco fuimos caminando y cantando ‘el pueblo unido jamás será vencido.’” Pero, cuando encontramos un grupo de Areneros con su sistema de sonido etc. la música de ellos nos callo. Cuando un gran puño de gente del FMLN vio esto vinieron a cantar con nosotros y se callaron los Areneros por nuestras voces, el canto y nuestra unidad.”
“I woke up at 1 in the morning to go to the Feria Nacional where I would support the voting process. With Juanca and Casco (two friends) we were walking and chanting “the people/the poor who are united will never expire.” But when we ran into a group of Areneros with their sound system, etc., their music silenced us. A group of fellow FMLN supporters saw this and they came over to chant with us. Through our voices, our song and our unity we silenced them.”

Esperanza

Just wanted to take this space to shout and cheer and tell you how excited I am about what happened in our country two days ago! What follows is an email I wrote in response to a celebratory email of a good friend...

Yes!! What a great day it was yesterday and continues to be today! I feel like we have been waiting so long for someone to be president who actually cares about humanity and is not only interested in all that ugly greed, materialism and power.
As for election action and interest, yes Katie! People down here were so intrigued by what would happen. Everyone wanted to know who was most like the left-wing politicians of ES. They wanted to know who would be the peoples president. They were also curious about candidates views on immigrations, freetrade agreements etc. Salvadorans, and many people here in Central America, know that US decisions have huge impacts on their lives. Sometimes I think we tend to forget just how much other nations rely on ours. When we have corrupt policies/acts with corrupt governments, the people (more specificly the poor) are unbelievably exploited and they are the ones who suffer.

Not only does Barrack have a huge responsibility now, but if we really want to see this world change we have many responsibilities as well. January 20th, he will start his term as our president, and hopefully the actions he takes from his first day in office will start us on track towards change. But, like our mothers always taught us when we were little, we should act responsibly and with kindness towards human beings and the earth. So, lets be aware of the actions we take and think about the possible effects they may have on others and the environment.
You people are good and wholesome and straight talkin'.
I miss you tons and hope you are well and happy and healthy and positive...
Love you! And HUGE HUGE hugs!!!
xxoo
Laura




The entry that follows is the real blog update I wrote about in my email, I just wanted to share my excitement before diving into whats going on down here.

comfort is not conducive to change

So much has happened since the last time I wrote. So, I have procrastinated updating this blog due to the weight of the daunting task of briefing you all on the craziness (and wonderfulness) that has become my life and projects, while also trying to keep things interesting and poetic.
So, in order not to overwhelm any of us, I will try to make this as direct and sweet as possible. Deep breath!
The last time I wrote was on my trip home in August (wow, I have truly fallen behind)! I posted a blog just after I returned to El Salvador about renewing my contract with ArtCorps and about all the lovely and not so lovely things I have been learning this year. I actually wrote very little about projects and activities that have come up and have shared even less self reflection. So, I will aim to make up for that now.
If I had to squeeze my general self reflection into two sentences, since we are keeping this short and sweet, they would be the two that follow. While this country is a land of possibilities for the social activist and artist,in the sense that there are so many possibilities for facilitating change and developing initiatives, there is also something to be said for simplicity and pure dedication of oneself to one or two unique initiatives. I have come to the realization that I need to learn to say no without feeling guilty. I also need to to learn to identify a real solid idea in order to be able to mold and feed it until it becomes one strong reality rather than multiple realities that are not necessarily tied to each other in the direction of permanent change.
I am not ashamed to say that I can be a bit of an overachiever at times when it comes to work. For this reason I am here on the 3rd of November with various projects pending and only a month and 13 days to go until I return home and try to start fresh next year Fortunately apart from being idealistic people, overachievers can also be dedicated people who do not like to leave loose ends untied. This may mean various nights of not sleeping, breaking even further away from a normal work schedule and driving myself a bit nuts in the process, but hopefully it will also mean that I will leave concrete and finished murals, manuals, banners, initiatives and impressions in the places where the first brushstroke hit the cement, paper , or what have you.
As for the various projects and initiatives and the challenges we have faced while executing them, I will create a list below momentarily. However, first it is only honest for me to mention here the amount of floundering, frustration and reflection that have been involved in this whole process. Being a first year ArtCorps artist working in her first NGO, I receive these realities as learning experiences and a base on which to build future initiatives as well as to analyze and continue projects that are currently pilot runs or abstract energies twirling around realities.
I would never hope to leave El Salvador after a year of only dipping my feet in the water to produce minor ripples that are soon to be calmed and forgotten. There is so much left to move and create that I receive with immense gratitude the chance to learn from my mistakes and hope that they help me form concrete ideas that lead the way for future work and that these ripples turn into curling waves that give way to movement and real change.
You may remember me talking a while back about an environmental mural initiative in the local Sacacoyo high school. This was a project that I was hoping to execute swiftly and relatively promptly. The objective was to get to know a few more of the youth in town and also make connections within the high school with teachers etc. in order to be supported in our work amongst the youth. While I met a group of wonderful and energetic kids, only one of them has incorporated into the youth group. This is not to say that it wasn’t worth it, not at all, because she has now become one of FUNDAHMER’s scholarship students. But I do continue to be frustrated with the time restraints, and accessibility to the students/faculty.
Some of this frustration continues to come from the fact that I am not allowed to leave the house by myself in order to run over and paint when the time avails itself to me, without feeling like I am burdening the people I live with to chaperone me. Another frustration comes from the professor who was so willing to “collaborate” on the first day, but now somehow magically disappears every time I try to get the work going again. Regardless, Rene, a young friend of mine who invited me to participate in the first place has been a great help in tracking down this illusive teacher and hopefully there will be a final product somewhere in the very near future.
Another environmental mural you may remember me speaking of is the one we began designing for the contaminated river near by where I used to live in Las Naranjeras. We started this project in conjunction with a clean up, and repaired walls and “pilas”/wash basins in order to be able to spread our colorful message in paint soon there after. But like many instances the obstacles have been prevalent and somewhat inevitable.
On various occasions, we painted base coats of white paint on which we hoped to start our mural designs. All of these efforts were relentlessly washed away by the heavy, HEAVY rains of the Salvadoran wet season. We had also asked the local mayor to support us by donating trash bins and trash pick up service weekly in efforts to keep the river and area clean. While they responded fondly to the idea in person, they never actually followed through on their word. We continued the effort unsupported. And continue to seek other sources of support.
While the environmental objectives of this initiative motivate us on the surface, there is another profound objective motivating us from within. We also hope that this mural initiative will be visual proof of the positive change the community is working towards. The community members of the CEB (Ecclesiastically based community) that I collaborate with have often been regarded as communists, terrorists, and guerillas for the simple fact that they are an organized community. They have been ready for years to shed this stereotype. The FMLN, the leftist political party that is currently campaigning for the elections that will take place in March of next year, are often a topic of discussion at their meetings, however, they are certainly not the sole defining characteristic of this passionate community.
While the commitment to transformation is still present, we have decided that the best thing to do with the group of youth is to wait out the rain and as it lets up, start working on a mural inside the youth center. During this waiting period, our initial work by the river has been vandalized with political propaganda. There is red spray paint all over EVERYthing, even places that we had not planned on painting have been vandalized. The most upsetting thing is that this is what everybody expected from the community, and it supports a false opinion of those who regard the community in the fashion mentioned above. We are currently trying to figure out how best to execute damage control.


The rainy season is finally starting to taper off, so we hope to get the youth together for 2 full days of painting in order to get the mural up before I leave in December. A current fear is that by returning to paint the initial design we could potentially start up a painted tug of war in which every time we start to paint, the graffiti artists will return to make sure that their mark is also present. The hope is that once people see the murals they will respect them and regard them as art and not just another wall for the “pinta pega campaña” which translates to the paint and glue campaign. If you have any suggestions, PLEASE feel free to share them. We are certainly open.
As for the mural inside the youth center, the idea is to illustrate the values of the group so that they will always be visually present as a reminder of what makes the strong base for working as a team. We have already washed and prepped the wall and started to paint the image with acrylic wash. Next Saturday we will have a full day of painting, and hopefully another before the 23rd of November, when the group of Swedish funders come to have their meetings in the center. Values such as respect, peace, community, leadership, etc. will be illustrated through a painted, large scale Salvadoran landscape of images that symbolize each value. We will continue to invent and manipulate the images during the painting process in order to communicate clearly the values that serve as roots for this youth group.
Here are a few of the youth prepping the wall inside the youth center for the values mural...



While these various initiatives are certainly consuming of time and energy, there is yet another initiative that continues to occupy my focus. This initiative is called the “Roque Dalton” school and diploma program for arts and culture facilitators, which we currently run out of the youth center in Sacacoyo. Back in January, we wrote a proposal for the project to be funded by New England Biolabs Foundation, which is the same foundation which funds ArtCorps.
With their support, we were able to get this program running and have been piloting the initiative since August 24th. The general objective is to form a group of youth leaders from various communities, who will promote art and culture within their CEB, and to help the participants develop the ability to manage, reproduce and use popular education in their push for transformation and liberation.
As mentioned before, this is a pilot program. Many reflections and analyses are the base from which the program will hopefully evolve and improve in the years to come. At the end of the year, there will be an arts and culture celebration to share the fruits of our labors with the communities and the rest of the FUNDAHMER staff. The celebration will demonstrate the artistic accumulation of skills, knowledge and intangible changes that have taken place within each individual over the four months of workshops concentrating on the history of art within the CEB’s and popular education, visual and therapeutic arts, theater arts and dance.
Being one of the consistently present figures in the workshops throughout changing facilitators has been very enlightening and my motivating force in deciding to compile a manual of processes, information and techniques that will hopefully support the youth in their facilitation with in their own communities. The manual will describe the procedure of each artistic process (at least how it was generally done during the workshops), with lists of materials used, locations in which to buy them, less costly alternatives, historical information about Roque Dalton (the revolutionary poet after whom the initiative was named), ideas for funding, and popular education techniques which have the potential to help implement change through arts and culture with in the different communities.
The first fruit of this initiative took place on a nocturnal schedule when the youth from Morazán came to stay at FUNDAHMER with me during the nights before the visual arts workshops. Over the course of a few weekends, we collaborated in painting a banner that would be used in a march on the day of the international day for the rural woman in the community in Cacaopera, Morazán.

Apart from this side initiative, I have worked on a banner for the community of Sacacoyo which depicts the Priest whom the community was named after, and words, painted by a participating youth that describe the way they feel about this man who has brought them so much inspiration.
(The painting is behind the band)

Another side project has been the collaboration with other volunteers here at FUNDAHMER to write a volunteer manual that lays out guidelines and expectations for incoming volunteers. And the planning of an interactive clay activity that will take place at the UCA this Wednesday in a celebration that honors the martyrs and victims of El Salvador’s 12 year war.
(Just got back from this activity So I thought I would post some pics. This was a very non-formal activity to get passersby involved and to give and interactive space for honoring the martyrs of Cacaopera, Morazan. There were river rocks, clay and markers with which to express a message of remembrance.)









Last but CERTAINLY not least, the women’s committee continues to produce and analyze their work as well as search for product vendors and alternative marketing schemes. (Any suggestions and offerings of space are always welcome!) Three weeks ago I traveled with a few of the women to an alternative market where natural and organic foods and products are sold. The journey was not only beautiful because I had a chance to interact with the women outside of the community, but I watched them learn about alternative approaches and interact with inspiring people- the venders and promoters of this creative and positive market environment.
The purpose of the trip was to follow up on a proposal written to sell the cards and baskets at the market. We had a chance to converse with a few of the members of the board and the interactions were very promising. They are looking for groups of people to sell products that are new to the market so as not to create competition within the market community. There were neither cards nor baskets. So, we hope that they will invite the women back, and this time to sell. The board review meeting was on the 30th of October and we are waiting patiently to find out the final decision.
In the meantime, the women are incessantly producing cards for the solidarity department at FUNDAHMER that will be exchanged with sister communities over Christmas. Forty cards have also been sent to the US for a trial run with two possible venders in North Carolina. One of them is a group at Furman University called Artglobe, which sells artistic goods in order to support diverse, international groups of people who live in less fortunate conditions and the other is a women’s group who have expressed interest in collaboration.
One of the women the other day expressed her commitment to the process by telling the rest of the group that if they really want change and to make something happen, that they will need to work hard. I have never seen them do anything but that. They have been such an inspiration for my work this year. When I got to Sacacoyo in April of this year, I did not even know that this group of women existed. When they came to me and asked what I was going to teach them I was surprised and excited at their eagerness to learn and grow. As a result, I must say, they have certainly not been the only ones learning. I too have fed on their imagination and support and feel so lucky that they have allowed me to become part of their group.
I will leave El Salvador on the 15th of December, a little more than a month from now, and I can barely believe how quickly the time has gone by. There have been so many moments this year when I have doubted my own capability as an arts facilitator, I have pushed my self so far out of my own comfort zone that I wonder if I will ever be able to return to that tranquil and comfortable person. I also wonder if I really ever want to return to that comfortable person. After all, comfort is almost never conducive to productivity and change. And I know this much. I do not want things to stay the same.


Here are a few more pictures that were taken during the “Roque Dalton” school and diploma program for arts and culture facilitators workshops.

The youth in this photo are learning how to use silkscreen, a method of public art that helps transmit messages on a large scale. The image they are using is of Padre Octavio Ortiz a martyr from the war and also the brother of Anita Ortiz who is a good friend one of the founders of FUNDAHMER The picture was taken during the art therapy and visual arts part of our workshops.



Here are a few of the youth working on potential mural designs for their communities. They were asked to brainstorm change they would like to see in their communities and then create and image accompanied by words that will relay this message on a large scale.








These youth are working on a mosaic bench for their community en "La Tzu-Chi," a region a few bus stops away from Sacacoyo.


This was an excercise that was part of the corporal expression segment of the theater workshops.





Aaaand there has been puppet making...

Journal entry turned artist contract

What follows is a journal entry that I wrote a few days before heading home to visit family and friends towards the end of last month. As I sat, sharing a room with a few friendly, sleeping bats and a beautiful trickle of late afternoon sunlight, this journal entry took a turn for the better. I often like to sit and reflect about the challenges and the triumphs that living and working in a foreign culture bring about. However, on this day, I decided that the reflection was not enough. Commitment to persevere and new promises needed to be written. So after signing and sending in my official contract to continue working with ArtCorps and FUNDAHMER until December 2009, I post this journal entry turned artist contract to share with you all a bit more about what it really means to me, to be an artcorps artist.


Today is Tuesday, tomorrow is Wednesday and Thursday I go home to visit my family for 10 whole days!! I can barely believe that I will be leaving El Salvador to go HOME for this time. I will be away from the community, FUNDAHMER and the hectic schedule and the friendly and not so friendly people who have become my immediate reality. It’s funny, because I know exactly what to expect in terms of seeing my family, but in terms of being home and the feelings it will bring about, I have absolutely no idea what to expect. Robyn says it feel s padded and at times very disconnected. I can already imagine that.
I simply cannot wait to see my family and to love and hug them. It is going to be unreal! But it is also going to be a challenge to explain to them the decision I feel that I have already made. Just reading the second year contract that Suzanne sent me yesterday, made me even more certain about the decision. One of the sections talks about the creative experimentation that is so much a part of having a successful year with ArtCorps. The freedom to experiment creatively is possibly one of the aspects I value the most about the organization. I have learned to adapt new techniques as if they were something I had been using for years and I actually see results!
As with the uncertainty that I have about what it will be like being back to the states, there is also no way of telling how this next year would be. Things are bound to change dramatically; the situation, the projects, me. But I can almost be certain that I will continue to learn and grow in the same profound manner that I have since I arrived in Guatemala on January 2nd of this year.
During this time I have been dreadfully ill, I have been bitten by a million and something mosquitoes, I have been a teacher, a student and an improvised actress, artist and facilitator. I have been hugged, loved, pushed and shoved. I have made friends and hopefully few enemies. I have made leaps, jumps and fallen backwards. But through it all, I have held my own hand. I have been my own motivator, my own critic and my own teacher and friend. My inner monologues have brought me frustration, happiness, sadness and tranquility, while also getting me through some of the toughest challenges.
It would be lying to say that my family and my new and old friends have not helped. They have been such an integral part of the maintenance of my sanity. They support me, challenge me and ask questions that I often forget to ask myself. They help me reflect in ways that my own mind would not independently reflect. They feed me with new materials to read and techniques to try. But, nobody understands me better than me. And if the lessons I have learned about myself over the past 8 months were the only thing I had gotten out of this journey, I might even consider doing it all over again just for that. But, they are not, and I am certainly not finished learning about me, this culture or this line of work.
I woke up this morning under my mosquito net, in the bedroom that I share with a sweet, 16 year old girl named Kenny Yessenia. As I tried to shake off my “spanglish” ridden dreams and snap into full on Spanish mode, I found myself already thinking about the things I needed to organize for the women from the women’s committee who would be arriving within the hour. I ran around rather frantically boiling my “platano” breakfast and getting the coffee going for the women. I gave myself a very quick bucket bath and ran across the street to where I store my materials to get things together for the morning meeting.
To my surprise, for the first, maybe second time since I have been in El Salvador, they arrived early!! Two of the women arrived on the 7:30 bus and I hadn’t been expecting them until 8:00. I left them sitting, chatting on the couch as I continued to prepare.
Teresa (the woman I live with) would not be present for the meeting that we were going to have that day in her home. She had, had to travel to the city to serve as a witness for a family that has been trying for months to get a visa to move to the United States.
So here I was running around, forgetting to remind myself to slow down, when Yanet, a woman from the committee told me I was being something, something which I didn’t quite understand at the time. The word was one that I hadn’t heard before, but I think I understand now what she was trying to tell me. She told me to sit down and have my coffee and my “pan dulce,” so I did.
I caught my breath and as we chatted I began to fully enjoy their company. I began to listen and observe, and the course of the meeting came to me through conversation and reflection. I had already planned out the main points of our meeting, but I had not put them in order, nor figured out exactly how to introduce them. I often find myself with the impulse to teach, because that is what I was trained to do. But these days, I continuously remind myself that I am just as much the student and by sitting in the circle and absorbing the company and sharing the breadth of knowledge and wisdom that we all possess, we will learn much more profoundly together.
So, in this reflective journal entry turned personal contract, I promise to ArtCorps, my family, my friends, the communities, FUNDAHMER and to myself to continue a second year working with these two organizations that have opened my mind and heart and to commit myself to continue reflecting, learning, and implying new methods of popular education, old habits of human kindness and to continue seeking out creative and revolutionary approaches to social action through the arts and to share them with the people and communities that I meet.
Thank you for this opportunity,
Sincerely
Laura Smith

foto links

I know it seems a bit deceptive to post foto links as a blog update (the real blog update shows up below this), but I couldn't seem to get all of these links on the page unless I did it this way. I'm sure that there is a way, but my will to patiently seek it out is being overpowered by the need to cut out 10 more pieces of a giant cardboard puzzle for an activity tomorrow in the youth center. Hopefully those will be some of the next fotos I put up. Enjoy these ones for now, and lemme know what you all think.
HUGS!

Guatemala training to mobil mural FOTOS
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2050561&l=6af55&id=41503977

Midyear adventures and project FOTOS!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2059350&l=bf15b&id=41503977

more more el salvador FOTOS!
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2057748&l=019da&id=41503977

artist "encuentro" to Sacacoyo projects n. 10ish

It has been a while since the last time I wrote and I am sorry to leave you all hanging on the edge of your seats as you wait eagerly for the next entry. So, without further ado I present to you the latest update of Art for social action with FUNDAHMER and ArtCorps in Central America.
During this past weekend I had the pleasure of attending an “encuentro de artistas” (the English words escape me these days), in Monte Rico Guatemala. Thursday afternoon Robyn Saxer and I had an official vacation countdown, as we decided that although we were headed to Guatemala to see and give presentations, participate in brainstorms and contribute to manual writing, we were also headed to the beach and that calls for celebration (and even if it is false information, the word VACATION)!
Getting to Monte Rico was a lot easier than getting back…On the way there we rode a direct bus to a little town called Taxisco and from there we took a bus to Las Avellanas and from Avellanas we took a long skinny boat to Monte Rico. This boat with a tin roof and wobbly wooden benches was an interesting change from the frantic, old American school busses that I ride back and forth in going between Sacacoyo and San Salvador. I certainly felt like I was on vacation when I didn’t even have to hang on to anything in order to keep myself from falling over. This public transport was smooth and relaxing and I imagine that the residents of this area are a lot more “tranquilo” if only for their mode of transportation, than those who ride the chaotic busses of San Salvador to and from work every day.
The “encuentro” was really enlightening and interesting. There was an incredible range of diversity to the experiences that people are having. And, the artistic initiatives varied from that of Alayna Wool, who is constructing a floor from local clay in a community center (my dream project), to Mike Kirby’s project of repainting an entire pueblo near Lago Atitlan with a team of local muralists. The space, the chance to get away from things, and the time to reflect allowed me to reground myself and get back to my original project ideas and evaluate what is working and what is not. I came back to El Salvador with a renewed energy to keep working and a new appreciation for my friends and community.
Since being back, and since my last blog entry, A LOT has happened. Here is the brief version…
I have started painting an environmental mural in the Sacacoyo High school with 21 students from the creativity class. The women’s committee card and basket sales are still going strong and we are really starting to analyze the quality of the work as well as trying to explore the value and rewards of the creative process. I have begun working with the education team, Cristina-the artist from last year and a few local artists to help been working to help develop the next FUNDAHMER arts and culture initiative. The new branch of art and culture is a diploma program/series of arts and popular education workshops that will involve youth from 9 different El Salvadoran communities with the goal of training them as young facilitators who will later communicate the content of the workshop to their communities enriching and implementing new elements of arts and culture in these 9 communities. As for the youth group of Buena Vista, my main project, we are continuing with our river clean up project and will be spending a full day Sunday repairing walls and designing murals which will add color and communicate environmental messages to the locals about the importance of taking care of their river and the environment. Right now we are waiting for a response from the local mayor to see if they will be able to support our efforts by providing trashcans and a trash pick up service. Collaborating with the local government is a bit of a new concept for the people in my community as well as for the other party, but hopefully this exchange will break the ice for more collaboration in the future.
Ok… My dear friends! I am off to buy materials for a banner we will be painting with the youth on Sunday. We have our first FULL day event with them in two days… I can barely believe it. Normally, we only meet two hours a week, but since they will be on vacation until the 6th, we will be taking full advantage of their time.
Sending lots of love from down south!
Laura