Rice, Beans and Tortillas

Feliz Navidad!

2011-12-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

This blog hasn't been widely circulated for a while for reasons you will understand if you read through the postings of the last several months. Now, however, there are lots of positive things to report although Alexander remains in jail and is likely to stay there for at least the foreseeable future due to his inability to convince anyone to pay almost $8,000 for his release. As his interactions with all of his children were, at best, minimal and ambiguous everyone is adjusting reasonably well to his absence.

Denis (14) and Astrid (12) started in November at a new bi-lingual, international school (http://antiguainternationalschool.org/) just outside of Antigua. In its first year of operation it is small enough that both children are receiving all the attention and help that they need to catch up after suffering from the Guatemalan educational system. Denis, whom you might imagine, has suffered the most from having a deadbeat dad is just thrilled with the new school and after six weeks is already using his newly learned English. I am sure part of his thrill is about having some decent male role models (the director and the majority of his teachers are gringos) who care about him and his progress. "Dad" may soon be a distant memory. Astrid, too, has taken to the new school like a fish to water. The teachers report that both are working very hard. They have already been on a field trip to the zoo in Guatemala City to do research for a science project. Both are stunned to find out that school can be fun.

Denis at the school Christmas Party

Astrid wants to be a doctor or veterinarian.

It is possible that Denis and Astrid are also smiling about the school itself which would make any of us want to start the education process over.

School for Denis and Astrid

One of several classrooms

Jackie (16) who is still in the Guatemalan educational trap is learning English if not much else. It was her choice to attend a bi-lingual secretarial (sort of) high school. As she is so good with small children and so interested in books and reading it is my hope that she will go on to become a teacher or work in a library. After her unusual introduction (previous post) to her half-siblings during a car ride to visit her father in jail Jackie has quietly been in contact with their mother and has been spending her school vacation afternoons in the Antigua market taking care of Chris (4) and Michelle (3).

Jackie's only gift from "Papa," a new sister.

And a little brother too.

As you might imagine Estela has always been less than thrilled about the existence of this other family. However, she too finds life much easier with Alexander locked away. She now accepts the children maintaining that they are "innocentes." Jackie has been permitted to go to visit her father with her "step-mother" and all five were recently busy decorating my Christmas tree, the first ever for Chris and Michelle.

Chris and Michelle just finished a vacation program at their bi-lingual, Montessori pre-school and are eager to return in January. Both are thriving and speaking a mix of English and Spanish. If only every child in the world was able to go to school, especially a decent school, things might be very different. Let's keep our eyes on these five (all I can manage), especially little Michelle.

Happy Holidays and let's hope that the world becomes a better place for all in 2012!

Things Are Going to Be All Right

2011-10-20T15:52:00.000-07:00

On Saturday last children who never dreamed of going to a jail visited their father. My scheme worked and the two, Denis and Astrid, readily agreed to go with their previously unknown "step-mother," her sister and their half-sister. The ride was very quiet needless to say. The jail is in the middle of nowhere down a long and treacherous dirt road. I felt physically ill at the sight of the grim, gray place and struggled to understand how it would feel to be confined there. Vinicio, the driver, was clearly uncomfortable and more so when I got out of the car to help unload the bags of food, water, newspapers. He told me it was a very dangerous place. Jackie said "cuidado." Vinicio and I left fairly quickly leaving the group to stand in line for 3 or more hours in order to spend two hours with Alex.

Only time will tell whether Alex has actually learnedanything or whether he remains caught up in his own, really quite stellar,performance. If he has learned anything it may be a bit too late. The children report thathe has been to confession for the first time in his adult life (no reports onhow many days it took for him to empty his conscience) and then attended massand took communion. While not wantingoffend any believers I remain skeptical of this path as it only seems to give some permission to do it all over again.

Yet another letter from Alex describes his being overwhelmedwith emotion seeing his older children enter the jail with "mi esposa" as he refers to the mother of his two youngest children. All the reports indicate that it was a good encounter for all. Denis and Jackie got to see and talk to their father for the first time since he was arrested. Perhaps more importantly they seem to appreciate the trumped up meeting of their father's second "esposa" and, Marielos reports that Jackie entertained little Michelle the entire day. Even Estela seemed to get over her anger in about 15 minutes. Alex had gifts that he had made in a workshop where the "residents" learn how to make gift items for family members out of empty chip bags. I suppose it is a good thing that they are being entertained on some level.

Denis and his mother ordering school uniforms.

With or without (more likely) Alex, life will go on. Denis and Astrid went to their new school for uniform fittings. They are very excited about the opportunities that the Antigua International School (http://antiguainternationalschool.org/) will give them. Late yesterday I attended a Dr. Seuss production of the "Cat in the Hat" for the school year end at Christopher and Michelle's pre-school. Marielos and her sister coveted the printed "diplomas" that each child received as neither one was able to go to school past the second grade.

Life in the market was never like this.

Michelle "graduates"at 3 from pre-school but forgets
her diploma.

Estela reports that Denis and Jackie want to go again to see their father. I trust that they have figured out that they can meet up with Marielos and her sister and gain access to the jail with them as the sponsoring adults. Alex has shown interest in my idea that he should write his life story in his leisure time. He does seem to have access to paper and pen which is considered an unnecessary luxury in most poor homes. I have promised him "fame and fortune" if he writes it all down. I am quite certain that if he stars in his own life story that he will win an Oscar for his acting ability.

Yesterday as I was walking towards an ATM I saw a taxi then heard someone say "Hola, Tia Joan." It was one of Alex's friends, one who had been on last year's soccer team. He gave me a lift to the ATM and questioned like all the rest of us how Alex could have been so stupid.

Letters from Jail

2011-10-14T19:43:00.000-07:00

Today I received my second letter from Alex by way of Marielos. As in the first he talks little about his predicament other than "excuse me for that which has happened." Spanish speakers, even in jail, are ever so much more polite than gringos. Surprisingly, he reminisces about places that we have been to before when he was a paid driver. The restaurant by the lake in Panajachel, the boat ride (his first) on Lake Atitlan. The times when I was angry with him (often) and the times that I gave him a hug. In this latest letter he talks about how much he misses his children. Tomorrow I am sending Estela's two oldest to the jail with Marielos and hope that I will survive Estela's wrath. I told her today that the children need to see their father to decide how they are going to see him going forward. I had hoped that my new driver,Vinicio, would be able to accompany Denis and Jackie but he has another commitment. They are not allowed in without an adult. In the morning I will explain to them that Vinicio cannot stay so I asked Marielos to go with them. And I hope it works. I think the presence of little Michelle will warm everyone up.

Estela and I had a good talk today. She told me about an incident a couple of months ago when Jackie was unable to go to school for two weeks as there had been a threat against the director of the school. When she returned to school Jackie was told not to wear her uniform for a period of time. Estela asked me if things were the same in the US. I told her that, never before in my life, had I known a person in jail. I explained to her that (for the most part) the police were respected and that people tried to do the right thing and always tell the truth. She was surprised to find out that people seldom got away with doing bad things to other people, that most people behaved and respected other people's rights.

I guess only time will tell whether Alex has really learned anything or not. If he gets out there is nothing out there for him. No job. No car. Nobody who is going to help him. Perhaps he is better off where he is. There is a roof ... just a roof. He has to buy his food. He has no money. He has to buy clean water. He has no money. He has to pay three times the going rate to make a phone call to ask for food, water, clothes, shoes and money. Marielos has no money. Estela has no money. Estela wouldn't give him any if she did have money. Marielos gives him what she has and then her kids miss school because she doesn't have bus fare. Where will it all end?

Between a Rock and a Very Hard Place

2011-10-05T15:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Estela's day to visit the attorney and the attorney reports that Alex knows a lot about a lot and that he seems willing to sing to get out of jail. And of course the jailers are willing to put others at risk in order to get the goods on a whole lot of bad guys including one case that goes back to 1994. The attorney warned Estela that she and her children could be at risk as, if Alex does sing to gain his freedom, there are those who are likely to seek revenge. Nice, huh? Guatemalan justice. I suppose the same thing happens in the US but I doubt if there is a witness protection plan available to Alex and all of his families. The attorney reports that Alex is severely depressed which isn't surprising given his options right now. Too bad he never learned to think about consequences. It seems that his options are to stay in jail or to risk something terrible happening to one of his kids. I would be severely depressed too.

Mudslides and Jailbirds

2011-10-01T08:05:00.000-07:00

Last week found me taking a break from the dramas of Bougainvillea Lane in favor of accompanying a Canadian journalist, David Mercer, to Honduras for the filming of video for the Riecken Foundation. We visited villages only accessible by serious four-wheel drive vehicles, even horseback where the indigenous locals talked to us about how important books were to their communities. We visited a remote rural kindergarten where the children have story hours given by Riecken volunteers. In another community we participated in the delivery of the first books the community has ever received.

Delivering books to villages only
accessible by horseback.

A leader of the community hopes that the arrival of books
will "open minds" in Carrizalon, Honduras.

Nice place to film a video

Getting back from Honduras proved to be a bit challenging as heavy rains the night before our departure closed the main road at the border with a mudslide. Gladly, our car to Guatemala was stranded on the other side of the mudslide so we had only to find transportation to the border and then walk over the mudslide with all of our paraphernalia to get to our car.

Muddy walk from Honduras to Guatemala
thanks to mudslide and truck full of bananas.

As for the "jailbird," Alex, he is still in there but apparently is facing greatly reduced charges involving his phone call demanding ransom. He has a team of public defenders (three) who, I am told, are very interested in his case. Perhaps, that level of interest has to do with all of the women and all of the children. Marielos, mother of the younger two who ARE returning to school on Monday, met with the attorney the other day. Estela is meeting with her on Tuesday. I feel quite certain that the group of attorneys are having a good laugh about this fellow with no means whatsoever and all the women and children. I wonder how many other women have meetings with the attorneys. Yesterday I wrote a letter at the request of the attorney indicating that the three older children receive scholarships (from my Rotary Club not me, of course) for school. Apparently, they are trying to confirm Alex's claim that he is penniless. I gave that letter to Estela who will deliver it to the attorney on Tuesday. Late yesterday Marielos came by and she also needs a similar letter. Denis saw his father for a few minutes last weekend but is playing in a band concert this weekend. Marielos doesn't seem inclined to go (good for her) despite the fact that today is Dia del Nino and the jail is celebrating with a pinata for all of the children who show up. Apparently the lawyers are also looking for one more "letter of good character." Marielos laughs. So do I.

The Frijole Keeps Turning

2011-09-22T06:21:00.000-07:00

Two days ago I met with the directors of the pre-school from which little Michelle and Christopher have been suspended due to the alleged antics of their father, or perhaps more to the point, concerns about the company he keeps. The school plans to discuss the matter with the parents at a meeting next week and tell the parents that they like the children and their mother and would like to bring them back. Anyone with concerns will be asked to speak to the director privately. They anticipate problems with one or two Guatemalan families but are willing to call in one of the most prominent and influential Guatemalans around (who has just accepted Denis and Astrid into a new school that she is starting in November) to talk some sense into them. So, hopefully the two will be able to return to school next week. The school has hired an armed security guard which they said was something they needed to do anyway.

After the meeting I met with Marielos, the mother of the younger two. She told me that the kidnapped woman who was in the other car at the time of the arrest has indicated that Alex was NOT involved in either her kidnap nor the rape which was done by one of the bad brothers. After much thought I decided to throw away Q1500 ($200) to stop the daily beatings that he has been receiving. Marielos and her mother had put Q2000 into the account of the jail bosses (the inmates run the asylums here) which was only enough to keep the other inmates from stealing his food.

Quite unbelievable that he can be in jail for phoning someone and demanding ransom and then people on the outside have to pay ransom to keep him from being beaten and starved to death in jail. Clearly the government has to know that this is going on, even condoning and probably participating in it. I actually think that Marielos and her mother are refreshingly honest. When I offered to pay the balance they easily could have just taken it and told me that were going to use it for Alex. Instead they walked me to the bank and gave me the account number and then went and had a copy of the receipt made for me as they needed the information to send a text message that the money had been paid. Marielos's mother will go again on Saturday and I will send a bag of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with her. The school director told me today that it is very important that no one anywhere near the jail know that he even knows a gringa otherwise the price of his release skyrockets to the point where he will never get out. Marielos and her mother knew that as well so "mum" is the word. I like these two women. They are straight shooters - very refreshing. The three bad brothers had Q11000 on their "comfort" account the day after their arrest (and who are they working for?) and they are being kept away from Alex. His father thinks that, if he gets out, he should be sent off to cut sugar cane for a few years and learn to work.

As the Frijole Turns .....

2011-09-18T22:08:00.000-07:00

Lots of queries are coming in thus I thought it best to update the blog. Most who know Alexander don't believe that he could be guilty as charged (by the media anyway). I am troubled by my "gut instincts" having failed me, or is it not as it seems? The stories abound. I look at the mug shot of Alex on the internet and just cannot get my head around the fact that this fellow who has done many kind things for me in the past, often keeping me out of danger is where is he. Perfect, no. Devious, yes but I don't believe he is a hardened criminal. It all makes one try to get inside the mind of someone who has had to struggle to survive every single day of their lives. Might we be any different in the same circumstances?

Today I went to "Family Day" with Estela and kids at the new Antigua International School. They have agreed to take Astrid and Denis which will be a game changer for them. I have spoken to the director and he knows the whole ugly story and doesn't care. This is the fourth such school that he has been involved in in four different countries. He and Denis have already made a connection. The teachers are an interesting group of dedicated American teachers who travel the world and work in such schools. Many like Jim, the director, have lived and worked in a number of countries and speak multiple languages.

While the kids were playing soccer with their new school mates Estela told me that Alexander's sister had come to the house yesterday. She had been to the jail to see Alex and reports that he is very, very upset and asking to see his children. It was news to me that he had family as he had always told me that he was "solito." Marielos, the mother of his two youngest children, told me last week that his father has driven a chicken bus for 25 years, that he has two brothers and two sisters and some half siblings. Despite his tales of being "solito" his family has come forward and are doing what they can to help. His sister reports that his attorney (government appointed) says that he is being named as an "accomplice" in the most recent caper which resulted in his arrest. He has no previous criminal record and he is apparently not being named as being involved in any previous "delitos" of the three brothers also arrested. He is also being held in a different part of the jail from the three bad brothers which may or may not be significant.

Marielos told me that Alex had called her the day of the arrest saying that he was leaving San Antonio Aguas Calientes (where Estela and her children live) and that he would be at Marielos's place in about 15 minutes. He never arrived and later that evening she saw him being arrested on television. When arrested the three brothers were in Alex's car which he reported as having been stolen last month. I recognize that car as Alex's from the photos on the internet. In the car with the bad brothers was the woman they had kidnapped the day before and a pistol (no ammunition). Alex was alone in another car with two cell phones, one of them an old Blackberry that I had given him in May thinking he would sell it. One or the other of Alex's phones holds the evidence that he had made calls negotiating the ransom for the woman in the other car. Those of us who have known Alex for a number of years feel certain that he would be far more likely to be involved in negotiating for money than in rape. That simply does not compute for a guy who has been so protective of his children. Or does it?

I am sure, that in time, justice such as it is in Guatemala, will be done. Clearly Alex got mixed up with a very bad lot, probably (likely) he borrowed some money from these guys who had money from their previous bad deeds. Alex was never very interested in re-paying debts which is why I cut him off. "Borrow" does not have the same meaning to Guatemalans as it does to gringos. But, in this country if you borrow from the wrong people and don't pay it back you can be in big trouble, even dead. Perhaps he was told that he could have his car back if he made the ransom calls. While he has a gentle, kind side to him Alex also has a serious credibility issue thus it is very hard to know what to think.

Alex's sister reports that he is a very changed person and that she feels that he has finally learned a very hard lesson. His family has given him Q1000 ($130) which allows him to pay the "boss" to sleep on a cot with a blanket. Previously he was sleeping on the concrete floor without a blanket. Denis has decided that he wants to see his father so his aunt is going to take him next Saturday. Apparently one is encouraged to send food or they often don't eat. I haven't spent much time in jails anywhere but can imagine that the Guatemalan ones are pretty grim. I thought I might send some photos of all the kids with Denis and perhaps some good old peanut butter and jelly sandwiches which offer a bit of nutrition and a long shelf life. Funny where this life leads us.

So, Friday I bought a car totally in Spanish, Saturday I bought a toilet all in Spanish and today I rode the chicken bus to and from "Family Day" which was a couple of miles outside of Antigua. Tuesday I hope to talk some sense into the Montessori School that suspended Christopher and Michelle. I saw them a couple of days ago and even at 3 and 4 they are very eager to go back to school and they recited the names of all their teachers for me. I may have to offer to sit out front armed with a pepper spray until they come to realize that none of the bad guys even know where Alex's kids are or even that he has any. I am certain he probably has a few more that even I do not know about and that is OK as I am up to my ears in tuition payments as it is. If I can just get these five educated I will feel that I have done my part. Stay tuned!

Truly a Scoundrel

2011-09-03T16:37:00.000-07:00

This is going to be very hard to write for a number of reasons. On August 27th 2011 Alexander was arrested along with three other members of (apparently) his gang. He is, at this writing, in jail (where he probably belongs) in Chimaltenango. The four are charged with kidnapping Guatemalan women and rape. As you might imagine the fallout has been tremendous. Alex has been labelled as the "boss." Just two days prior to his arrest Alex's oldest son, Denis, achieved the best report card that he has ever had. Now the fourteen year old is quite simply, devastated, as are his sisters. Gladly the two little ones are too young to know or understand though, because of the news, they have been "suspended" from their pre-school out of safety concerns for the other children.

Whatever help that many gave to Alexander it was never enough and, quite obviously, it never would have been. Those who know him are shocked that he could be what he apparently is. Perhaps it is just not possible for a street kid to grow up in good order. It always surprised me that Alex was not (apparently) violent and not involved with either drugs or alcohol. It seemed to me that he had a gentle nature but that was the only side that I saw quite obviously. A very sad ending for a probably unwanted and uncared for infant born 35 years ago. Just three months ago he was strapping the youngest two into their seatbelts for a journey to the zoo and holding the hand of his youngest son. I guess I should have seen more into his disconnectedness from his children. There was a glimmer of caring about Jackie and Denis but obviously not enough. Astrid who will be 12 in November never seemed to care much for him and the youngest two call him "Alex." He called Denis the other night from his jail cell professing his innocence and saying that he needed money. He always needed money and now he probably really does but I don't know anyone who is going to give him any. It is a good thing that Denis had only very recently come to terms with the fact that his dad rarely spoke the truth. Likely a sociopath.

The challenge now will be to get the little ones back into school and to help the three older kids come to terms with who their father is. Gladly, in their world probably few have made the connection between them and the news reports which were many. Estela has already made contact with the local psychologist that is available to them and my Spanish is likely to get a real workout when I return to Antigua. New vocabulary words that I never expected to have to know. If the kids want to see their dad I will take them as no one else will. I would hope to see on his face all of the pain that he is causing his children. However, at the same time I realize that he never really had a chance. For so many this world is a really ugly place.

The Real Scoundrel!

2011-08-16T17:24:00.000-07:00

I guess it was inevitable that one day Alexander wouldn't show up at the airport in Guatemala City. I called to tell him that I would be out front. He said he would be right over and he never showed up. I called him back and he told me that he was having car trouble. I took an airport taxi, nice fellow, nice car, good driver, nice price. Done! No more Alexander. However, as I write he has been telling anyone who would listen (and many who don't want to) that the car that I helped him "buy" had been stolen. He has even offered up imaginary rope burns on his arms to try to prove that he had been tied up. Funny they didn't take his cell phone, the most commonly stolen item in Guatemala. He calls and calls and I tell him "not my problem, no more cars." I don't believe for a minute that the car was stolen, rather it has been returned to the person he supposedly bought it from with my money because he was really renting it and didn't make his payments. He is clever. He will find another sucker very soon. That is all he knows, sadly.

Michelle participating in English

That brings up the dilemma of his youngest two children whom I am sponsoring to go to school. A friend who lives here got wind of the fact that the mother borrowed Q2000 from me last year, signed a note and never paid the money back. The word "loan" has a very different meaning in Guatemala. I was always suspicious that Alex had put her up to it. Today Nina and I went into the market where the mother works and, after asking several people, found her sister and then the mother herself. Alex had told me that she was afraid of me because of the loan and wouldn't come near me. Yet when she saw Tia Joan who is making it possible for her kids to go to school she smiled broadly and greeted me. Hmmmm

Christopher learning important skills.

Nina, who has been in Guatemala long enough to know exactly what is going on, told Marielos that if she wanted her kids to continue in school that she would need to pay me Q1000 (US $130) before I leave in three days time. I offered my phone number and she indicated that she had it. I told her that I wanted to keep her kids in school but that we needed to clear up this matter of the debt. No es corecto.

I feared that I would never see the money and would have to stop sponsoring her kids who are doing really well in their bi-lingual Montessori pre-school. Much to my surprise about 6pm my phone rang and Marielos asked if it was OK to come by and pay me the money. I told her "yes" and phoned the guards to tell them to let her and the children in. I hear the voice of Nina cautioning me not to be too gullible but Marielos was extremely apologetic and told me that Alexander had told her that he had paid back the money last year. She promised to return next month when I am next here to pay the remaining Q1000.

Michelle is happy that she gets to stay in school.

It was dark when she left to take the "chicken bus" back to her village where she lives in one room with her three children (yep, there is another one by some other guy). Some of them work so hard and for so little. I will listen to Nina and remain cautious but I am hopeful that this woman, like Estela, won't let me down. One does wonder where Latin men got the idea that they are so wonderful.

Giraffes in Guatemala

2011-06-14T07:48:00.000-07:00

As I have expected both Alexander and Estela have adjusted to being "divorced." I use the quotes because most often the poor in Guatemala simply say "I do" or "I don't" and fairly quickly change partners. A much less onerous arrangement than in the developed world and clearly there is little property to squabble over. The kids stay with mom but feelings get hurt all the same.

So, while there is still a certain amount of finger pointing and tearful (Estela) tales, true or maybe not, I have learned to ignore the tales and walk right down the middle. I focus on the children and their education. Alex and Estela have both been told that they get paid for the work they do, that the Bank of Joan has closed permanently and that education is the limit of what Tia Joan will fund.

I have learned that, while "no" only means that they will wait a while before coming around again one seems to gain a certain amount of respect by defining the limits. Too bad it took me so long to figure that out.

Michelle, 3 and Christopher, 4 and girafas

So, after six months or so of not mentioning Alex's youngest two children he told me (true or not, I will never know) that Michelle, 3, had been asking for "Tia Joan." So, the four of us (Mom was working in the market) went off to the zoo on a Sunday and what little it cost was worth every quetzal to watch Alex schlepping the Mickey Mouse diaper bag (which was not needed, only for emergencies) through the Guatemala City zoo.

The two children were absolutely thrilled (a trip to the zoo is only a dream for most of the many poor children in Guatemala) and, interestingly, they were far better behaved that many of the more affluent children in the zoo. They quite literally ran from one exhibit to the other and knew the names of most of the animals. Christopher quickly picked up "please" and "thank you" in English in order to get cookies from Tia Joan. After "happy meals" at Pollo Campero which resulted in ketchup and grease all over the place Alex, el machismo, rolled his eyes at the mess as he started cleaning up. I suspect that he is now doing more parenting than he ever did with the first three. It is very entertaining to watch him in the single parent role. El Señor Mom.

Hard day at the zoo

Diaper bag came in handy.

School. Of course they have to go to school. As those things go a friend told me about a bi-lingual, Montessori pre-school run by a American woman. I rode my bicycle over to have a look and the next day was the first day of pre-school for Christopher and Michelle. Both were very excited to go but the reality was a little scary especially for Christopher.
Michelle was wide-eyed and very curious. She reported to her mother at the end of the first day that she had a new friend. Christopher, normally very outgoing, dissolved into tears more than once.

After a couple of hours they were both laughing and going down the slide that they didn't want to go near a bit earlier. Two weeks later both have had a very positive report from the school director who says they have made remarkable progress and Alex reports that Michelle's new favorite word is "OK" and that she wants to wear her Hannah Montana backpack all day long.

I surprised them at school the one day and I could see Michelle's eyes widen as she said "Tia Joan" from inside the school. At the age of 37 months she has quite obviously figured out who is the key to her future. The two came running out holding the little books that each day have a comment about them from the teachers. Both had excellent reports.

Michelle wears her school backpack all day long.

For all of his shortcomings Alex does seem to know that school is the key for all of his progeny. He now sees that all five get to school on time and home again. The director of the pre-school has told him that he needs

an email address as they communicate with the parents by email. I told her that I would work on that the next time I was in Guatemala. In the meantime they are printing the emails and giving them to him to share with the children's mother.

Does Estela know? Yes, she does and, as she once told me, "the children are innocent." I told her that I was putting the two "chiquitos" (small ones) in school as well. She took that in stride. A new private international school is soon opening in Antigua and I am hoping to get Estela's two youngest into this school which will be based on the US system and mostly in English. Astrid will likely be admitted without any problems but Denis at 14 is suffering from having a kid as his father. He desperately needs a good male role model. He remains a nice boy but his grades are lousy despite everyone's reports that he does all his school work.

However, in a place like Guatemala where there are so many good people working for a song trying to make a difference the director of the new school has offered to work with Denis to see if "I can help him to help himself." Denis has had a couple of meetings with Jim who has offered to review his homework for him. He has asked Denis if he thinks he might bring his grades up so that he might be able to go to the new school thus putting the decision on Denis. Jim has asked both Astrid and Denis if they are willing to study English and, at this writing, they are both doing a minimum of an hour a day on the Rosetta Stone Level 1 English program on their computer. (The computer, which is not connected to the internet, needed a new hard drive thus I made sure that very little apart from Rosetta Stone was reinstalled.)

Denis finally has something to strive for and a fellow in his life who cares whether or not he makes it. Astrid has lectured her older brother about what a great opportunity the new school would be and has told him that, if he blows it, he will be relegated to a government school where he won't learn anything. So there!

Jackie, too, has less than ideal grades from the first quarter in her new school. However, it is a new school and her classes are all in English so I am sure they will improve with time. In her school uniform she looks like a rising young executive. Given her love or reading and passion for school
I am optimistic about Jackie.

Stay tuned for education updates. I now have six (Astrid's cousin,
Brenda too) in private school and three more in government schools
thanks to some of my blog readers. Changing a few lives is what it
is about.

Along Came Diego

2011-01-01T09:53:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year from Guatemala! After hours of fireworks last night I am certain that the Chinese economy is doing better this morning. Odd how people who can't feed their kids and tourists set free from legal restrictions on fireworks will drop hundreds of dollars on Chinese made fireworks. The first day of 2011 will be about cleaning up the debris on the terrace and getting the dog to go outside again.

Veronica, 13, lacks confidence, could use a tutor

Another year has passed and "poco a poco" there is progress in Guatemala. I visited Casa Broccoli to see the two indigenous children who are being sponsored to attend school in San Antonio Aguas Caliente. Interestingly they are siblings of Charlie's whom you may remember from earlier blog postings couldn't cope with being the oldest in the third grade. He dropped out of school in the middle of the third grade at 13 and, his siblings report that, a year later, he is working. Picking vegetables no doubt..

I was expecting to see Veronica, 13, and Elmer, 8, but there was a third child with them. Diego is 6 and indicated that he is very eager to go to school so he will. Elmer and Veronica both demonstrated their reading skills. They are both in the same grade despite their age difference. They will enter fourth grade in January. Elmer is an excellent reader while Veronica is coming along (Jackie needed to help her). She is perhaps inhibited by a lack of confidence not uncommon in girls in this country, sadly. I gave each of them a package of educational games, one math based and the other language based. I found myself wishing I had the time and the patience to tutor Veronica.

Diego, 6, wants to go to school

Elmer, 8, reads like a champ

Which 8-year old grew up in the US?

Casa Broccoli was neat and tidy and it was a very pleasant way to spend a couple of hours sitting in the garden taking in their million dollar (by US standards) view. Estela served us something dry and starchy with fruit for a visiting friend who is a vegetarian. My vegetarian friend and his wife have a son adopted shortly after birth from Guatemala. Ruben is the same age as Elmer so having seen the recent 20/20 report on malnutrition and stunting in Guatemala we photographed the two 8-year olds who did have the same exact dental configuration (missing the same teeth). Can you guess which one has grown up in the US?

The very poor neighbors next door have been discovered by an aid agency that is building them a very small cinder block house and is now sponsoring the girls to continue in school. Every December I send them replacements for their two water filters filled with staple food items. There are seven children in this family. The eldest son is married and I was dismayed to see his young wife cradling her third child. Estela reported that she had tried to get her to go to the WINGS (www.wingsguate.org) office in Antigua for some family planning assistance but that she was not interested. Perhaps this family will only ever understand the hazards of 7 children bearing 7 children and so on when they run out of space on their tiny little plot of land. If we can just keep the girls in school there is a chance that they won't all have seven.

The Guatemalans do seem to enjoy a party more than their gringo neighbors. Central Park is all lighted up for the holidays and musicians just show up serenading the whole park in Christmas carols. A brown Santa hangs around the fountain and earns his tortillas by posing for photos and doling out hugs. The shoe shine boys and peddlers are in abundance. One evening a little boy named "Amadeo" tried to sell me some silly Christmas light thing. We had a chat and I gave him Q50 ($6) and told him "Feliz Navidad." He willingly posed for a photo as the going rate for a photo is Q1. He told me he was six and when asked where he lived he rattled off his complete address including the apartment number in Solola near Lake Atitlan. At six he is a master salesman. I encountered him again on New Years' Eve as well when he was selling scarves. The advantage of speaking Spanish is that you can engage beyond the "I need money so I can go to school" dialogue. A friend and I chatted a bit with Amadeo and told him we didn't need any scarves at which point he dropped the price by 50%. (By the way there are gringos who teach them phrases in English, French, German designed to earn them a few more quetzales from unsuspecting tourists.) I gave Amadeo some spare change so he wouldn't get in trouble with his mother and told him we would catch him later and he said "OK." The good news is that he did know how to spell his name so perhaps he is going to school. I didn't ask because I knew I would get the answer that he thought I wanted to hear but not necessarily the truth. I expect I will see Amadeo again as he will always keep an eye out for the gringa who gave him Q50. How does a six-year old become such a ruthless salesman? Aren't there a zillion companies who would want such a salesperson?

Estela and children came on Christmas Eve without Alex for the first time. Alex comes and goes from his bachelor pad at the far end of Casa Broccoli but is pretty much out of favor with Estela and the children as well who are tiring of his steady stream of untruths. One wonders if becoming a sociopath is always the end result of a child growing up alone on the street struggling to survive. Sad to think that Amadeo might become Alex though Amadeo does have a mother at age 6. Alex did not. Denis at 13 is obviously conflicted about his father and is desperately in need of a good male role model (they are in short supply in Guatemala). He lacks self-confidence and is not doing as well as his sisters in school. I suspect that he might be suffering from dyslexia which no one here is equipped to deal with. A gringo friend is spending the occasional Saturday with Denis in the hope of bolstering his self-confidence and giving him the idea that he doesn't have to follow in his father's footsteps/missteps.

What does 2011 bring for Guatemala?

New York Times columnist, Nicholas Kristof, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/30/opinion/30kristof.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=nicholas%20%20kristof%20spanish&st=cse is recommending that everyone study Spanish which could help the Spanish schools and teachers in Guatemala.

CNN recommends Guatemala as the #8 out of 9 places one should visit in 2011.
http://articles.cnn.com/2010-12-28/travel/top.destinations.2011_1_maori-new-zealand-destination?_s=PM:TRAVEL

Elmer and Veronica can read and Diego will get to go to school Hopefully, Amadeo too. Jackie starts a bi-lingual "diversificado" (high school) this month and spends most of her free time with my old Kindle that I loaded up with books in Spanish for Christmas. Denis is using iTunes to put music on a Nano for his mother.

Two well qualified women gained high government posts based on merit over male contenders.

The Mexican drug cartel, the Zetas, has moved into the Coban area and has declared war on Guatemala.

Although the tourist areas are quite well patrolled the average Guatemalan suffers daily from a lack of security and corruption at all levels of government.

ABC News launched a year long series called "Be the Change, Save a Life" with a piece on malnutrition and stunting in Guatemala anchored by Christiane Amanpour.
http://abcnews.go.com/2020 Look for the December 17th piece entitled "Tortillas and Coffee as Baby Food."

The first North American producer of Plumpy Nut, a highly acclaimed nutritional supplement, Edesia, is seeing that their products get to some of the neediest in Guatemala.
http://www.edesiaglobal.org/

Riecken Guatemala has received a donation to build a new community discovery center in nearby Jocotenango which will not only change the community but be conveniently accessible to visitors to Antigua.
http://rieckenguatemala.blogspot.com/

So, it is still a muddle but a pleasant, always entertaining muddle. Where else can you experience perfect weather, stunning views, $15 gourmet meals, devastating poverty, AK-47s, talented craftsmen and happy smiling people on any given day?

Jackie Sprouts Wings

2010-11-14T06:40:00.000-08:00

Today marks the fifteenth birthday of Jaquelin, Estela and Alexander's eldest. Last year during her "summer" school vacation (summer in Guatemala for some strange reason occurs in November and December despite being in the northern hemisphere) Jackie, on her own, started a reading program for the younger children in her village. I donated some plastic chairs to accommodate the 20 or so children who would come to listen to stories and answer questions about what they had heard. A friend who is the director of Child Aid (www.child-aid.org) donated books.

This "summer" (as in the US the school calendar was originally designed around harvest time, in this case coffee) the friend with Child Aid offered to have Jackie work as a volunteer at a reading program in Chimaltenango which is a double chicken bus ride from Casa Broccoli in San Antonio Aquas Calientes. Jackie would need to ride the bus alone to Chimaltenango and back. Both parents objected strenuously thus the first day Estela who has only ever been once to Chimaltenango herself went along as did a Child Aid employee. Once Estela discovered that the bus stopped right in front on the school where Jackie needed to go she gave up her objections. Once Alexander saw how delighted Jackie was to be doing something useful he drove her to Antigua to get the bus to Chimaltenango though he remains mystified as to why anyone would work for free. While I am giving Jackie the $2 per day bus fare there is no other compensation but Estela understands that she is gaining experience and future job skills and that there is no turning back for Jackie.

So, Jackie leaves home each morning at 6:30am to spend about three hours a day on the bus so that she can read stories to kids and play educational games with them for three hours a day. Yesterday she was invited to attend an all-adult librarian/teacher training workshop and spent the day learning skills that she can not only use but pass on to others. There is a childrens' library in the village of Casa Broccoli, about 1/2 block away. Jackie and her siblings had never been there as, for the most part in Guatemala, children are locked away in their houses when there parents are working. Jackie has been introduced to the man who tends this library two hours every afternoon and has been invited to help him with the younger children and to bring some more little ones around. This is something that she will be able to continue when school starts again in January.

Last month Jackie became the first in her family (on either side) to finish "basico" (middle school, 9th grade). Her choice at this point is to pursue a bilingual secretarial program for "diversicado" (high school). She will learn English and computer skills and could choose to go on to university. With her loves of books and reading I can certainly see her being sought after as a librarian by several organizations when she has finished her education. Last week we registered her at her new school and I was pleased to see a "No Spanish" sign on the office door. The director allowed as how it did not apply to me, however. The school has a good feel to it and is conveniently a five minute walk from my house.

A fifteenth birthday is a big affair for a Hispanic girl and frequently money that is needed for essentials is squandered on a ridiculously expensive party. I am slowing learning how to manage the expectations in Guatemala and each time I was told how much a party would cost I ignored it. Finally I said that I was not paying for any parties but that I would take anyone who finished basico with a grade average of more than 75% on a trip anywhere they wanted to go within Guatemala. The mention of an airplane ride to get to Tikal gave that location a very obvious edge.

Last Saturday Jackie and I were picked up at the ungodly hour of 4am for that airplane ride to Tikal. We stayed in a hotel, climbed up Mayan ruins, saw monkeys and other jungle creatures, learned about her ancestors, talked about safe sex and not getting pregnant when the time comes that she has a boyfriend (thankfully, she has no interest at the moment which may be partly about the shenanigans of her father). On our 45 minute flight back to Guatemala City we had a "meal" service (take that, American Airlines) which consisted of choice of potato chips and soft drinks. By then Jackie had mastered my camera and was taking some pretty interesting photos of her own.

Estela and Astrid were waiting by the gate when we got back to Antigua. Estela reported that tears of excitement were rolling down Jackie's cheeks as she told her family about her trip. Estela's brother, who was also at the gate, said that for him it was a dream to go to Tikal.

Tikal by Jaquelin

I had offered to put a book in Spanish on my Kindle for Jackie as I wanted to see if she would take to the electronic book. She picked a 500 page biography of Queen Isabella of Spain. When she finished it I told her if she would write a book review on the book I would let her choose another Kindle book. The next day she turned up with a well written book report. It is the norm in Guatemala to find unbelievably bad spelling so I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of Jackie's writing. She has now decided that she is going to write a book, the story of her life. Yes, Alexander is worried and with good reason. This could be a best seller in the US of A. So, yesterday I gave her as a birthday present a very thick spiral notebook and six pens to get her launched. If she pursues it perhaps we can do something jointly - my perspective and then her perspective. She went home with Pride and Prejudice and Robinson Crusoe on the "borrowed" Kindle which I do intend to give her as a Christmas present. Poco a poco.

Rags and Riches

2010-06-25T15:04:00.000-07:00

A week or so ago I was enjoying a swim in a friend's lap pool in Antigua in fairly perfect weather. The pool offers unparalleled, commanding views of Agua, the inactive volcano due south of Antigua. I couldn't help but think of the people I had seen earlier in the day crammed into a village church at the base of that volcano. The village of San Miguel Escobar where many live, in very basic houses of cinder blocks with corrugated metal roofs, is a ten minute drive from Antigua. More than 200 people, forty families who have lost their homes, are now living in the church and church yard. Another 1,000 or so who have lost their businesses and/or cooking facilities are being fed at the church. There is a certain amount of guilt in participating in disaster tourism but clearly the Guatemalans know that each disaster tourist might mean a bit more help so they talk and agree to be photographed. Two of us went to have a look at what we had only seen on world news and we ran into my friend's carpenter in the church. "Don Julio" showed us both around the church and the area of the town where forty homes and six residents were lost.

Many bridges were lost throughout Guatemala during Tropical Storm Agatha. The one in this village, sadly, held and was blocked by enormous trees and rocks that came down from the top of the volcano. As a result the water rose from what is normally a lazy stream and flooded the land. Portions of the stronger buildings still stood but for the most part what we saw was a wasteland of mud with little evidence that a month earlier people had lived there. A bit further down the hill where some buildings still stood the mud line was half way up the walls and mud had washed through the houses taking of all the contents with it. One of Guatemala's charms is that it is a "small town" where everybody seems to know somebody if not everybody. Don Julio asked one woman whom he obviously knew if we could walk through her house which was vacant and actually quite grand but was missing its back wall. The woman had an overwhelmed look on her face no doubt due from a couple of weeks of cleaning mud out of her house and the shop that once gave her a source of income. Behind the house a man was making a feeble attempt to get a car that had obviously been covered with mud running again. Beyond the car there was another wasteland where houses once had stood. The only evidence was water bottles stuck on protruding pieces of rebar which marked where the columns of a house once where. Piled in a heap was a "pila" the molded sink that is a required part of every Guatemalan home.

As we approached the cheerfully colored yellow church we first saw a man who was organizing a group of children and playing games with them. In front of the church was a huge pile of downed trees that had no doubt been hauled there to provide fuel for cooking for twelve hundred people. There was also a long line of portable toilets. Inside the church courtyard one was immediately struck by the number of people and piles of supplies as well as by the upbeat, organized atmosphere. One corner had been closed off by sheets and was marked as the medical center. Next to that area a number of women were making tortillas. Another group of women lined a long table and on the wood fire was one of the largest cooking pots I have ever seen. Amidst the piles of water bottles and other supplies the children (who were not in school as it was a Sunday) were lined up to get their lunch. A couple of rooms were devoted to piles and piles of beans, sugar, rice, oil, milk, incaparina, toilet paper, diapers and more. There was one television and several men were watching the World Cup. In back of the church in a shed was a huge pile of foam and other mattresses. Don Julio told us that the mattresses were put on the floor in the church sanctuary at night so that the residents could sleep. Many children had found themselves a quiet corner to share their lunch. For more photos follow the link below.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jfuetsch/sets/72157624320506482/

Estela reported that she and her children had gone through all their clothes and taken a quantity of clothing to the church for the "damnificados," are the victims are called in Guatemala.

A number of organizations are doing what they can to help. One such organization is ConstruCasa which, as many of you may remember, built Casa Broccoli. They have built a number of homes in San Miguel Escobar and are currently trying to raise additional funds to aid those who have lost all or most of what little they had to start with. For more information or to make a tax-deductible donation please visit their website at: www.construcasa.org.

I must admit that it troubles me to see such enormous need and such deserving people with engaging smiles who take it all in stride and then to return to the Silicon Valley and be assaulted by the entitled. The cost of one Ferrari could rebuild all 40 homes in San Miguel Escobar. The cost of one bag of groceries at Whole Foods could feed everyone in that church for a couple of weeks. The homeless children in San Miguel Escobar laugh and play hide and seek behind the wood pile. The entitled children in the Silicon Valley whine when their iPhones don't work. What in the world is it going to take to level the playing field? When are the entitled going to understand that poverty is everyone's problem? Alex's youngest, little Michelle who lives in San Miguel Escobar but only lost the roof of the humble room that she shares with her mother and brother, is no less deserving than a kid in California with a wonky iPhone.

Speaking of Alex, father of many children, a month of so ago he thought he had cut a deal to upgrade his car. He had a cash buyer for his existing car and a bit of spare change to add so I encouraged him to go forward. When he went to do the paperwork on the new car the police turned up and took the car as it had been reported stolen so Alex wound up with no car, no money and no way to earn a living. Yes, the bandito went to jail but Alex's money went somewhere else. Another reason not to be poor and uneducated in Guatemala. So, Tia Joan had to decide what to do. Help him out again, or let him loose his sense of identity, his way to earn a living and to fail in the eyes of his children. Fortunately, the perfect car was sort of waiting for this event and Alex is once again rolling and once again has some debt payments hanging over his head.

It's Very Complicated!

2010-05-19T17:59:00.000-07:00

More than once I have said "I am doing it for the kids" and the kids are great. Actually even greater now that I have gotten to meet two other, previously only rumored, children that belong to Alexander. Unlike politicians in the US there was never any denial involved but it does sort of explain the decline in the relationship between Estela and Alexander. Or was it the other way around? It is definitely complicated but who are we to judge the poor with limited education, limited resources and not too many other ways to have a good time? Certainly none of these excuses would apply to one time presidential hopefuls in the USA.

The reality is that "it is what it is," the children are here and Tia Joan has two more to help educate. Gladly, a couple of years ago I made one of my all time best investments and thanks to counseling from WINGS (www.wingsguate.org) and my $40 Alexander had a vasectomy. Santa Estela (mother of the first three) has been one of the first to say that the children are innocent. Christopher, 3, has his Dad's charisma and Michelle, 2, her Dad's dimples. Both appear to be clean, well-nourished and well cared for. They both know what books are for as Mom reads to them which is a rarity in Guatemala. So, I guess we can give Alex credit for picking good mothers and for taking some responsibility for all five children. Now we all know the answer to the question of where all his money goes. And go it does.

As for those who don't belong to Alexander there are five in the village of San Antonio Aguas Calientes in school this year thanks to a donation from a womens' club in Southern California. School is technically free and technically compulsory. Neither are close to the truth. Uniforms are often required along with gym clothing and school supplies as in the US. Many families simply do not have the funds for school supplies or uniforms thus their kids just don't go to school. Interestingly, two of the sponsored children, Veronica and Elmer, are siblings of "Charlie" who received a Rotary scholarship last year and apparently couldn't cope with being the oldest and the tallest at age 13 in the third grade. He dropped out and is, probably, up to no good. His sister, Veronica, is 12 and very happy to be in the second grade and their brother, Elmer, 6, is also in the second grade though in a different class. I explained to the two of them that there were able to go to school because some ladies in the United States were making it possible. Elmer assured me that he could read. The school year ends in October in Guatemala so if their grades are good they will be able to continue with financial assistance.

Speaking of books I was recently able to visit the Riecken Foundation library in Xolsacmalja, Totonicapan to which many of you have contributed. The 100% indigenous village is about a 20-minute 4-wheel drive ride off of the paved, main road (3-4 hours west of Antigua) yet the progress in this library in scarcely a year was quite remarkable. We were there to discuss an internet connection that is being partially funded by The Rotary Club of Woodside/Portola Valley (CA) and also to deliver two boxes of Spanish language childrens' books donated by a young girl named Quincy from Napa, California. Quincy asked her friends to bring the books as gifts for her birthday party. In the photo above Juana, who is the president of the library board, looks over the new books with her 3-year old niece, Elena. Elena now has the very new prospect of growing up with books and computers in her life. Despite, currently, having to travel by bus to another community for internet access the library staff managed to send Quincy a digital "thank you" for her book donation.

While at the library three young boys cornered me as "gringas" are a rarity in their community. First, they eagerly posed for a photo so that they could see themselves on the back of the camera. Then, they plied me with questions. "Why are gringos tall?" was one of their first. Since I wasn't sure of the answer I mentioned that gringos eat different food. Then they wanted to know what gringos ate, what I ate when I was in Guatemala, how did I get there, how long did it take, what did it cost and why was my hair short. I finally escaped the questions by asking them to get books and read so that I could take some photos. All three read aloud in unison endlessly. It was quite clear that they all were good readers and they were happy to show off their skills. Bingo! Library

If you would like to read a bit more about the Riecken Guatemala libraries and see more photos just follow this link: http://rieckenguatemala.blogspot.com.

Real Food, Real Life

2010-03-07T07:53:00.000-08:00

It is March. The jacarandas are turning the town purple. Mangos are in season and everywhere in great abundance. The Lenten festivities are in full swing. Fuego is spewing away and many are whining about all the dust. Organic "pollution" that is good for the gardens and also provides full employment for the muchachas. Unless you go to Hiper Paiz (Walmart) or Pricesmart (Costco) in the capital it is pretty easy to maintain a diet of "slow" and very fresh food by wandering through the mercado on market days. A chicken might even be "fresher" than you want to cope with. The carrots are enormous and very tasty, nothing like those that come from ten pound plastic bags in the states. Mushrooms smell like mushrooms when they are cooking. Strawberries look and taste like those from your childhood. Pineapples picked locally when ripe make the whole house smell good. Eggs have deep orange yolks because the chickens eat what they are supposed to and nothing that they are not supposed to.

This past week I had the good fortune to meet with the staff and some of the board members of the Riecken Foundation library in Xolsacmalja, Totonicapan. The library is flourishing after scarcely a year mostly due to the motivation of the members of the totally indigenous community who worked for five years to have a library. It has attracted international attention and is receiving funding from the Finnish Embassy in Guatemala City to pursue programs designed to keep the indigenous culture and their language of Quiche alive. Amazingly, a woman is now the president of the board and she has asked me for my email address despite the fact that the community does not have internet. Her name is Juana (second from left in the photo) and she wanted to know what I did for a living, how old I was, was I married. She too has a niece named Elena. She rides a bus to Totonicapan to use the internet in a cyber cafe. I expect that I will hear from Juana.

My Rotary Club (Woodside/Portola Valley California) has just approved the funds to install an internet connection in the library but on advice of the Riecken country director we asked them to submit a proposal including a budget and how the community would plan to pay the ongoing monthly costs. The expectation is that their proposal will show up very soon and we will then tell them that the funds are available. Their next dilemma is how to add to the three computers they currently have which are in constant use even without internet. It might have to involve another Rotary project.

Gladly, the tourists are returning to Antigua thus the locals who are dependent on the tourist trade for a living are breathing a sigh of relief. Antigua is definitely cheaper than London or Paris and the weather is way better, especially in March.

Life with Estela and Alexander is better than anything I have seen on television of late. At the moment they are not speaking so Alexander comes around on the weekend when Estela is not here to tend the garden. Yesterday he pleaded with me to let him run his laundry through the washing machine while he worked. When things are bad on the home front his biggest dilemma is how to get his laundry done. Despite the ongoing domestic dramas (I have lost total track of who is or is not doing what to or with whom) the children seem to be flourishing and are both enjoying and doing well in school. Denis turned 13 the other day and, oh dear, his voice has changed since I was last here. Can the hormones be too far behind? He does seem to be a sensible, sensitive kid but only time will tell. Heaven knows Alexander, who can be utterly charming but is really about ten at heart, is certainly not the best role model.

Next, a progress report on the young students
in San Antonio Aguas Calientes who are receiving school scholarships from readers of this blog.

A 14-year old teacher in Guatemala

2010-01-14T07:50:00.000-08:00

When I built my house and hired Estela and Alexander to look after things I never dreamed how it might all unfold. Four years ago I heard about their living situation then saw it for myself. Fortunately, then the "Dow" was a lot higher then it is now and thanks to many of you, they now have a house and a garden which has, more or less, catapulted them into the wobbly middle class of Guatemala. The result has been that they have all been extending the acts of kindness to the less fortunate around them. Estela has had to receive treatment for cervical cancer, which is the most common killer cancer among women in Guatemala. Fortunately, because she has regular checkups hers was caught early and treatable.

Recently, while at the Cancer Center in Guatemala City for a check up Estela met a 22-year old woman with an infant and a toddler. Fifteen days earlier her husband, a bus driver, had been murdered by would be extortionists. While they were talking a doctor came out and told the young woman that her cancer was advanced and incurable. Alexander drove the distraught woman and her two children home to their ramshackle house in a very poor neighborhood and they both pondered what would become of her children. I was grateful that Estela hadn't offered to take them as I know that thought passed through her mind.

As a write Estela is overseeing the purchase of school supplies for little Sonia and her two sisters and two siblings of Charlie who continue to go to school. Thanks to a California womens' group for providing these funds which will pay for their books, school supplies and uniforms. Sonia is very excited to be starting school and with a uniform too. NY Times columnist and co-author of Half the Sky (a must read about the benefits of educating girls), Nicholas Kristof indicates that if a girl has a uniform she will stay in school longer.

Estela and Alex's daughter, Jackie, who turned 14 in November and who is a passionate reader, started reading stories to young children in their village during their school vacation. When I visited Casa Broccoli before Christmas the number had multiplied to 15 children all of whom sat in rapt attention and then participated in a question and answer session about the story. Thanks to Child Aid (http://www.child-aid.org/) I was able to supply Jackie and her "students" with a supply of books that will last them for some time. Child Aid also supplied pamphlets so that each child could either draw or write answers to questions about the stories to encourage creative thinking, something not normally included in the government schools of Guatemala. Many of these children had never handled a book before.

This Christmas season it was Jackie and Astrid's turn to see a lake, stay in a hotel and ride in a boat for the first time. They also learned how to play Rummikub.

Julio, the Spanish teacher of former visitors to my house, who is a single father of three and in his second year of studies to become a physical therapist, received another contribution from his benefactors. Only with these contributions is he able to continue his studies. His 16-year old daughter is also starting university this month and she wants to pursue studies in human rights, badly needed in Guatemala.

The Guatemalan school year starts this month and Jackie will start her last year of basico (middle school) and next year will be the first one in her family to start high school. She wants to pursue a career as a bilingual secretary thus will go to a secondary school that will head her down that path. Denis, who starts basico this month, continues to spend all his spare time on the computer. Santa Claus brought the family a Level 1 Rosetta Stone English program and Denis has been charged with seeing that the whole family pursues it. ("There will be a test in March.") Estela has "graduated" from her cooking school and now has a certificate as a professional chef. She starts English classes at the same school this month. Astrid is starting the fourth grade, continues to be the top of her class and also reads whatever she can get her hands on. Alex remains Alex. Charming, stubborn, caring, dramatic, always yearning for another car ("sure Alex, when you have saved half"). As much of his business is by phone these days over the holidays he exchanged cars with a friend who just finished law school and needs to make money in order to take the bar exam. Sergio was the taxista and Alex the private driver and they split the proceeds. So, he has some business sense just but no sense of saving money to fund his dreams.

More Photos December 2009

2010-01-14T07:17:00.000-08:00

Fijase!

2009-11-09T16:20:00.000-08:00

My dictionary translates this all too often used word in Guatemala as "Just Imagine!" I think it is one of those words that defies translation. Typically when the conversation or even the sentence starts with "fijase" (or the familar "fijate") you know that whatever you were hoping to have happen has not and you are about to be told why. Did you go to the bank? Fijase, but the bank was closed. Did you do your homework? Fijase, but I couldn't find my books. Did you feed the starving people in your country? Fijase, but we can't find the money. "Just imagine" may not quite be strong enough but lacking another word with more than four letters it will have to do.

So, fijase, but Charlie quit going to school. As much as he seemed to want to go he apparently couldn't cope with being the oldest and the poorest in his third grade class. He stole a small bit of money from the classroom and the teacher contacted Estela (as neither of his parents care whether he goes to school or not). Estela paid the teacher the missing amount of money and her children have banished Charlie from their house until such time as he repays the money. Sadly, Charlie has lost his one shot at rising above his very humble beginnings and will probably either end up in the United States picking fruit or in a gang. Fijase, but his government doesn't care if he goes to school either.

Estela and Alex's kids, on the other hand, are thriving and take their studies very seriously. In October Denis who is 12 was the second in the family to receive his 6th grade "certificado." When the school year resumes in January he will go on to "basico" (middle school) like his older sister, Jackie, who will enter her last year of basico. Astrid remains determined to be a doctor, Denis wants to be an engineer and also a computer "tecnico" while Jackie is thinking about becoming a bilingual secretary. Next October Jackie will be the first in either family to graduate from basico. It will be quite an occasion.

Just back from my first return trip to India since Pan Am was the way to travel there, I found myself marveling at the progress made in that country while little or none has been made in Guatemala. The main difference is a great emphasis on education in India. There are schools, universities and "coaching" centers for the challenged everywhere and lots of children in neat, clean uniforms practicing their English every chance they get. On the Kerala coast we were asked "please, I would like one ball point pen," so many times that we decided that it was representative of their first full sentence in English.

Back in Guatemala I took Alex, Estela and their children to Guatemala City to see a movie in a real theater. The children had never been to the capital before and none, except Alex, had ever been on an escalator before. I proceeded up the escalator only to find them all standing at the bottom wondering what was happening. Popcorn and pop for all and we saw "Illuvia de Hamburgesas," (rain of hamburgers) or, in English, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs." It actually had a good message for Alex, the distant padre.

As in the US the holiday season seems to start earlier every year in Guatemala. With a friend I went to a nearby village that must grow most of the planet's poinsettias as we visited nurseries that had literally thousands, as far as one could see. Most were marked "vendido" or "sold." Soon they will be in Home Depot in the states and on the streets of Antigua for far more than we paid for a dozen or so. The Christmas season in Guatemala is a mix of religious and thanks to those of us in the developed world, consumerism. There is a Christmas market selling creche provisions and also a fireworks market which blew up a couple of years ago thus it is now in a different location. The law dictates that all workers receive an extra month of pay mid- December and a lot of that seems to go for cerveza and stronger along with fireworks. The trees in central park are all lighted and the "posadas" which are processions of children seeking lodging for Mary and Joseph start mid-month. Feliz Navidad to you and yours!

Why Guatemala?

2009-05-10T17:04:00.000-07:00

This is a question I am frequently asked and I always find it difficult to give the right answer in thirty words or less. Could be the perfect weather, could be the scenery, the restaurants, the $30 massages or the fun of running into people you know all over town, all involved in some sort of development project. But maybe it is the piles of fresh fruit and vegetables everywhere, mangos for a dime that you can scarcely lift, avocados by the dozen for a pittance. Or perhaps it is nothing more than the fact that the tension of living in the San Francisco Bay area just seems to melt away. It could be the friendly face waiting outside the customs hall. It could be waking up to a virtual symphony of birds just after dawn every morning or the friendly, smiling people with little more than the clothes on their back. As I write I am watching Fuego, the active volcano which is close but not too close, erupt. Fuego has been unusually busy today. One can only wonder why.

Today is Mothers' Day, here and there. It is always on May 10th in Central America and was actually started as a tribute to someone's mother rather than by a greeting card company. My friendly face spent this afternoon's earnings on flowers for his "Tia" (aunt) and the grave of his mother, who wasn't much of one. I hope that wherever she is, she appreciates the fact that he spent his last Qs on flowers for her grave rather than on food for his kids or gasoline for his taxi. Perhaps those of us have enough for both shouldn't judge or deny them a little frivolity now and then.

Speaking of frivolity the celebratory fireworks (another good way to use up what little money you have) are still ongoing for this three day weekend dedicated to the mothers of this country who get very little respect the other 362 days. Friday was a school holiday in anticipation of Mothers' Day (and what better excuse not to teach?). Astrid (9) told her teacher for the second year in a row that she had two mothers and, therefore, needed two invitations for the school festivities. Estela and I went together and sat in the front row to see Astrid and her cousin, Brenda, in a dance routine. The older boys in suits played the (of course) drums and marimbas. Interesting to see that among them was a severely disabled lad who was wheeled in by his classmates and a set of small drums was propped in his useless left arm. He joined in vigorously with his one good limb, his right arm. There was a lottery for "canastas" (baskets) put together by each grade filled with nutritious items like liters of Coca Cola, chips and marshmallows. Thankfully I did not win one. Estela got chosen by one of the older boys to go out on the dance floor and looked pretty good despite admitting to being mortified.

With the exception of Astrid who remains determined to be a doctor the other children including Charlie are still being challenged by school. They are good kids who are up to the challenge who do their homework but having parents with only a 6th grade education leaves them lacking guidance though they seem intrigued by the idea that with education they will have choices. Denis's current choice is computer technician. Astrid recently lectured Charlie about his reluctance to do his homework telling him that if he didn't do it I would not be paying for another year of school for him. Actually my Rotary Club paid his fees this year but he got right down to work.

The global recession has taken its toll in Guatemala. The Spanish schools are fairly empty as are the hotel and restaurants. The local newspapers tell us that remittances from families working outside the country are down significantly. Tourism and remittances are the two most important components of GDP here. As a result for the first time ever my beat up old, burlap coffee bag purse was slashed in the mercado. Surprisingly to me the perpetrators were all women. Several blocked my way and therefore succeeded in distracting me. Ha ha, they got nada as I had nada in my bag. Yesterday when purchasing a very fresh cauliflower and a bunch of giant carrots for Q4 (52 cents) in the same market I told the seller to keep the extra Q1 and to make sure that people in the market knew that if the slashing didn't stop (I showed her my bag which had been "repaired" with duct tape and was now serving as a badge of courage) that the gringos might stop shopping there. I have been told that the vendors understand this and don't like the thieves ever better than the rest of us.

On my way to the market yesterday a police car went screeching by me with its sirens blaring. It turned the corner that I was about to turn. I saw a number of people staring wide-eyed in the direction where I needed to go. I wondered what horrible scene I was going to encounter. I turned the corner and saw the remains of a motorcycle mostly under the front end of a mini-van. Both vehicles were on the wrong side of the street. I looked around not once but twice and there was neither a victim nor a driver of the mini-van. Clearly, this accident happened all by itself. No doubt the motorcycle driver had stolen the motorcycle and the driver of the mini van did not have a license. We pay dearly for insurance. They take off on foot. When I returned from the market a tow truck was preparing to tow away the undamaged but uninhabited mini van waiting for its owner to call and say, no doubt, that it had been stolen just that morning.

Estela and my neighbor's maid, Gloria, started taking computer classes on Saturday mornings. Last Saturday they did the unthinkable after their two hour class, abandoning their children and endless labor by taking the bus to Chimaltenango. This is sort of akin to taking a junket to Detroit in February. Such chatter. The men were furious, the children intrigued yet supportive. I encouraged them to make it a regular thing but suggested they stay in Antigua which is a lot safer than "Chimalt."

A couple of days ago Alexander came upstairs to where I was working. He was carrying my duffle bag from the garage and asked, with a silly grin on his face, if he could borrow it for an hour. When I questioned why, he reminded me of his friend who had found his wife a couple of days earlier in a compromising situation. As the couple and their three children lived with her parents this fellow had quite literally found himself on the street with his worldly possessions (mostly clothes) all of which fit into my duffel bag. The wronged taxista has moved into Casa Broccoli for the time being and Estela is happy to have a paying tenant. I tried to point out the irony of the Hispanic double standard to Alexander but I am pretty sure he didn't get it. Or chose not to.

So, why Guatemala? It is rarely dull, often frustrating. There is always something to do, something to be done. The Guatemalans are incredibly hard workers. They think nothing of working 12-hour days, six days a week for very little money. They often laugh when they have virtually no money. They eat when food turns up or they find an avocado tree. They talk about going to the United States but I suspect they are not sure why. They don't want to go but they want a better life for their kids. The old women reduced to begging on the street after a life of hard labor and childbearing bless you when you give them a few coins. Such is a day in Guatemala.

A Library for Xolsacmalja

2009-04-06T19:32:00.000-07:00

On March 26, 2009 I made a long, tedious journey to the remote, Mayan village of Xolsacmalja (closest Google Earth point is Totonicapan) for the inauguration of a Riecken Foundation (www.riecken.org) community library. The inauguration was the culmination of five years of work on the part of the community to be able to offer free access to information to the residents, 100% of whom are indigenous. After festivities that included speeches, certificates of recognition for community leaders who had shepherded the process and indigenous dancing by some of the school children the ribbon was cut and people literally poured through the doors to see what a library looked like. At first they all wandered around with their hands at their sides but with the encouragement of Riecken staff members the children started playing with educational games in the children’s corner, chess games were started, the computers were swamped and soon there was a crowd around the sex education book that was prominently displayed. In another corner older children were using the telescope and doing a solar system puzzle. The teenagers were encouraged to visit the separate room designed for them to meet and learn how to debate and talk through their issues together. The women then asked if they could meet there as well and were told “yes” by the director.

One of the guests was the director of a nearby Riecken Foundation library in San Juan La Laguna who has been providing training to the new director in Xolsacmalja. The next step in the process is for the community to establish a fundraising program to earn enough money to pay the monthly cost of internet access. Once they have raised six months of internet access Riecken will pay for the internet installation. Since internet access seemed to be of interest to all age groups I would expect that they will have it soon. Thank you to all of you who have contributed to The Riecken Foundation including The Rotary Club of Woodside/Portola Valley as your donations will totally change the lives of the men, women and children of Xolsacmalja for generations to come. There are more photos below and even more photos at the website: www.wpvrotary.org. Click on “Photo Album.”

Photos Worth Thousands of Words

2009-03-29T12:36:00.001-07:00

Charlie in his Uniform

2009-03-29T11:17:00.000-07:00

As you can see Charlie is still a bit awkward in his school uniform and, as it turns out, in his new life. His school is a 3 minute walk from Alex and Estela's house so when he forgets his shoes he can make a quick trip back to the house for them.

Estela reports that he did not go to school at all last year so he has to make many adjustments in his routine and to the discipline of his Catholic school. One day last week he did not go to school for reasons that are still not clear to me. Something about his uniform pants being wet. Alex reports that Charlie fell out of the top bunk (his first real bed) a couple of times so Denis has changed places with him. Alex also thinks that Charlie is starting to grow a bit with regular meals. Since he is all "skin and bones" I have suggested to Estela that she get some (readily available here) parasite medication for him. Alex, Estela and I have discussed that Charlie is having to deal with a lot of changes and that it may be a while before he settles in. Estela has met with his teacher who finds him very intelligent and a good student.

Charlie grew up with a crazy father ("loco en la cabeza" or "crazy in the head" is the only diagnosis I have been able to get) and a mother who has been pregnant for most of Charlie's life and would rather he babysit than go to school. His parents seem unconcerned that he is living elsewhere and he is struggling academically with the transition from the government school to no school and on to private school. Estela reports that all three of her children are helping Charlie with his school work and explain things that he doesn't understand. Denis worries when Charlie doesn't want to do his homework. I gave Charlie a copy of Charlie y la Fabrica de Chocolate and I was quite impressed with his ability to read after only two years of one of the worst school systems in the western hemisphere. It remains to be seen whether he can comprehend what he reads but perhaps that will come. I brought some math flash cards and the children were quick to show Charlie how to count on his fingers to find the answers. It is fun to watch Alexander (perhaps he is finally growing up himself) assume the father role with Charlie and also to watch the kids doing what they can to bring him up to speed. Thanks to the Rotary Club of Woodside/Portola Valley for funding a scholarship that is making it possible for Charlie to go to school.

Charlie Goes to School

2009-01-23T13:03:00.000-08:00

Just this morning I spoke to Estela and she reports that Charlie, aged 12, started the third grade yesterday at the "colegio" (private school) that just a few weeks ago he was only able to dream about. As his family felt that the school in Antigua where Estela's children go was "too far," (it's about three miles away but his father has never been that far) Alexander and Estela negotiated with his parents to allow him to go to the colegio in the town where they all live. Charlie's mother resisted as she wanted Charlie to babysit but she finally relented and Estela says that Charlie is thrilled. Estela is still in the process of getting everything that Charlie needs. Tomorrow she will go to the market in Antigua to get shoes and socks for Charlie who had none. This week he has gone to school wearing old shoes that belong to her son, Denis. Estela further reports that Charlie takes all his meals at their house now (maybe he will start to grow a bit) and that all the children are helping him with his school work. Funding for all of Charlie's expenses for the year come to somewhat less than $600 which, pending expected approval, will come from The Rotary Club of Woodside/Portola Valley (CA). Watch this space for a photo of Charlie in his new school uniform.

Charlie and Santa Estela

2009-01-03T05:17:00.001-08:00

The good stories continue. A few weeks ago I had an email request from former Antigua house tenants who were eager to reconnect with his one-time Spanish teacher. The man had had a streak of bad luck which culminated with his medical student son being hit by a bus in the capital, Guatemala City. I made some inquiries and was told that Julio was a good man who had suffered a lot. The tenants asked me to give him some money on their behalf. I went to the Spanish school and gave Julio a check explaining that it was from "Doctor Jaimie." Julio immediately told me that he was going to use the money to return to his studies to become a physical therapist, that because of the medical bills for his son he had had to stop going to school. I offered to connect him with an American physical therapist in Antigua who might well be looking for help in her very busy practice here.

Brenda, who clearly likes, puppies recently lost her educational sponsor. She had been attending a private school in Antigua with Estela's children, her cousins. As Brenda's father is seriously ill with complications from diabetes the family is not able to pay the fees to keep her in the school. Brenda had been told that she would have to return to her neighborhood government (very substandard) school and was quite dismayed. As it had become apparent to me that Brenda was flourishing in the private school I was determined to find her another sponsor. By the way, private primary school costs here including fees, books, uniform and supplies run about $600 a year. A friend from California who already knew Brenda has offered to take over the responsibility of her education. Brenda is delighted and the two already have a date to stand in line together with Brenda's list and purchase
everything she needs for a successful year in third grade. Brenda will be 9 in May and is in the same class as her cousin, Astrid. In Guatemala the school year starts on the 19th of January.

Enter Charlie. More donors wanted to have a look at Alex and Estela's new house. We quickly noticed that there was an extra child there. Estela explained that his father (brother of "la senora," the neighbor in the back) was "sick in the head, crazy" (that's the most specific diagnosis I have gotten) and that Carlos was spending all his time at her house with her son, Denis. She further said that Carlos was crazy about the computer, that he and Denis spent hours playing games on the computer (no internet in their village, thankfully). He seemed like an usually bright and polite fellow especially considering his circumstances which involve far too many siblings all living on the ground together under plastic sheeting supported by cane. When his father goes off (I have since found that alcohol plays a role) he beats his wife and kids and once tried to hang himself in front of the children. Carlos who is very small for his age told me that he was 12 which makes him a year older but smaller (probably due to early malnutrition) than Denis. He also told me that he was in the third grade but that his family had told him that he could not return to school because the family only had enough money for food (and apparently alcohol). Carlos said he loved school and that he had no books at home. Needless to say Carlos will be going back to school this month and Astrid will be loaning him some books. Saint Estela who welcomes all children into her home and I will see that he has the necessary supplies to return to school. In this case, we are probably talking about $25 or so. It would be wonderful to get a bright, motivated child like Carlos to a private school but it might be too big of a jump, culturally, at this juncture. Perhaps next year. He speaks the Mayan language, Kachikel, and of course, Spanish. Carlos came along with all the rest of the group for dinner at my house. He had only ever been to Antigua once before to the mercado and once inside my house kept telling me what a beautiful house I had. We told him that his name was "Charlie" in English and he then insisted on being called Charlie. Denis took him upstairs to introduce him to the internet and Charlie's eyes glazed over as the kids zoomed around the planet with Google Earth. Charlie confessed to Denis that he never dreamed that he would ever be inside the house of a gringa.

Charlie was given a seat at the head of the table where he reveled in all the attention. He consumed a full plate of Estela's cooking and, with the other kids, asked for seconds of ice cream. In the background Denis coached Charlie as the evening progressed and Charlie even had his napkin in his lap. I did cut his meat for him as cutlery in his world is a tortilla. Everyone present got a big hug and a "gracias" from Charlie upon their departure. He is very excited about the chance to return to school and it wouldn't surprise me a bit if he doesn't end up living on the top bunk in Denis's room. Estela has room in her heart for every needy child she sees. This morning Estela reported that Charlie had spent the night and when he went to see his family this morning announced that his name was now "Charlie, no more Carlos" and that he had a big dinner with gringos. Estela will see that he gets a haircut and gets back to school. Stay tuned for Charlie's progress.

Christmas Miracles in Guatemala

2008-12-21T20:31:00.001-08:00

Christmas in Guatemala is a delightful melange of sounds, colors and smells. Fireworks, the kind that are very illegal in the US and only available to fire departments, are very popular and used for every kind of celebration. At Christmas time there is an entire market that sells nothing but "bombas" (the big ones) along with "cohetes." Last year a fire started and the entire market blew up within a few minutes. No one was hurt and the vendors were all back in business the next morning.

The official start of the season is a procession of children from the La Merced church. The children all wear "traje" or indigenous clothing. Astrid and Denis participated.

There are signs everywhere that say "Hay tamales" (we have tamales). Some are better than others but the locals celebrate the birth of Christ with tamales and fruit "ponche" (a little rum helps). Alex and Estela's children have decorated a potted pine tree hauled in from my garden. With some friends from California we went to the Christmas market which sells figures for "nacimientos" (nativity scenes), colored sawdust to embellish the nacimientos with roads, rivers and more and pine needles to put on the ground to welcome guests in the Mayan tradition. Though these kids have never had their own nacimiento before they knew exactly what they needed from Maria and Jose to the burro and the brick wrapping paper for the backing. Astrid kept looking longingly at the pitiful selection of Christmas trees. I, of course, capitulated. It was actually a nice, fresh looking and smelling tree with a good shape. On closer inspection we discovered that it had been "built" with the branches being nailed to the trunk. The kids didn't care and quickly picked out really tacky lights that play Jingle Bells and ornaments all the way from China. They couldn't wait to go home and set up their first Christmas tree which I understand is in the center of their tiny living room in all its glory.

This particular blog format does not allow for an easy integration of text and photos so I have just uploaded the photos in random order and will let them be where they lie. I trust that you can match up the text and the photos. The first of the Christmas miracles happened while driving through the pueblo of San Antonio Aguas Calientes where the house of Alex and Estela is. Alex and I were taking a donor to see the house. We were making our way down a crowded, narrow village street when I heard Alex say "look, the mother is dead." I looked and there was a tiny puppy sitting patiently next to the body of its mother who had very recently been hit by a car. Without another word Alex stopped the car, handed me a rag and I got out and picked up the pitiful pup who was otherwise being ignored by the locals because she was a female. At this writing "Tonya" (for San Antonio) is flourishing in my house and will soon have her immigration documents for travel to the US where she will be adopted. She will be living every Guatemalan's dream, that of flying to the US with papers.

Another miracle was that of getting the street gate changed at the house in San Antonio so that Alexander could secure his car at night. Out of concern for his only and most valuable asset Alexander has, for the last several months, been sleeping in his car in front of Pollo Campero (considered relatively safe as they have all night guards). He was only held up once at gunpoint but smiled his engaging, dimpled smile and told the would be robber that he had nothing, that he was just sleeping. The robber moved on in the hope of greener pastures. After his first full night sleeping at the new house Alexander grinned and said that he had slept until 8am. He was clearly pleased with himself and for the first time in his life, in from the street in his own home. He assured me that he was accustomed to living on the street but admitted that it was nice to have a place to call home. This, especially in view of a recent rash of violent attacks on taxis. Alex himself narrowly escaped an encounter with potential robbers (or worse) who had barricaded the road with rocks. Alex accelerated and drove over the rocks damaging the under carriage of his car and the would be assailants pelted the car with rocks breaking both the windshield and rear window. He has given up working at night except when called by someone he knows.

When I arrived early in December Alexander was doing a lot of work for a young man who was renting a house a few doors down. He was visiting with a friend and his disabled father from Cuernavaca, Mexico. Sergio had found Alex when he saw his car in front of my house with an "Obama Biden" bumper sticker on it. Alex has had a big grin most of this month because of multiple trips to the capital and also to Antigua restaurants with Sergio and company. When they returned to Mexico Sergio's friend who is the current president of the Rotary Club in Cuernavaca rewarded Alex with a bicycle for his children. Needless to say Alex was stunned and the children overjoyed.

Christmas Eve Estela brought me three tamales handmade by her mother. The children opened their gifts, tried out the bicycle and decided that "gringa" ponche was pretty good. They then went home to spend their first Noche Buena in their own home. Estela had enough tamales and ponche for the poor neighbors. I had contributed 5 pound bags of rice, beans, coffee, sugar and some Christmas goodies as "el senor" has no work, no way to feed all his kids. Estela contributed Incapurina (a nutritional supplement for malnourished children) and some of the children's vitamins I had given her and had wrapped some toys I had bought for the younger children. Sergio had provided Alex with bombas so they had a pretty perfect Christmas Eve. Estela reported that she hadn't gone to bed until 5am.

Antigua's New Year's Eve festivities start near the arch on 5th Avenida at about 4pm with multiple marimba bands followed by indigenous dancing and a lot more culminating with thirty minutes of fireworks at midnight. Let's hope that they signal the end to what has been a very dreary year and the start of something new. Happy New Year!

November 2008 Photos

2008-11-05T19:06:00.001-08:00

Obamanos!

2008-11-05T17:55:00.000-08:00

Here I am again in Antigua on the 5th of November, 2008. Last night we had a Obama Victory celebration in the neighborhood complete with serious fireworks (witnessed from a neighboring community), Obamanos t-shirts and a lot of hope for the future of the United States which has, it seems, been on a slippery slope for far too long. Estela and Alex's three children complete with Obama face paint were the greeters for the fiesta. Estela and my neighbor's housekeeper, who is a fabulous cook, cooked in my kitchen for two days. The host of the party sent me food as I couldn't even get into my own kitchen. Alexander was on hand as the "Obama taxi" to see that those who didn't want to walk or shouldn't drive got home safely. Today there has been a sense of exhaustion, quiet and wonder about what the future will bring.

Today Estela showed up on time as usual and helped Gloria clean up at my neighbor's house before coming to my house. While they had been cooking I talked to the two women about starting a little catering business together, perhaps just starting out in my neighborhood. They could do dinners for people on the weekends. Both love to cook and, as any of you know who have stayed in my house, Estela loves to clean as well. By midday we were all dragging and I found myself sitting in the "sala" talking with Estela. While Alexander can be charming he is, at the end of the day, a Guatemalan hombre. He conributes very little to the family emotionally or financially, both of which I believe are a function of his growing up as an orphan sleeping on the floor of his school. Estela and I talked about the fact that he is perhaps giving them all that he can but we both tire of his more or less constant whining about not having any money. I see new paint on his car, new seat covers and new dark windows as well but nada for his family. Estela got weepy when she talked about her terror of getting sick and not being able to work and wondering what would happen to her children. Her children are wonderful and soon they will be able to take care of their mother who lives for them. On a brighter note we talked about the future for her children. Jackie, who is almost 13, says she wants to be a blilingual secretary (which is not a bad job here), Denis (God bless him) says that he wants to be an engineer who build big buildings. He loves math and says he is going to study really hard so that he can have a big house like mine and take care of his mother. Astrid, almost 9, has gone recently from aspiring to being a teacher to wanting to be a doctor. It is such a shame that the schools here are not up to their aspirations. Astrid was once again the star student in her class which ended mid-October. School vacation happens here during the coffee picking season so the kids can work. The new school year starts in January. In order to "graduate" from "basico" which is 9th grade the kids need to pass a typing test (on a real typewriter not a computer keyboard as they might cheat and, of course, no one never cheats in this country, least of all its presidents) but the schools don't offer typing classes. A real Guatemalan "catch 22" so Estela is on the lookout for typing classes for Jackie starting in January. Guatemala has some real issues when it comes to education. I guess that is why they are ranked the lowest in this part of the world.

The other day Estela told me that she had gotten a 95 on her final exam for the first year of her cooking school. She was very proud and I joked that soon she would be going to the university. I asked her what she would study and she quickly said that she would like to be a lawyer who helps women. Sadly she needs junior high school and high school first.

I have made arrangements for Estela to volunteer one day soon with WINGS, a local NGO that works with the really poor women in rural communites in the areas of reproductive health, family planning and cervical cancer. (http://www.wingsguate.org/) Estela is very excited at the prospect of spending a day helping women less fortunate than herself and also gaining some knowledge that she can use to help women in her community. Estela really is a star and never asks me for anything. She is thrilled with her new house and on Sunday I was included in the family Sunday lunch. She did ask me if she could borrow some forks from an extra set of cutlery stored in my garage which made me realize why her children struggle with knives and forks when they eat at my house.

Estela and I are also working on a plan to have her "administer" the funds to insure that the four poor children who live behind their new house get to school in January. The two youngest need to go to kindergarten and the other two need to continue. While the lousy government schools are free (and well they should be) families such as this one do not have the funds for the required school supplies. I will find the minimal number of dollars involved and Estela will see that the kids go to school and get help with their homework. Saint Estela.

At Home in "Casa Broccoli"

2008-08-30T16:32:00.000-07:00

At last the little house is occupied by a very grateful family. The town's mayor has yet to give in and hand out any water permits but Alex and Estela are hooked up to the water supply of the desperately poor neighbors who can definitely use the $20 that will be paid monthly until the mayor relents or gets thrown out of office. Rumor has it that some 400 families are now waiting for water in this town.

The children are thrilled about having their own beds and Denis his own room. Estela has reported that Denis woke her one morning at 5:00 ready to go to school. She said that had never happened before as none of them had ever gotten a decent night's sleep all in a heap in one bed, and with Alex coming and going as his work requires.

Alexander has some work cut out for him as the yard has to be cleared and grass planted on what is going to be a soccer field for himself and the kids. He is talking about finding his way to Solola at Lake Atitlan where it is possible to buy large cartouches (calla lillis). One corner of the yard will be devoted to fruit trees to accompany the nicely recovering (and very full of fruit) Jocote tree. The water was hooked up a couple of days ago and the children all promptly had their first ever shower at home. With hot water, no less, thanks to a solar water system installed on the roof (keeps their electricity bill at a manageable level).

The computer that Denis can't keep his hands off is a aged laptop donated by my nephew as he left to work for PDI Dreamworks in Bangelore, India. The laptop has been made like new by a "tecnico" here in this country, where our trash becomes their treasures, for the unlikely sum of $63. For now Denis can only dream about internet access as there is none in their town but he can do a lot of "investigaciones" using the Spanish language version of Microsoft Student.

Estela likes the green. Alexander wanted the green to be the same dark green as my house. Estela won so it is "Casa Broccoli." Estela's father cried when they moved the last of their meager supply of possesions from the room that had been home in the family commune some 15-20 minutes away.

Alex and Estela will both be foregoing an increase in pay which will be contributed to ConstruCasa (http://www.construcasa.org/) towards the building of another house for a needy family. Hopefully, their money will go towards a house (somewhat less modest) for the family in the back with the beautiful little girls. They are a very nice family with nothing. Four adults shares two rooms made of cornstalks with lamina roofs and two kitchens also of corn stalks with eight children. Estela was horrified to find out that they sleep on the ground and have only a latrine as a bathroom. The men and older boys pick corn and beans when in season; the mother and her daughter-in-law sit for hours weaving with their backstrap looms. They have been given two water filters and a donor provided the funds for two fuel efficient wood stoves for which they are very grateful. One of the younger children (a 4-year old grandson) was born with (how do I say this delicately?) redundancy involving his lower intestine. He is a happy bright little boy too young to understand. ConstruCasa director, Caroline, paid for the family to go to the capital to seek medical help. It was a journey that terrifed this family that had never before travelled that far. The ex-patriate community in Antigua has rallied their connections and the child is going to be made right on September 8th by a visiting surgical team at the Obras de Sociales de Hermano Pedro. Estela brought me (who else?) the bill for the surgery. Q500 (US $67) which I guess I can handle. Estela, who is still stunned by her good fortune, is taking this family under her wing and has accompanied them to Hermano Pedro and will go again for the child's surgery. She has even talked to the boy's mother (who looks about 15) about family planning.

So, what's next? After the neighbor boy's medical issues have been resolved Caroline is going to talk to the family about putting the younger two children in "kinder"as they call the government pre-school. That and family planning for the daughter-in-law will provide for further conversations about building them a halfway decent housing. Alex and Estela will be contributing and a Guatemalan friend in the SF Bay area has offered to hold a fundraiser in her restaurant. Give people a chance to help and they will I have found.

Estela and I (and many others) both want to see a Riecken Foundation (http://www.riecken.org/) community library in San Antonio Aguas Calientes not only for her kids but for the benefit of the entire community. Gladly, there is forward movement in that direction. The mayor who doesn't give water permits thinks it is a good idea. The town has a perfect building that just happens to be vacant (former police station) except for a "municipal" library with about 150 books, most of them moldy math books. The Riecken Foundation requires that a town that wants a library form a board ("junta") of community members to oversee the library. I took several teachers from my Spanish school over to see the model library at the offices of The Riecken Foundation and would suspect that by sometime this week the village of San Antonio Aguas Calientes will have their junta and the mayor will start to feel some pressure to move forward with The Riecken Foundation. Poco a poco.

The Gringa and the Mayor

2008-07-01T19:36:00.000-07:00

So, the wonderful little house is for the most part finished. There is sewer, electricity, plaster, a toilet and tile (and "a shower" Alexander reported excitedly) but no water (and what good is a shower without water?) thanks to the newly elected mayor of the town. Guatemalan politicians may be no worse than our own but they are a bit more obvious. "Why is there a gringa on the escrituras (deed for the land)?" asked the mayor of Estela some months ago. The obvious conclusion after multiple inquiries by multiple interested parties is that this gentleman is waiting for some monetary persuasion from "the gringa." Little does he know that "the gringa" is far away trying to earn the money to get these things done.

However, what that means is that it will be another six weeks before I can personally deal with the water situation. Hopefully, in the meantime the people who are working on it will succeed in intervening with "el alcalde." Perhaps it is all a ploy by Alexander and Estela to put off their move until I am there in the middle of August. If so, watch this space for photos and commentary of what will likely be a life-changing event. In the meantime the donated furnishings for their house reside in my garage which fortunately is not needed for a car.

Last week guests in my house had Alexander drive them to Lake Atitlan. As it is now less expensive (gas is even more expensive there than here) to pay a driver's expenses than to pay two round trips Alexander was invited to spend two nights at a hotel at Lake Atitlan and to bring Estela along with him. Estela had only ever dreamed of seeing Lake Atitlan which is a 2.5 hour drive from her home. She was curious. We had looked at it on Google Earth along with Chicago, which I suspect was the only city name she knew on the planet outside of Guatemala. I received an email indicating that the two of them had taken the local boat (big, slow, cheap) across the lake in the morning to Panajachel for the day and Alex had reported "aye ... mas o menos" when asked about the boat trip. He phoned me Monday (he always calls when the cell phone companies are offering triple or better minutes) and told me that they had missed the last local boat leaving "Pana" in the evening. Together they did not have the Q300 ($40) for a tourist launch. Ever enterprising, Alexander found a friend who is a tourist guide in Pana and that fellow had a friend who drove a tourist launch who got them a ride back across the lake for Q50 with a bunch of gringos headed for one of the two hotels. Now I know why there are always a few extras in the boats and God bless them for taking care of their own. It was dark, there were waves which the two 90 HP outboard motors attack with a vengeance and it was also pouring rain. I suggested to Alex that Estela may never want to go on vacation with him again. Alexander was in his middle twenties before he ever saw Lake Atitlan (he is only 31 now) and thanks to various gringos he has made several trips there now. Delightful that he could play the tour guide for Estela on his second ever boat ride and I am glad that they both survived the "vacation."

Thank you ... my house.

2008-05-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

The house in San Antonio Aguas Calientes, Guatemala is coming together though needs a couple more weeks for completion. On May 18, 2008 approximately 50 people including the construction crew and their familes, family members of Estela's, the indigenous neighbors and several donors from the United States participated in a (premature, as it turned out) housewarming party. One of the donors brought sidewalk chalk and encouraged the children to write and draw on the unfinished walls. There was a trash collection contest and, with the inducement of prizes, the children filled 12 large trash bags in about 15 minutes. Some of the rooms had been plastered and had concrete floors (tile is coming). In one of the almost completed rooms Alexander was stunned to find a local painting of his favorite flower, cartouches or calla lillies. The plaster, the paint (also coming), the concrete roof, the windows, the shower, the six rooms are all very, very new to this family. When Alexander was told that a particular visitor from the US had donated money for the house he turned to her and said very carefully in English "thank you ... my house."

Estela still can't believe her good fortune and is regularly reduced to tears during her meal time prayers. Her father pictured below couldn't stop saying "gracias" at the fiesta. Astrid does gymnastics in the yet unplanted garden and the children have already made friends with the indigenous neighbors. Those neighbors live in a house of cane with a dirt floor. They sleep on the ground, have municipal water (not drinkable) but neither electricity nor sewer service. They do send their children to school. They boil their drinking water and do all their cooking over a camp fire on the ground in a smoke-filled room. Mom spends her days weaving with a backstrap loom hoping to sell a piece of textile goods; Dad picks corn and beans when they are in season and has yet to travel to Antigua, some 15 minutes away. We brought them two water filters and it was quite remarkable to watch Estela who has only had her own water filter for about six months teach the neighbors how to use their filters and explain how easy it was going to be have clean drinking water. Estela and Alexander (who had a vasectomy in March) talked with the neighbors about the need to limit their family which currently numbers seven children. It turns out that mom is beyond that age. A US donor has just provided the funds to buy two fuel-efficient, safe stoves with outside ventilation for the neighbors. They will be installed early in June.

Bunk beds have been purchased for Jackie, Astrid and Denis each with their names on them ("Amigos" on the spare bed) in colorful letters. An artist friend has made study desks for the childrens' rooms. Estela will have a real stove for the first time.

Alexander plans to plant grass in the garden so he and Denis can play soccer together. Once the house is completed Estela and Alexander will be asked to contribute monthly a nomimal amount to Constru Casa for four years to facilitate the building of yet another home for people like themselves (perhaps even their own neighbors).

The Jocote tree has been seriously pruned to make way for the house but it is prospering and bearing fruit and still provides entertainment for young children who have never before had a safe place to play.

"All that is required to get poor people out of poverty is for us to create an enabling environment for them. If I could make so many people happy with a tiny amount of money, why not do more of it?" Mohammad Yunus, author of Creating a World without Poverty, founder of The Grameen Bank and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize

Casa Increible!

2008-03-15T06:54:00.000-07:00

As you can see from the photo the Jocote tree is starting to bloom as is the little house in San Antonio Aquas Calientes, Sacatapequez, Guatemala. A multitude of volunteers have shown up wanting to be a part of the experience of creating a home for a family who has never had one. Gringo, gringa, child, adult, even a young neighbor who could haul more cinder blocks on his back than any one us. Those not up to hauling 1200 cinderblocks 30 yards from the street turned up at midday with lunch for the whole crew. The children wandered up the street to a “tienda” and bought five pounds of Puppy Chow for the obviously starving puppy belonging to the only neighbors who live in a “casa tipica” of bamboo walls and dirt floors. They thanked us profusely and the little puppy quickly figured that his or hers ship had come in and ate himself or herself into a near coma.

When I arrived in Guatemala in early March Alexander picked me up at the airport and en route to Antigua we talked about the imminent start of the first real home he has ever known. He told me that he didn’t have the words to describe how he felt about it. I suggested that we might call the house “Casa de Milagros” (house of miracles) and he laughed a bit and said “Casa Increible.” Ground breaking was on schedule Monday, March 10th. Three hombres with three shovels. The first load of cinder blocks arrived. Alexander, myself, his 12-year old daughter, Jackie, and one hombre unloaded and stacked 400 cinder blocks. We had a friendly greeting from the “casa tipica” neighbors. The women and female children (of which there are many) were dressed in “traje,” the hand-woven, indigenous dress. Grandma works much of the time at her backstrap loom weaving away in the hope of selling a few pieces for a few quetzals at the town artisans’ market. We needed to gain permission to remove some trees on the property lines that had already been topped off by the neighbor for firewood. In a short time all the neighbors showed up, introduced themselves and readily agreed to all of the requests. I was amazed at how easy it was. Alexander who has lived for years in a somewhat hostile environment of in-laws and petty criminals was equally amazed and he quickly became the man of the (almost) house negotiating with the neighbors on various issues.

This is also the season of Semana Santa (Holy Week). Work on the house will stop for most of the week as will most other work. During Lent there are “velaciones” on Friday evenings in the local churches and processions on Sundays, each grander than the last. Various churches sponsor the processions which frequently last in excess of twelve hours. The men wear purple, the women black. Each church has a “float” (made of mahogany and weighing several thousand pounds) for Jesus and a smaller one for Mary. In most cases the Jesus and Mary figures are several hundred years old with stories of their own. People who live along the route of the processions spend the previous night making carpets of colored sawdust, flowers and fruit. Alexander tells of being hungry as a child and running along behind the processions picking up the fruit. The "alfombra" (carpet) pictured is one created by Alexander and two friends in front of Pollo Campero on the Alameda for the Palm Sunday La Merced procession. It is a wonderful time to be in Antigua to appreciate the passion of the people and enjoy the endless festivities. Even the most jaded non-believer can't help but get caught up in it.

The Jocote Tree

2008-01-31T06:21:00.000-08:00

Jocotes are a treasured fruit in the highlands of Guatemala, small, round, yellow or green and red. They are very sweet and about the size of a small plum. Too small to interest most gringos but to have a jocote tree is a good thing to a Guatemalan, especially to a child.

Purchasing a small lot in Guatemala fell into place as things do when they are meant to happen. The lot, that in the eyes of Alexander and Estela fell from heaven, quickly became a reality after engaging a Guatemalan attorney to handle the transaction. A lovely Dutch woman turned up; she is an engineer and runs a non-profit that builds decent houses for the poor. http://www.construcasa.org/ Caroline agreed to share her resources in the building of the house. We decided to build around the jocote tree.

I visited the current home of Alex and Estela where the five of them share a room that is approximately 12’ by 16’. The children proudly called out their numbers in English as I paced off the room which contains two double beds, the refrigerator I had bought last year for Estela’s birthday, the television, a small table for the children to do their homework and a bookshelf containing pots, pans, the convection oven that was a Christmas present a year ago, kitty litter (also a gift) and more. The television sat on a table under which the children’s books (almost unknown in the average Guatemalan home) were neatly lined up. There was only one light in the ceiling and only one window that opened into a small room up a few steps that held the “pila” (Guatemalan sink used for bathing, laundry, washing dishes), a hot plate for cooking, an Ecofilter for filtering their drinking water and two large, falling apart wall units that held the clothing, dishes and other assorted paraphernalia for five people, one dog and one kitten. It was clean and neat but it was full. There was no bedding other than a thin cover on the beds and no pillows. It was all bare concrete, dark and the few windows had bars over them but no glass. The bathroom that Estela had borrowed Q3000 (US $400) to build contained only a toilet and was outside somewhere. Alex showed me the one photo he had of his deceased mother working in a stall in the Antigua market. He had a few photos of himself as a “solito” teen but no baby pictures. He had five or six photos of Estela and the children and one baby photo of Denis. The cinderblock walls were “decorated” with a collection of quite obviously free calendars and there were a few electrical cords strung around to connect appliances. Alex proudly showed me the bicycle that he had bought for his son’s last birthday. It had cost him a month’s earnings

I told the family that their mother and I were meeting with the Dutch lady about the design of the house. I asked “who wants hot water for the shower (they have never had a shower before)?” Eight-year old Astrid, who has enjoyed the occasional hot shower at my house) shot up her hand followed by the hands of the two older children. Alex and Estela, neither of whom have ever had a hot shower in their lives would only say “whatever you think.” I asked nine-year old Denis, who has never slept alone in his life, if he wanted to have his own room and got a big grin and a big “si” in response. In my mind I added three desks, three chairs and three reading lights to the list of minimal necessities. It boggled my mind that these three children could be excelling in school with neither a place to do their homework nor any light to do it by. They were doing their homework anyway because they wanted to. As the front door of their house opens directly onto the street the only place the children can play is in the street.

It is easy to think that the poor don’t yearn for the things that they have never had nor experienced or that somehow we all adapt to our circumstances. I spent several hours talking with Alexander. For the first time I was able to understand the pain of poverty. Not just poverty of things but poverty of dignity, poverty of opportunity, poverty of spirit and poverty of hope. He showed me a photo of himself receiving his sixth grade (and only) diploma. He was wearing a white shirt and tie but there was no one there to witness his achievement. He had liked school, especially math and history and, he said with a grin, “We got to play basketball.” Alex spoke sadly about the fact that his only possessions consisted of an old television that a gringo was tossing out and the DVD player that I had bought him three years before. We talked about the prospects of positive changes in his relationship with Estela in the new house where there would be some private space for everyone. We talked about Alex feeling like he had a home for the first time in his 31 years. I wondered if he would be able to truly come in from the street.

I had also taken time to talk with Estela. Alex and Estela have been together for 13 years and seem to really like each other but poverty has made their relationship fairly rocky. I had them each tell me the good things and bad things about each other. Estela told me how it had felt when her kids were hungry and she had nothing to feed them and no money. She spoke glowingly of how Alexander had borrowed money to buy medicine when the children were sick. Alex talked about what a wonderful mother Estela was but that he worries about her strong character (which may be necessary to keep him in line).

With some friends I went to Lake Atitlan for a few days. Alex drove. We paid him for the ride and for his time and had him stay with us. It made him nervous that he couldn’t work but I had bought him a gardening book and he spent an entire afternoon reading not only the gardening book but also a book about speaking English. With some others we took a boat to a small Mayan village and visited a community library, a project of the Riecken Foundation (http://www.riecken.org/en.org/) where twenty or so of us sat around a table. Gringo, Guatemalteco, indigenous, educated, not. Alex sat next to me and when it was his turn to introduce himself he very self-assuredly talked about how wonderful the library was and how excited he was to meet so many people who were trying to help the people of Guatemala. I was rendered speechless by his remarks.

Thanks to ConstruCasa we have a design that will not only save the Jocote tree, its sweet fruit and potential for a tree house, but it will also have a view of the ever erupting Fuego volcano. The construction costs will be greatly minimized by the discounted building supplies available to ConstruCasa. In a few short weeks I am confident that I can find $17,000 of tax deductible donations for ConstruCasa so that the house with a bedroom for everyone can be started in March and completed in May. Volunteers are welcome the first half of May to help with the finish work, including the tree house, and to join in for the housewarming party and witness the transformation of one family who has never even dared to dream about having a refrigerator much less a decent home.

Antigua Taxi #36

2007-12-25T14:09:00.001-08:00

Jaqueline, Astrid, Denis and "Papa." Papa Alex was abandoned by his mother as a toddler. When his grandmother died he was allowed to sleep in his school. A friend who was in "basico" (middle school) paid for his books and backpack. He worked after school for food and his friend often slept in the school with him so he wouldn't be alone. After the 6th grade Alex was on his own. He remains friends with the fellow who bought his books; he is now a teacher.

In November of this year Alexander drove us to Lake Atitlan. As the children were out of school I encouraged him to bring his son along. Neither father nor son had ever been on a boat before and Denis, like his mother and sisters, had only ever heard of Lake Atitlan. Though it was clearly a challenge for Alexander to take a day off from working both enjoyed the journey around the lake on "la lancha" and even spent some time at the Posada de Santiago trying together to get a kite aloft. Both are very happy that "Papa" didn't leave for the United States.

December 2007

2007-12-25T07:46:00.000-08:00

2007 was the year that Selena and George decided that they wanted to live with their "Auntie Joan." Their mother, pregnant with her fourth child by her third hombre and once again out of work, would have none of it. She declared Auntie Joan "the enemy" and took her kids kicking and screaming back into the ghetto. No more private school, no more homework assistance, no more piano lessons. Selena's braces were removed prematurely as her mother couldn't be trusted to take her for follow-up care. No more school sporting events, no more birthday parties, no more puppy (Taco Bella lives with Auntie Joan now), no more trips, no more horseback riding for Selena, no more piano recitals for George who had a passion for Beethoven and could, at age 8, play "Ode to Joy" in several different keys.

When last heard from the family of many last names had lost their home purchased with a sub-prime loan by "Carlos" (step-father #1 (George) and #2 (Selena)) who is not only illegal but had no social security # (of his own) or money. How does that happen? Is it any wonder that the mortgage market is in a state of chaos? They are apparently once again living in the tiny, shabby house in East (not to be confused with West) Menlo Park and back in a ghetto school in East Palo Alto, the one-time "murder capital of the United States." Selena is no doubt once again struggling in school as her mother has also denied her support for her ADHD which consisted of educational therapy and medication.

Hopefully, they got some Toys for Tots from Santa Claus. Last year George rode the fire engine with the Woodside Fire Department and distributed toys that he had selected himself and purchased with Rotary Club funds. Selena spent the holidays last year in Guatemala where she experienced the best kind of mothering from my housekeeper, Estela. Estela just accepted Selena as another one of her children and though desperately poor Estela bought a modest Christmas gift for all four of the children. It is true that it is the thought that counts. Selena had never received a gift of any kind from her own mother. Estela took Selena to their one-room cinder block and lamina house and had her join the neighborhood Christmas posada with her own children. Estela's husband, Alexander, was equally kind to the Hispanic child with braces and a gringa haircut who was at ease in either language. For the first time ever Selena briefly experienced what it might have been like to have had a father. It was very hard for Selena to say "adios" to this Guatemalan family who frequently had only rice, beans and tortillas to eat yet offered her such a wealth of caring, acceptance and affection. A year later Estela and Alex ask each time I see them if I have heard from Selena. There is no doubt in my mind that one day Selena's mother will pay "big-time" for what she has done to her children. Hopefully, the children are resilient enough to find their way out without too many scars.

Mid-year I arrived in Antigua to find that, for a variety of reasons, Alexander had given up all hope of ever getting ahead in Guatemala. He had made up his mind that he was going to leave for the US. His taxi had been stolen and he was renting a car which was costing him more than he could make. Estela and the children were distraught convinced that he was going to die in his attempt to cross the border. Things do seem to happen for a reason and I quickly realized that it would be cheaper for me to support Alexander in Guatemala than in the Bay area. A contract was hammered out and I bought a 1993 Toyota Corolla (with a 1998 engine) ... Antigua Taxi #36. Having been on the other side of illegal immigration in dealing with Selena's mother it became very obvious to me that the "solution" is intervention at the source. Make it possible for them to stay in their home countries and keep the families intact. Sometime later Alexander asked me if he could call me "Tia Joan" as he has no family (none) and I was the only person who had ever helped him.

So, Tia Joan rides herd on Alexander and make sure that some of his profits go to his family and even a bit more each month goes into a savings account which is in Estela's name. Their three children are about to start their second year in a private school in Antigua courtesy of Tia Joan. The government schools in Guatemala are hopeless, the private schools a bit better. The children are very bright and all three mention "matematica" as their favorite subject. In January (the Guatemalan school "summer" break is during the coffee picking season October - January so the kids can work) the oldest, Jacqueline, who is 12 will be the first person in her family to attend the 7th grade. I let them use the computer in my house and Denis, 9, already knows how to download musica. Astrid, 8, was the first grade valedictorian and is determined to grow up and be a gringa. Hopefully, by the time she grows up she will realize that she doesn't have to be a gringa to be successful.

Shortly after the New Year I hope to finalize the purchase of a small piece of land in the pueblo of San Antonio Aguas Calientes which is about ten minutes by car from Antigua. It is only 15 meters by 18 meters but, Estela tells me, it is four times the size of their current dwelling where they share a latrine and a kitchen with other families. It has a valley and volcano view that would cost millions in the Bay area. One of my (many) Spanish teachers who lives in that village found the lot. Assuming that the current owner is not selling the lot over and over (this is, after all, Guatemala) as will be determined by an attorney we will start planning a modest home with a kitchen, a flushing toilet and even a shower (their first ever) and a small garden. Estela thanks "el Senor" daily in her prayers for things she never, ever expected to have and thinks that I have been sent by God. So in the year of 2007 I have gone from being "the enemy" to being a gift from God. A staggering journey. Stay tuned!