Beginning of Despedidas and Energy Baths

As I get closer to leaving, I have become worse and worse about updating this…apologies. Possibly because our homework load has suddenly increased, possibly because I am tired of the internet lately, or possibly because the prospect of leaving this place, and much less writing about leaving it, is the last thing I want to think about right now. Seeing as I have become increadibly lax and un-perfectionist about my school work lately in lieu of more important things, and that I can actually write these when I am off the internet anyways, it is probably the latter reason. But, reality check fun, I have only two weeks left here. (let tiny panic attack pass, start breathing again).
Among other things lately, one of the biggest event has been saying goodbye to the kids at Centro Hogar. The kids here get out of school in November, have summer break until January, then start the school year again in the middle of January. So last Wednesday was our last day with the kids at Centro Hogar, which was a fairly devastating day, for lack of any better words. On Wednesday, our last day, I got to class and they all (actually every kid came to school for once! All 28 of them in 1 room) got into an amazingly organized circle…then Lucy, the teacher, asked who wanted to say something nice about Sabina, which prompted every 3 year old standing up and mustering up enough eloquence to say…. “es que, es que, es que….te quiero mucho,” and running over to give me a hug. Needless to say, by about the third kid I was a mess and didn’t really even attempt to hold it together, which prompted questions from almost all the kids about why I had drops of water on my face. It’s a confusing world, isn’t it? Anyways, then we went about our regular day and, just as always, kids hit each other at recess and they didn’t listen to me when I told them to come inside and they didn’t eat all their lunch, and it was a perfect day.
We decided to come back on Friday, so Elizabeth and I (Dawn couldn’t go because of her back, pobrecita) went for their graduation party for about an hour to say a real goodbye and watch the festivities, which mostly consisted of hitting a piñata, putting on silly hats, and eating too much sugar. Again, all 28 kids were there in all their energetic glory. You know how in the US when we had a piñata for a class party or a birthday party, the parents or whoever would make sure every kid stood at least 20 feet away so they didn’t get hit? Apparently we don’t need to, because I learned during this piñata fest that, no matter how crazy or how hard kids swing the stick or how close the other kids are, there is some magical law of nature that says that it is IMPOSSIBLE to be hit with the stick during piñata. Finally we said our real goodbyes that we couldn’t put off anymore, which was probably more sad for us because I still had kids tell me “hasta lunes!” as I was leaving. If it weren’t for some reason illegal, I would smuggle them all home with me…maybe just a choice few in my carry-on.
Anyways, now that the kids are gone we are hanging out with the teachers in the morning. Yesterday we had a massage and meditation workshop put on by Oti and the Mariona people, another Praxis site where there is a meditation and massage center run by a wonderful group of Salvadoran women. At first, the teachers were definitely a little uneasy about sharing how the beautiful centerpiece with flowers made them feel, but little by little all the teachers were doing tai-chi, meditation, massage, and feeling sharing like none other. I think what strikes me most about Mariona and the workshop today was the fact that it absolutely discredits the complete load of shit (excuse me) that is the “hierarchy of needs.” Who says that just because someone isn’t fed that they can’t do yoga? Or because someone isn’t safe they can’t meditate? Or because someone is unemployed they can’t receive a massage, or join a women’s group, or create art? It seems like such a basic concept that if you don’t have time, money, safety, food, etc, you won’t have the time or resources for so many other things. But after seeing beautiful projects like Mariona, set in a community with one of the biggest jails in El Salvador and a pretty big gang problem, it becomes so evident that this is absolutely a creation of our own culture. We consider money, food, safety to come before everything else. If we are hungry or poor, how could we ever make art or meditate or organize? For Oti and everyone else who I have met doing equally as amazing things, how can they NOT make art, meditate, organize, read, massage, give energy bathts? Anyways, just my random thought of the day..or week…or until I have more time or energy to update again as I grapple with the fact that I only have 2 weeks left in this beautiful country, in this beautiful program, with these beautiful people. Asi es.

::sabine