Odds and Ends

The fair has been in full swing this last week. Friday night and Saturday night were dance and music nights in the central square. That meant stacks of huge speakers belting out music and noise till early hours of the morning. I was able to enjoy it at normal volume four blocks away inside my house. The Central Square was filled with a myriad of stalls selling trinkets, clothes, patent medicines, French fries, pizza, sausages, cotton candy and sweets. My major disappointment was the fact that the three cross dressing men were not around this year. One arrived but his wardrobe and presentation marks were way down. Last year they were spectacular and gave every Latina a huge ego hit. I had quite enjoyed watching them work in the crowd and watching the reactions of people.

Last night the stalls were being struck and, by tonight, the park should be emptied. The fireworks and festivities are over for another year. The highlight, for me, was the cardboard cross with fireworks that was put together to honour the day of the Holy Cross (Santa Cruz). After the evening mass, this contraption with pinwheels, a myriad of firecrackers and the outlined cross was hustled into the street beside the church. The crowd moved back a respectful distance (about 500 metres closer than allowed in Canada) and the fuses were lit. A few errant firecrackers made for some exciting crowd movement. No one hurt and, I am sure, everyone’s minds were duly enlightened with sacred thoughts.

Saturday, the music group was invited to sing at a M.S. fund raising event in San Pedro Sula. Such a long trip was exciting for all. I chatted with one member of the group and she tried to remember how many times she had been that far away in the last few years. It averaged out to one trip a year to the big city (60 km). The group was performing at one of the Malls. These Malls are glitzy and great tributes to the religion of consumerism. As they are air conditioned, they are also wonderful places to spend a few hours when outside temperatures are above 34’ C.

We arrived and hauled in the equipment through a service entrance and elevator. The stage was quite small and the number of microphones severely limited so I was able to watch the performance. As usual, the numbers that had been rehearsed were augmented with a number of unrehearsed ones so, thankfully, I was watching. The group did a great job and so I was happy to have been along.

Mother’s Day is a much bigger celebration here in Honduras. Schools have Mother’s Day programs and families travel to spend the day together. Of course, this doesn’t necessarily translate into Mom having a day out of the kitchen ... but, she does get a lot of attention. For the three mothers in my apartment, for two girls in the office and for three mothers in the music group, I outdid myself creatively and made a laminated place mat type card with a picture of a Madonna and an appropriate greeting (differing for those who are Catholic and for those who are ‘Evangelical’ – it wouldn’t do to have “Our Mother, Pray for Us” gracing the wall of and ‘Evangelical’ home). They were well received although I suspect that the accompanying package of chocolate “Kisses” may have been equally attractive.

Several projects are beginning to come together. We hope to have about 10 students graduating by the end of this month. That means that they will have finished a grade in less than six months. That is exciting. Getting everyone to help push things along will be a challenge as we are still three weeks away from the last minute.

The Arachis pintoi ground cover is finally taking off. We are trying different techniques to encourage it and to start new spots. It is a tough plant and, once it is well rooted, seems to expand rapidly. Considering the terrible condition of the soil here, it is exciting to see it begin to grow so well.

The Stevia concentrate is getting tested each day. It is hard to get the two people responsible excited about it but, gradually, they are getting the idea that it might be worthwhile. A visitor today was very impressed and took eight seedlings home with her. She also took a seed bag with a lemon grass cutting. How could I say no to someone who is going to do legal work for our students? Sigh.

This lawyer is going to help our students get a proper ID so that they can be registered and receive their certificates. We will have to track down whether they have any of the following: a baptismal certificate (great if your family is Catholic), a document from the midwife or doctor (great if you live in the main town), vaccination record (that may be possible – if they are filed correctly ... hmmm ... scratch that) and two witnesses (people from the community who themselves have proper documentation). Should be a breeze.

If you read one book in the next few months, make it “The Culture of Make Believe” by Derrick Jensen. Truly a remarkable book, well researched and, consequently, rather overwhelming.

I leave you with a quote from Eugen V. Debs, a Union organizer c. 1917, who was being sentenced to jail for suggesting that there was no need for young men to fight in a war which was simply for the benefit of wealthy industrialists.

“Years ago I recognized my kinship with all living beings, and I made up my mind that I was not one bit better than the meanest on earth. I said then, and I say now, that while there is a lower class, I am in it; while there is a criminal element, I am of it; while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.”

TTYL
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