August 17, 2009

Hola everybody!
We just returned from our last week of homestays in Santiago, Atitlan. It has all rushed by us so fast we can hardly believe were back at CASAS! We had an amazing time over the last week, staying in the community of Panabaj. This area was strongly affected by Hurricane Stan in 2005, over 250 people were killed and hundreds misplaced from their homes and are currently living in semi-permanent housing. The government had started to provide permanent housing for the refugees and even built 100 new homes. They got warning that the area was in high risk to another mud slide and quickly stopped the project, leaving majority of the homes unfinished. Over 100 families still live in the area and are restricted from using the housing. The government is now encouraging alternate housing on the other side of town. Many of the families don’t want to leave their land and source of work so they are stuck in semi-permanent housing in unsuitable living conditions. MCC supports a local organization called Anadesa. Anadesa has done a lot of work with rebuilding after the disaster of Hurricane Stan, created a local children’s program and a women’s beading cooperative. Over the last week we stayed in the homes of families involved in the organization and volunteered doing small projects around the community. First project we completed was gathering soil for the Anadesa tree nursery. We then helped with the children’s program by organizing crafts using the art supplies that everyone donated. It turned out great! All the kids enjoyed it so much so thank you for all your wonderful contributions! Another project we helped with was carrying 309 saplings to the top of a mountain that we planted to prevent future mud slides.

Last night we said our goodbyes to the community in a closing camp fire. A woman came and told us about the history of the Mayan people in the area, we shared several songs with the group and roasted marshmallows!

This morning we packed up and went for breakfast at a beautiful little spot across the lake and had a chance to reflect on our time in Panabaj. We talked specifically about the affect of our visit on the communities and on ourselves. We have learned so much from the people of Guatemala, especially about the importance of interdependence. Families and communities in Guatemala need to rely on one another to survive. In North American society we are taught that interdependence is weakness. We also are not obligated to rely on one another because we already have the means to survive. Instead we rely on materials for support and comfort. Guatemalan people could be more community reliant because of their difficult past and the major conflicts the country has and is still going through. Guatemalans need each other to help recover from their struggles. This is one thing we have gained from the people here, among many others.
We hope that our trip here has also made an impact on the people. Inspired them and showed them that someone cares about their struggle. We talked about how by visiting we didn’t want to encourage the ´American dream´ that many Guatemalans aspire to. Rather we want to encourage Guatemalans to uphold their strengths to help them out of poverty. MCC has followed this philosophy by supporting local organization such as Anadesa.

So here we are with only two more days left in Guatemala and there are a lot of mixed feelings about leaving. We are excited to be reunited with our family and friends but also sad to leave the relationships we have created here. Hope you’re all doing well and can’t wait to see u all Monday night!
Lots of love,
Marina Classen