Pent up

Yesterday as I cleaned the house, I listened to Terry Gross talking with Temple Grandin on NPR’s Fresh Air. I had heard the interview before, but thought it was worthwhile to listen to again. Temple Grandin is autistic and doesn’t think the way most people do.  She thinks in images. This has enabled her to understand animal behavior and instinct. What frightens cattle, frightens Temple. What comforts animals, also comforts Temple (consistent pressure). She has a fascinating mind and penetrating insight into the world of animals.

So when I saw this caged leopard on a busy street in Guanajuato advertising the circus, I thought of the interview. According to Grandin, animals don’t like sudden movement and sound.  It puts them in anxiety mode and kicks off the survival switch. They become uneasy and stressed when things are out of the ordinary, like a hanging chain or, much worse, little boys clanging on bars making ch ch sounds. My heart sunk as I observed this leopard and I wondered if she was drugged. She seemed lethargic, oblivious to the swell of people who came, stood, and went as she passed the day in a cage on a busy street in Guanajuato.

Serena

You can’t make it out against the cloud, but there’s a cross on that hill, on top of the center bump. They call it Serena. I see it everyday, and when I do, I think of little Serena Sproles.

Ana

Another great Thursday at Buen Pastor.  In between massages, I attended a meeting with Madre Lourdes and Tere where Becca introduced to us a Digital Culture project she would like to implement at Buen Pastor.  It’s a 6 month project and it  sounds wonderfully ambitious, creatively empowering, and certainly worthwhile.  I’m very much looking forward to this initiative and will post more about it once the project has begun, the middle of the month. Needless to say, the latest addition of four computers thanks to HEW and DoJiggy couldn’t have come at a better time.

Later in the day, I got the chance to chat with Ana, a kind and diligent University of Texas @Austin student who is completing an internship in Guanajuato for her Masters in Social Work. Ana has been working hard on a grant that aims to provide solutions and education surrounding domestic violence. This project aligns with her concentration in Community and Administrative Leadership (CAL). On a more micro level, she volunteers at Buen Pastor, working with three of the little girls that need a lot of one on one. She’ll be with us until mid-June and it’s going to be hard to let her go.

Meco Lady

Coming down from the cross, we found her. Fernando was the first to notice she was pregnant and that her front legs were tied to one another. Alone, pregnant and hostage to one desolate hillside. I wanted to stay with her for awhile, but this only frightened her and she awkwardly jumped away from me.  It was painful to watch such a graceful animal move that way.

El Meco

Actually, El Meco is spelled with one “c”, not as in yesterday’s post, Mecco.  It means “Savage Indian” or “gangster”, depending on what online dictionary you’re searching. I wish I had a place name reference book for the crosses here.  And the streets. And the neighborhoods. Knowing what’s in a name brings even more appreciation of place for me.

While on the subject of names, I live on Cerro de Ejido. Ejido refers to communal ownership of land, common during Aztec rulership of Mexico, and all but wiped out when the Spaniards came over and forced their laws, religion, and way of life on the indigenous people living here. The ejido system was reinitiated after the Mexican Revolution with repartition of land beginning in 1934.

El Mecco

F and I hiked up to El Mecco today, the cross near our home. I don’t know who forgot to bring the water, but we got thirsty. Getting up was no problem. Coming down, though, another story. We got lost and Fernando scouted for a trail while I slept on a rock. It was sunny, windy, and blue. Goats ran the hill in the distance and I could make out five tiny horses, their heads all turned in the same direction. If it wasn’t for the thirst, I wouldn’t have minded being stranded all day long.

Computers

There are 27 girls at Buen Pastor. Creating time for all their homework at the one functioning computer they had was impossible.  Thanks to a very generous librarian who donated $1000 during the Holidays, Fernando was able to purchase two new computers in Querétaro and we bought used, excellent quality monitors from a Cyber Cafe here in Guanajuato. Fernando installed the computers earlier this week. Everyone is very happy with their speed and the ability to get a chance to do their homework!

Jitomate

Tomatoes, mandarins, and more on Aldama.

Classes begin

Today marks the first day of classes at the University of Guanajuato.  After the Christmas break, the town is once again brimming with UG students, and so are the busses!  F and I went to Leon yesterday to look for a couch and lighting. On the way back, the bus stations were packed.   The bus that took us from Central (the bus station in Guanajuato) to GTO centro was so full, that three people were standing on the exit steps.  Apparently, there was not enough room for safety.

Red doors

Growing

There were a few wonderful surprises this week.  Daneli got a pair of glasses and a sponsor, Isabel started to learn to read and write,  and new books arrived in the mail!  The older girls are delighted with their Harry Potters and have already created a schedule of who gets to read and when.  They’ll be using a photo of the family that sent the books as a book marker.  All these wonderful things are happening, and I feel more just around the corner. Thanks to everyone who helps these girls grow with gratitude and books!

Isang

In yesterday’s blog post, I mentioned that Buen Pastor attracts some pretty special people. I met one of those people yesterday, Isang Smith.  After graduating from Columbia and before participating in the American Lung Association’s Big Ride, 22 year old Isang is spending time in Guanajuato. When she’s not in school studying Spanish or out on the trail with her biking buddies, Isang will be doing something incredibly memorable and life changing: she will be teaching Isabel how to read and write.

Isabel has never had the opportunity to attend school. Primeria (elementary) won’t accept her because at 14, she’s too old. So with the help of Fernando in the mornings and Isang in the afternoons, Isabel will be well on her way to gaining one of the most important skills she can have, literacy. Not only will being able to read and write increase her self-esteem, but it will give her more job opportunities in the future and also decrease her chances of unwanted pregnancy during her teen years.

Isabel met her maestra yesterday. They took to one another immediately.  Their auspicious partnership holds so much promise.