Hooooollaaaaa todos!
We are passing days full of peace and deep pondering and such excitement for the connections and opportunitites that we are building down here. Know that we are both safe and in a good place. I thought my mama would appreciate the irony that we are staying in an area that is almost entirely Lutheran Evangelical and we often awake to blasting Spanish Christian music lol.
These fotos are of our time in the region of Matagalpa. If it looks really jungly and lush the odds are that we are exploring the mountains around where we are living (La Reina y Monte Grande) and if you see city life we are in Matagalpa, the nearest big city. You can see that Nathan and I have found many things including a basketball slash futbol arena, some wild and delicious fruits, farmers markets, waterfalls and swimming holes, endless resources pertaining to Food Soverignty, and so many friends. I find myself so surprised and impressed by the youth here. Ellos estan listos para a aprender y ayudar. We began working with one of the local primary schools this week -- Monte Grande, planting over 25 fruit trees (banana and orange). It is insane, the kids here run around with Machetes! And they are very skilled with them too lol.
This last week on Thursday we celebrated Elizabeths birthday. Before Nathan and I began preparing to cook up a feast, we had all discussed when our birthdays were with the host family. Elizabeth explained that usually the birthdays are just normal days that pass by with nothing really special taking place, unless you are a kid. Well -- we disagree, and both began to make plans to make Elizabeth feel special and realize how great she is. This woman works so hard and we both really like her. I swear we proceded to search the whole town trying to hunt down an oven. Eventually we had to bend and sacrifice the element of surprise for progress. We ended up borrowing a small electric oven from one of Elizabeths´ sisters. That day we baked two loaves of my special banana bread, a peanut butter chocolate torte, and three pizzas. It was a beautiful thing. Elizabeth thanked us so sincerely at dinner that night and exclaimed that we had truly made her day special. This sharing of recipes and happiness and food, this act of coming together for special moments in time is what life is all about. And it always seems to involve food.
This coming week we will participate in a forum on the amendment to Nicaraguas Food Soverignty Law which includes a partnership with the EU and pushes for higher quality seeds for the basic grains that are the foundation of Nicaraguense meals. This discludes GMO seeds and puts a new emphasis on traditional varieties and small agroecological farmers. We will also finalize our plans for the coming weeks workshops and garden building, which we will begin on the 24th of this month. The 23rd is a very exciting day too! We will be participating in a Interchange experience with the local farmers from all the cooperatives in the area. We will be sure and capture some profound knowledge and especially ¨best practices¨ tips in small agroecological farming in the face of extreme poverty. Pictures and stories to come!
Thank you to all of the friends and family that helped us along our way... working to get down here to be able to participate in this amazing experience. We are both overcome by such LOVE and appreciation for having all of the best friends and family around. Ustedes Salutamos!!!
¨Do not dwell on the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.¨
-Buddha
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