El Invierno y Inseguridad

"Can we remain indifferent before the problems associated with such realities as climate change..? Can we disregard the growing phenomenon of "environmental refugees," people who are forced by degradation of their natural habitat to forsake it - and often their possessions as well - in order to face dangers and uncertainties of forced displacement?...All these are issues with a profound impact on the exercise of human rights, such as the right to life, food, health and development."

- Pope Benedict XVI -

All around the world changes in weather are occurring. The number of hurricanes, droughts, and tsunamis increases every year. It is no doubt that these are intense natural travesties in the world, but what we have seen in the rainy season of Mount Sinai is not something that makes international news, yet it shows so clearly how environmental changes hit the impoverished, vulnerable people of the world the hardest.

The month of March held a lot of things as we, como siempre, kept busy as a house. Our office at Hogar de Cristo took women to an International Women´s Day celebration on the malecón (boardwalk) downtown. Women spoke, an Hogar volunteer´s photography was on display, and tents of women´s and human rights organizations lined the plaza. I played the mandolin in the back of a pickup truck for a Palm Sunday procession that was being led by an actual burro. I turned 23. The Youth Group did a Live Stations of the Cross procession for Good Friday (which unfortunately I was too sick to go to). And I even decorated and hid Easter eggs for the University of Detroit High school boys who are currently here. They had to find their lunch.

 

 

But, even with all of that, the most prominent occurrence is the rain here in Mount Sinai. We were told from last year´s volunteers that during the winter, it rains quite a bit. I guess I underestimated just how much. On March 2^nd we got more rain than I ever could have imagined, and every street filled up at least to one’s shin. In our sector, there is only one cement street and the rest are uneven dirt roads. It makes for almost no drainage and the water that builds up is a combination of water, dirt, garbage, snakes, fish, and human waste.

That night, the rain began at 5PM at by 9PM it began to fill inside the foundation´s walls, was to our knees outside the gate, up to the waist at the corner of our block, and chest-deep behind our house. We were surrounded by true rivers as we watched neighbors link arms, walking against the current to find higher shelter. Pieces of cane housing floated in front of our gate and our neighbors scurried to try to prevent or slow the flooding into their houses. Behind our house is a canal/trench that floods worse than any part of Mount Sinai, making it impossible for those living on the canal to stay put through the night.

The rain didn’t stop until the next morning, when people began to deal with the aftermath. Mattresses were ruined, washers and refrigerators broken, cane house walls destroyed. With the dirt roads, mud becomes an intense issue even after the water drains. After the storm many tanqueros (water trucks) wouldn’t even go down certain streets due to their conditions so families can go days without access to water.

But the aftermath isn’t just a couple-day-thing. Mount Sinai’s land is extremely flat, which leads to a lack of run-off. Knee deep water can remain in some streets for more than a week, depending on the heat and whether it continues to rain. Some families live with water inside their houses until it evaporates. With so much still water and humid air, viruses and sickness are transmitted far more easily and the bugs (especially mosquitoes carrying dengue) are far more common. What’s more, working on your house can be an extremely dangerous task, and electrocutions are sadly common. Unfortunately, the son of a parish member was electrocuted and passed away the week of the storm. All of this because of a few hours of rain that Saturday night.

And then it happened again a week later.

This is the reality of the people in this sector. Sometimes there is warning, perhaps a prediction on the news, but more often than not the rain simply comes. When it begins, you never know if it will continue all night or stop after a few minutes. From January to April the people live in insecurity and apprehension, never knowing if their reinforcements or pile of dirt outside their house will be sufficient. Insecurity: it’s what comes with living in Mount Sinai.

Our neighbors, because of the hand they’ve been dealt and where they live on this earth, are discriminated against every day. Whether it is from the banks or government programming, the people are categorized as “Has no legal address” and living with few basic services leads to, in many ways, a denial of human rights. But weather also discriminates. It is not those in cement houses downtown that feel the hit of a three-hour storm. The intense heat does not hurt the families who can retreat to air conditioning and filtered water. Weather does not calm down based on who is ready or not. I for one have never been truly affected by weather, and I’m not sure I ever will be. The families who cannot afford to raise their cane houses or replace their dirt floor or afford extra water on the hot days—they are the ones who feel the impact of a change in climate and it is all because of where and how they live.

Yet I have seen what it means to get back on your feet because life goes on. A family lost most of their mattresses and half of their wardrobe, so they cleaned the house the next day and started salvaging what they could. A pharmacy was filled with water so she broke into her savings and raised the floor knowing she would have to work even harder the following months. Some visit a place like this and are amazed by the “constant happiness of the people.” Yes, you can see those smiles; I have laughed every day since arriving. But I know that the happiness is not 24/7, and I know that they hurt. I’ve seen them cry and I’ve seen distress. What is truly inspiring is a kind of strength and determination, something I know I do not have. A certain motivation that is learned: motivation that allows one to come back to their house and work on it after swimming away the night before. The strength of mothers who work to protect their children and the determination of families to make it to the end of the winter season. 

The two big floods were hard knowing not only we were completely safe but that we couldn’t do anything at the time. Being a part of a foundation based in a ministry of presence is, at times, so difficult when all you want is to do. To see material need and not be able to give takes patience and, in my opinion, trust. Trust that words can move and that listening can heal. In my time here I’ve visited, sat, laughed, sang, sometimes talked but mostly listened, and I’ve learned far more than anything I’ve given. Lately I’ve been taking a class on strength and it’s an amazing thing to sit through.

Please keep the neighbors of Mount Sinai in your thoughts and prayers this winter season.

The 3 Day War & Mama Rios

In my last blog I left off with holiday fun, a loved one visiting (not much has changed for this time around!) and a broken toe. I used those Winter Crutches for a few weeks, boots and all, and after some arm-chafing and uneven foot sunburn, I threw them to the curb the day before the most ruthless holiday in Ecuador: Carnaval. It´s harder to run for your life with crutches.

All around the world the entrance into the Lenten Season is celebrated differently: elegant masks at Mardi Gras in New Orleans, district-assigned costumes at Fasching in Germany, and even seven hours away from here you celebrate La  Fiesta de las Flores y las Frutas with peach-flavored wine in Ambato, Ecuador. Here in Guayaquil, Carnaval starts the Sunday before Ash Wednesday and is a 3-day holiday involving paint, a LOT of water, eggs, flour, other throwable ingredients, and crossing lines of personal space, boundaries, and friendship.

We had heard from neighbors, “Oh, it´s a great time of playing with friends, eating, dancing, and getting wet!” and we all knew we wanted to take advantage of such a fun-sounding holiday. So we attempted to prepare, arming ourselves with tiny water-guns and a couple bags of colored dust that turns into paint with water. We thought we were ready. Needless to say, we were not. We got rocked those 3 days, each day getting progressively more intense, more draining, and far dirtier. I hadn´t realized how truly out of shape I am until the night of the first day.

Lucky for us, I purchased a water-proof (now called Carnaval-proof) case for my camera before coming to Ecuador so we were able to capture some of the moments: some happy, some sad, some hysterical, and some that will just down right make you feel bad for Greg. I believe pictures are the best way to tell the tale.

Day 1

We set out to get our guard,

 Welly, and Greg still got it

Community.

Went to get 3 eggs at the store, 

that´s all. I got 3 eggs, they just 

weren´t in a bag.

A baby blue chick!

That night, all clean, we 

celebrated Monica´s birthday.

Day 2

The day started similarly to Day 1.

Our afterschool program kids!

“My name´s Eli and I don´t play 

Carnaval…” *bananas to the face*

My hijado (godson), Denys

End Day 2

At Christina´s house we crashed 

her pool party. Literally.

Day 3

Rosa, 91, thought I got paint 

on her face. I did no such thing.

Day 3 and Coli still 

had the best reactions

I´d have felt bad for the guy if he didn´t 

foam everybody in the face for 48 hours straight.

Even Suleika played!

Jessica´s fam. At this point the sun was 

going down and teeth were chattering.

We ended the holiday with

a pretty spectacular sunset.

That week was a wonderful one. No work, just play, and the only thing that brought it down was the fact that my mom came 3 days too late; I wasn´t able to smash eggs on her head or give her a well-deserved make over.

  

Mama Rios came to visit last Friday for 5 days. We weren´t sure, much like with Emily, whether or not she´d make it down, and I was ecstatic when she told me she found a ticket. It was great to see her, and I think I forget too often that my mom´s a pretty awesome person. We spent 3 days in Mount Sinai where I was able to introduce her to neighbors (neighbors who, every time, thought she was my sister and could not get over her youth) my volunteer community, Ecuadorian food, and she even worked WITH me at Hogar, helping me out with the design of my map. 

(Some pictures have a hamster in them. His name´s Humphrey. My goddaughter has a project, like Flat Stanley, where they send their paper friend to a friend or family, and my job was to have him experience Ecuador. Mission accomplished.)

The family, minus the father, Marino

We played the longest game
of UNO with Belgica´s kids.

Although my mom brought nothing but sunshine 

(0 for 5 on rainy days) she still had to learn how to 

maneuver through Winter-Time Monte Sinai

Bolivar was helping Josias, his son, 

practice walking on the roof when 

we visited so we got to join in

Susana, Josias, Terri, Bolivar, Me, and Leyla below

The other days we were able to take a “quick” trip to Puerto Lopez, a town about 4 hours up the coast. I put “quick” in quotation marks because my mom visited the weekend of Election Day. Sunday being the day to vote meant everyone in Mount Sinai had to travel to the place they last had a registered address or to where their family lives, and for some that meant 6 or 8 our trips. Our sector was going to be empty for most of the day. It also meant that all buses all weekend were full, but after much effort and a lot of help from our guard we got there safely, elections happened, and Rafael Correa was re-elected.

Saw ancient ruins at Agua Blanca, a nationally-protected indigenous community

Those, ladies and gentlemen, are grasshoppers…the size of my feet.

The circus was in town! So we went. It was terrible.

We visited Isla de la Plata,, an island nicknamed “The Poor Man`s Galapagos.” It is not the season to see many animals, but despite the odds not being in our favor, we lucked out and returned from the tour with blue-footed boobies, sharks, turtles, and dolphins checked off our list.

A baby booby!

It wouldn´t have been a trip in Ecuador
without something happening. Our bus
broke down on the way back to
Mount Sinai

I mentioned earlier that my mom´s a pretty awesome person. She often outdoes herself when it comes to surprises and projects. Well, while she was here she surprised me by celebrating my birthday the whole week. My birthday´s not until March 13. We got to celebrate with tuna empanadas (my mom´s idea...Delicious!), cake, and Greg´s family the last night she was here.

Props to the woman…she perfectly executed
 an Ecua “Que lo muerda” face smash.

Greg´s fam. Thanks for the cake and empanada hints!

And lastly, my mom—along with bringing awesome things like Flaming Hot Cheetos—helped us to finally complete a dream we´ve had for months. I mentioned a long time ago that Jaime (a volunteer from the other house) got The Settlers of Catan, a board game I fell in love with in college. Well, after much discussion, our community embarked on a project and again requested the help of my mother. First the Multi-Sweater Christmas Card and now…The Settlers of Sinai. You really blew us away, Mama Rios.

Completely in Spanish, this version comes equipped with cane houses that can be upgraded to cement houses, new resources (cane, cement blocks, chicken, water jugs, and rice), Mount Sinai businesses for victory points, and borders corresponding to the main roads outside of Sinai. And if you look closely, my mom decided to Photoshop my face on a peasant.

A practice round without borders. With the help of Wilson, an artist

 and Hansen´s disease patient from Damien House in Duran, we were

 able to buy tiny Hogar houses

After her seemingly-too-short trip, my mom left and I went back to work. My time is mostly spent on the map project while continuing to attend meetings and events in our office. Friday we had a celebration in honor of the rights and value of women in Mount Sinai. Somehow, I got signed up to pass out fake roses and perform at the event. They wanted me to sing in English (thank goodness) so I just explained the lyrics of John Mayer´s Daughters to them beforehand.

Also, the same day my mom left, Ana´s family came. They have been extremely kind and over the past few days I have had my fill of some amazing Mexican dinners. Between the posole (ya, Aunt Josie, I had posole too!) and the carne asada tacos, there has been a mix of homesickness and thanksgiving for Ana´s family´s hospitality, as it`s reminded me of just how much I appreciate my family and my family`s culture.

It was a busy February and with half of our families coming within a 2 week period (Heidi´s family got in Monday!) I think we are all trying to enjoy our last taste of freedom before “Retreat Group Season” starts. “Freedom” may be a bit of an exaggeration, but March begins a long string of back-to-backs and packed months of university and high school students and I imagine once it hits we will be busier than ever. Until then I will be soaking up neighborhood time, flinching at the site of a bucket of water, and walking my map´s route with umbrella or sunscreen in hand.

Realizing I could have saved a bag of paint for my mom! Ugh.

Miguel