A day of remembrance, Guatemalan style

I had thought a little about what it would feel like to be outside of the United States on September 11th.  Well, it wasn’t like any day I’ve had in the US.

We started the day with a Mayan ceremony.  We were supposed to go to Tecpan, a site that has Mayan ruins and is apparently very spiritual, but the derrumbes prevented that from happening, so we brought the ceremony to the office.

There was a Mayan priestess, a Kaqchikel woman from Chimaltenango, flowers, countless candles, incense, tobacco, sugar, and fire.  The ceremony lasted about 2 hours and we learned a bit about the 20 Mayan gods, the Mayan belief in praising nature and the universe, and the integral role each member of the community plays in well-being.  At the end, as we were each throwing candles in the fire for whatever petition we had, Gregorio (our training director) made a petition for peace on a day that marked such turbulence for the United States.

When I got home, I was exhausted.  My host mom has learned my tired expression because when I was walking up the stairs to my room, she said, “You can’t go to sleep now.  We are leaving.”  I didn’t catch exactly where we were going, but I grabbed my coat and dragged myself back down the stairs.

As it turns out, we were going to a talent show that 8 of the private schools put on at our local municipality.  Honestly, I could write an entire post just on the talent show, but let me try to condense.  Three hours, one moderately uncomfortable metal chair, at least 5 skits about Jesus, Mary or the devil (who had a 12 foot wingspan with red Christmas lights attached), a lot of children dancing, some singing, firecrackers (yes, inside), and a lot of confetti.  Actually, despite being completely worn out, it was a lot of fun and the kids were adorable.  It was obvious that they had spent a lot of time preparing for the show, and I think it turned out great.

Last but definitely not least, because we went into the office yesterday, I got to check my mail.  I had 3 letters and 2 postcards!!  Again, I rubbed it in and I’m pretty sure everyone hated me for at least a few minutes.  Thanks so much for sending mail.  It really brightens my day.  Unfortunately, right now, I can’t return the favor.  It’s stuff for another post, but I’ll just say that our post office is out of stamps.  No, I didn’t make that up.