...What fun! We´ve been here in the AraucanÃa region for almost 3 weeks now, and i am loving it! Such a warm warm and sincere welcome we´ve received from an entire community... or cluster of communities i should say! And they know how to put their visitors to work as well!! We´ve been back and forth between three main areas, two in the ´farm´ or ´campo´ areas: Labranza (spunky name right?) and Imperial (or rather, Imperial´s countryside in an area called Rulo); and finally in Temuco, the big smoke (literally... apparently it wasn´t going to be so easy to escape the smog...). In Labranza we´ve been permitted to collaborate on projects in the ´institute´ (or Centre for Learning) with Junior Youth and Youth. Very cool. Also, there´s a Baha´i initiated rural school that we´ve become regular faces at, being called upon - mostly just before the classes - to ¨do something with physical expression¨ or ¨theatre¨ ...with this enormous group of inexpressive, super self-conscious youth... or, ¨music, english¨ or ¨something spiritual¨ ...keeping us on our toes. i like it. I´m learning a lot about myself in the face of these young people and learning a lot about these people and their customs. My habit, for example, of insisting passionately that everyone MUST participate and HAVE FUN dammit !!! ...doesn´t necessarily do the trick. I´m gradually remembering the delicate art of soft persuasion ...and me becoming more familiar is helping.
It´s really so much fun and such a pleasure to sing with Dan, and to be able to offer music and harmony wherever we go. Seems to be such a universally effective opening to communication of all kinds. The music here is really free-form and rhythm based so we´ve not really been able to ´learn´ any new songs, but there´s been a lot of sharing nonetheless, accompanied by dancing - a sort of running around with a poncho in rhythm to the music that is ´simple´ but requires a LOT of stamina. i suspect that may be a large part of the point... there was a big ´unity´ dance on the weekend, where everyone at a gathering took up a leafy stick and joined in the running and stepping. it was pretty special actually. then i slept. quite a lot.
The other project here in Labranza is ¨Baha´i Radio¨ which specialises, (as do most of the Baha´i projects in the region) in celebrating local indigenous culture, language, music, tradition... we were able to share on a show Sunday morning on the subject of the importance or role of art (GREAT subject!) in the world today. There´s a Tahitian song that we´ve subsequently been able to translate to castellano (the South American word for spoken Spanish) which we shared along with a few other tunes. Apparently the station is tuned into mostly by farmers ... nice to connect with them across the ´waves´.
In Rulo, there´s another Baha´i initiative school where we had a little residence in a cabin (which we had a hard time getting the right temperature in... unlike most other places, being such a small cabin, it really DID get warm, which we thought was GREAT so we kept the windows shut and cranked up the heat ...and in teh -0 night we were all sweating on our beds without our blankets.) and a great little bunch of teachers and kids. Again, we get called in for various things, mostly at the last minute, with varying effectiveness, and it´s been really really special that - with both the schools - we´ve been made to feel part of the team and these are such interesting, interested people with great stories to tell, and a very particular experience of Chile, being that they are part of the indigenous population in teh only specifically indigenous region, that has more or less ceased to be recognized by the State (along with their entire identities as Mapuche, and their language!!) The official position of the State is ¨we are all Chileno¨ ...which is an admirable kind of ´unity´ but maybe one not borne of the desire to unite, but rather to be rid of the stone in its shoe which is the ongoing tenacity (if not actual continuation of traditions in most cases) of the Mapuche people, and their success (unique, apparently, in all of South America.. according to one storyteller) in remaining relatively ´unconquered´.
...and in Temuco we´ve been the guests at various so-so special evenings of prayer and relaxation, then rich and LEEEENGTHY conversation. I will tell you this for nothing: Chilenos are super nocturnal. They have often pointed out to us with pride (rightfully, i should say) that Chilenos are a very flexible, go with the flow kind of people. They also love their ¨pancitos¨ and ¨tecitos¨ (little bread and little tea, they add ¨ito¨ to anything and everything to make it appear more inviting) just about whenever the occasion arises for a bit of conversation. ...if that moment happens to be 2 in the morning after hours of the same in another household down the road, who cares! let´s have some more... with cheese and ham and honey and avocado.
have i mentioned the avocado. or Palta, i should say. It really is THE national food, no matter what else they say. every few days, i get to feeling like i couldn´t bear to even see another. and then... the occasion arrises, and it´s really very yummy the way they prepare their dips, always fresh, and their salads - always with lots of lemon, salt and a bit of oil. i highly recommend that. never enjoyed salads more!
As for our Spanish, or castellano ...actually, it´s coming along. We still conjugate like 5 year olds most of the time, especially in the past tense, but there´s so much vocabulary that´s become second nature to us and we actually understand a lot more than we´´re able personally to express. It´s a by turns frustrating, by turns satisfying, in the end very rewarding experience. in the 6 or so weeks we´ve been here, i´d say we´ve learnt quite a lot really. And Hero´s little bits of Spanglish are starting to creep through... Interesting the turn in her sociability lately. There´s been a sort of mob reaction to her small, blond, foreign cuteness almost everywhere we go, especially the schools, and lots of patting hair, stroking cheek, kissing cheek, tickling side - all without warning or permission. I think at first and for a while Hero was mostly revelling in and loving the attention and all the new ´friends´ to play with. But the last few days pretty much no one even gets a smile on arrival and as soon as they come at her talking Spanish, she tells them ¨no¨. And that´s the end of that. Well, i get that. I know what it´s like to need space.
And the cuteness with her developing communication continues. one small, perhaps not so significant anecdote, yet it´s the one i presently recall.. Hero was begging me to help her climb into a wheelbarrow. And Dan called from where he was sitting, ¨But Hero, remember what happened last time you played on that wheelbarrow? Tell Mama.¨ And Hero, without needing to reflect and recall, not missing a beat, turns to me with all her almost three year old earnestness, and says simply ¨Mum, I fell on my head, and I cried.¨
Pablo Neruda´s poetry is now my constant, and beloved companion these days as we journey through his land, and i am finding myself so incredibly inspired by his compassion and honesty and surprising, stunning splendid simplicity. He´s brought tears to me eyes at least twice now, and i can´t say that peotry has done that too often before.
Well. There´s photos to comment on, so this is enough of the waffle.
