Life in the campo!

Massacre at the Rio Sumpul










The little girl that broke my heart








Biggest cactus I've ever seen, at sunset

Roosters actually roost...in the trees!

Last week in the campo I had my heart broken by an eight year old girl named Reina Isabel. I really fell in love with the family I stayed with. There were 9 kids in the family, some in and some already out of the house, but we were able to meet all of them. The house we stayed in was constructed of Adobe, had no electricity and was also inhabited by a number of friendly critters. The bats were creepy, but to their credit I think they munched on a lot of the mosquitoes, more than us anyway. The father of the family was nearly impossible to understand. Not only did he speak with a lot of slang but he also was missing most of his teeth. Just about every morning we conversed with the father, usually about religion. The first day were got there he sat us down and asked us if we had been to confession lately. Most of our conversations turned into awkward laughter. The mother of the house spent most of time grinding corn and making tortillas. We walked everywhere. The first day we walked from Los Posos to Nueva Trinidad, which is a 1.5 hour walk, for a 20 minute meeting, and then walked back home. We also swam in the Rio Sumpul, site of one of the most brutal massacres during the war. It is told that so many were killed that the river ran red with the blood of women, men, and children. It was surreal to be swimming and playing in that sacred river. I ate about 5 mangos everyday. I love mangos. There really are just too many stories. Last week will live with me forever, and I hope I never forget the taste of ripe mango, the innocence of children at play, the feel of massa in my hands, the smell of farm animals, the feeling of sticky mango hands clasped together with mine, the feeling of exhaustion after hours of walking, the sound of Salvadoran hymns at church, the taste of ice cream when you really just need it, and more than anything a life of simple joy.