jfullert
Registered: November 2007
City/Town/Province: Kingsville
Posts: 1
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From July first to July tenth I lived, worked, and learned at an eco-village named Las Canades. Arriving at four o’clock in the morning after about 24 hours of straight traveling, thirteen others and I preceded to hike through the forest to our small straw built homes at the bottom of a long path. It was amazing seeing these homes hand-made from mud, ox skin, bamboo, and straw. Along with my unique housing, was also the new experience of living devoid of running water and electricity. Upon hearing this I was immediately taken out of my comfort zone, pushed into a situation I had never experienced before. But before long I became accustomed to organic, home-grown food, decomposing toilets, and solar-heated water for showers, they became a new chance to become more in tune with the conditions of other countries than my own.
The first activity after waking up at 6:15 to heat of the water for showers was an hour lecture on the environmental issue of the day. Being a rather avid environmentalist, it was a great opportunity to be able to actually feel like I’m making a difference in the world. There I received briefings on sustainable living, agroecology, permaculture and biointensive food. These lessons enabled me to bring home the lessons I had learned and apply them not only to the village, but to the environment that I lived. After the lesson came a meal made from the gardens of the very women who cooked for us, followed by four hours of strenuous work. An example of an activity includes our task of the first day to take machetes and axes to clear the side of a thick tangle of brush and dead trees, plowing the soil with hoes, then taking 200 trees and planting them side by side in the ten inch holes that we had just dug. In addition, we built a school for the children in the surrounding areas. Upon the conclusion of each project I was full of pride and joy for I felt that I had actually made a difference not only in the land, but in the hearts of the Mexican workers who committed their lives to this eco-village. As they came down to check on our work it was amazing to watch as their eyes widened and they beamed at the work we were able to accomplish in such a short amount of time. This alone was award enough for our hard work. While they never came out and told us of their appreciation, appreciation that was never spoken but that was made visible in ways that said far more than words.
The language barrier was at first daunting, being that I had just completed Spanish 3, I was nervous that this would prohibit me from bonding with the people I met throughout my days in Mexico; but this was anything but true. Not only did my Spanish improve immensely in the time I was there, but I learned that language is not the most important thing that bonds people together. Our nights were full of dancing, playing instruments, and playing games with the children of the town; speaking seemed almost unimportant and friendships were quickly and easily formed. Each day brought about a different chance for service, community, adventure, and increased knowledge. In the hour time free after our work and lunch, rather than return to our homes in the forest like many of the volunteers chose to do, my friend Lizzy and I stayed and assisted the Mexican women in picking food from their gardens and preparing dinner. Every plant had a purpose and not a single one was put to waste. This gave us a chance to help the women who put in all of their time into service to us in the time we stayed.
Overall, my trip to Mexico gave me a chance to experience a whole other world and learn from the lessons of others. The days I spent there provided my first recognition that you learn about life through interactions with other who are different from yourself, not by looking inward. While there I was able to exert myself in intense physical labor, hours of teachings; all accompanied with countless, unforgettable social connections and lessons of a whole other aspect. It was some of the hardest physical labor I’d ever done, planting countless tree and clearing large fields of brush and bushes, and I’d never been so happy. I was giving something more important then my time and labor; I was expanding the cloud forest and helping the members of the community that devoted their lives to the preservation and restoration of this land.
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