Hola Companeros! I hope this latest update finds youwell. The following are some excerpts from my life andadventures...
THE ELECTIONS At 7:15 am I was fully dressed in my electionsobserver uniform-badge and shirt sparkling in the early morning light. I was driven out by a member ofthe Human Rights office to the municipality ofCantel-where I had worked for years on various education projects. Within an hour I was smack in the middle of a swirling mass of voters participating in what they call FIESTA CIVICA. Imagine a country where the elections are held on a Sunday! Where people show up with their families and stay the whole day! Where food vendors set up shop on the streets and provide tasty foods! Where everyone is eating, talking,celebrating, and visiting! It was a huge fiesta civica! Beautiful and inspiring....but also with a dark side.Within a few hours, a ripple of suspicion and accusation spread through the thousands of people who had gathered to vote. "People who weren't from the community were trying to vote!" "The current mayor made deals with people and bought votes." "Hey that guy is not from here!" And the beginnings of a lynching were launched. A crowd gathered around one of these suspicious characters. They swirled around him,getting closer and closer, pushing and shoving...Had the human rights folks not intervened it coul have been real ugly. IT was pretty amazing actually. The locals were like vigilantes, and several other times that day, they threw out people who werent suppose tobe there(and they really weren't). I spent the day talking with friends, learning about the voting system, eating exotic street foods, and going back and forth from observer to fiesta celebrator. The old mayor was voted out, and the newly elected mayor was ayoung man from the socialist party who used to be a teacher in one of the communities I had worked in. Thepeople were happy....the people actually won. So it seemed. Elsewhere in Guatemala, there were 167 people arrested and five municipalaties where angry mobs destroyed polling stations and burned every ballot.Most people agreed that it was a pretty good election!
BATTLE WITH THE CHUCHOS!
Every week I take a walk by myself in the surrounding hills to visit Los Vahos-a volcanic steam bath up in the mountains. Its a beautiful tour through huge cornfields, a mayan ceremony center, farms, and some ofthe nicest cows I have ever met. I breath fresh air,meditate on the bueno y malo of my world, and sweat.On my last trip down, I decided to take a different course back to town. This path led me into a direct confrontation with my arch enemies of the campo-LOSCHUCHOS. In Guatemala there are two types of dogs. A few are called Perros and they have names, are cared for, live in people's homes. Most others are calledChuchos and they are semi-wild. They are kept around homes and properties with just enuff food to create a sense of loyalty and security. Essentially they are the cheapest alarm system you can buy. They tend to be beaten, roam in packs, and gang up to attack otherliving creatures.In this case...ME.I've tangled with their kind before, and always packheat(rocks in my pocket). In this last encounter,there were three snarling and yapping chuchos that blocked my passage. I threw a rock at who I perceived to be the leader, thinking i could scare them with my ferocious presence and be on my way. However, as I danced the chucho tango with the first one, his sidekick suddenly rushed me-apparently unafraid of my rocks. I stagged backwards in fear, up a dirt slope,and lost my footing. I fell on my back, cut my hand, and for about 2o seconds was vulnerable to their attack. However, I guess the dogs had made their point, and let me get up. I gingerly took as wide a course as possible around them and continued on myway.
CHUCHOS 1, MATEO 0
INDEPENDENCE DAY On September 15, 1821 Guatemala proclaimed and received it's independence from Spain without having to fight. Every year there are huge patriotic and drunken street celebrations in honor of this so called"independence". I found myself caught up in a group of thousands of Guatemalans who were celebrating on the streets with huge cups of beer and giant smiles on their faces. Actually I was kind of trapped in the crowd, and just let go. I must have been touched,rubbed , pushed, squeazed, and pinched by hundreds of different people. With a giant mug of beer in my hand,I danced to one of Guatemala's premier bands(a SKAband-gi figure) and was move by the beauty of thousands of people in the street singing all thesongs together with the band on the stage.
THE PROJECT Oh yeah, I can't forget to tell you why Im really here. In the last two weeks I have visited 24 schools,in six different municipalaties of the department ofQuetzaltenango that have received computer labs from our project over the years. What I saw has really impressed and inspired me:
1. No computers have been stolen
2. Attendance has increased in schools where comp labswere installed
3.Communities have worked together to build or improvebuidlings to hold comp labs
4.Communites have worked together to createcurriculums and creatively finance computer teachers
5. Interest in the project has grown(We have recieveddozens of new solicitations)
6.Parents and other community members are gettingaccess to computers.
It's exciting and inspiring to be a part of a project that has taken on a life of its own with very little Gringo involvement and that seems to be having a powerful and positive effect on the communities where the project is working.
Bueno!! My ramblings are finished. As always, I wouldlove to hear from each of you and share more. If youwant to call or send a postcard here is my contactinfo:
Mateo Rutman
Lista de Correos
Quetzaltenango, Quetzaltenango
Guatemala
Phone: 011 502 5605 4140
MUCH LOVE!Mateo
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Dispatch #1 de Guatemala
The following are a collection of thoughts, feelings, andexperiences so far (its a bit of a ramble). I hope they find you happy, hopeful, inspired, and full oflove in your lives.
PREPERATIONS FOR DEATH
Close your eyes- think of the good, the loveSend your goodbyes through the universeTo all those you love and feel connected toBreath deep, let it out slowly, surrender your destinyEase into your seatAdd up the good and badDo the mathFeel the good life you have live so farBreath deepAnd fasten your seatbeltEvery time I fly, I go through this death ritual. Fullsurrender, full embrace, full detachment. I exist insome surreal dream workld as we are carried throughthe sky to that final destination. I curl up into thefetal position, like some caterpillar going into thecocoon, and linger in the grey place between twoworlds- ready to live, ready to die...then we LAND!(at least every time so far)
GUATEMALA CITY I'm at the airport and its 4:30 am, another red eye tothe rescue. That same day finds me at the President'spalace, Puerta No. 1 to be exact. I meet with theFirst LAdy's people who know my name by now(because ofmy persistent emails and phone calls). I sign adocument, listen attentively to the rediculousbueracratic path our container will take as itnavigates it's way through customs, ports, taxes, andall that (oh yeah, the container has been delayed twoweeks because the shipping company skipped Portlandbecause they were running late-which apparentlyhappens all the time).On the way back to my hotel, I pick up some blackmarket DVDs of all the cool movies still in thetheatre as well as some classics like Casablanca andDoctor Zhivago-which were quite a sight on the streetson Guatemala City."clasicos!" the vendor told me.
TO XELA (Shay-la)
The next day I try to catch a scheduled bus out of the capitol, but it seems that there are no other passengers so they cancel the bus. Not wanting to linger in what some say is the first or second mostdangerous(or at least most violent) city in theAmericas, I catch another ride which breaks down several times along the way.An amazing ayudante-mechanic saves the day with a series of patches,kicks, and scratches to get the bus back into working order.As we pause in various lugares on the sides of the main highway, I contently stare out the window atGuatemala's beautiful highlands soaked in shades of green dripping wet from the most recent downpour of this rainy season. Volcanoes burst out of the scene,covered with steep fields of corn eight feet high.Towns are buried up to their rooftops in fields ofMaize-the staple food and life force of the Maya. It'sa scene that fills my heart with joy, an gives me a sense of being home(Guatemala's highlands remind me somuch of Oregon- volcanoes, mountains, earthquakes,rain, excellent soils).
XELA
My first night in Xela finds me listening to a presentation on the politcal history and present situation in Guatemala(The short depressing end ofthat story is that Guatemala is basically run by 20 families and five military generals). But, its the elections season, so cheer up, its a democracy(Sort of) and there are some potential positive outcomes(At least on the local level) that can come out of this. And, well, they need international observers-so I sign up.At orientation, there is a man in a strange mafiaesquesuit, gold jewelery, and two cellphones that aregoing off simultaneously-both with the jingle of the theme song from the film The Godfather. This man is in charge of the observers for the entire department ofQuetzaltenango. In a few hours I am taken on a rollercoaster ride through the very interesting (and somewhat complicated) voting system of Guatemala. ThenI am given a badge and shirt that give me the credentials to be an official "International Observer". At some point during the presentation, an interesting piece of advice was slipped in: 'wear a different shirt under your official observer shirt incase you need to escape from a violent situation'.Everyone laughed at that one, but Im quite sure that Iwon't be the only one this Sunday(election day inGuatemala) that heeds the advice.Since then, I have been visiting schools that have computer labs from previous years and making plans forthe distribution of this year's donations. It has been a revealing and inspiring tour so far. I will write more on the project status in the next dispatch.Until then(if you made it this far), I wish you all well and hope to hear from you in some form or another.
LOveMatthew (aka Mateo, Matty, Matt, Mr. Matthew, Gringo,Extranjero, Gringo Grande, etc.)
PREPERATIONS FOR DEATH
Close your eyes- think of the good, the loveSend your goodbyes through the universeTo all those you love and feel connected toBreath deep, let it out slowly, surrender your destinyEase into your seatAdd up the good and badDo the mathFeel the good life you have live so farBreath deepAnd fasten your seatbeltEvery time I fly, I go through this death ritual. Fullsurrender, full embrace, full detachment. I exist insome surreal dream workld as we are carried throughthe sky to that final destination. I curl up into thefetal position, like some caterpillar going into thecocoon, and linger in the grey place between twoworlds- ready to live, ready to die...then we LAND!(at least every time so far)
GUATEMALA CITY I'm at the airport and its 4:30 am, another red eye tothe rescue. That same day finds me at the President'spalace, Puerta No. 1 to be exact. I meet with theFirst LAdy's people who know my name by now(because ofmy persistent emails and phone calls). I sign adocument, listen attentively to the rediculousbueracratic path our container will take as itnavigates it's way through customs, ports, taxes, andall that (oh yeah, the container has been delayed twoweeks because the shipping company skipped Portlandbecause they were running late-which apparentlyhappens all the time).On the way back to my hotel, I pick up some blackmarket DVDs of all the cool movies still in thetheatre as well as some classics like Casablanca andDoctor Zhivago-which were quite a sight on the streetson Guatemala City."clasicos!" the vendor told me.
TO XELA (Shay-la)
The next day I try to catch a scheduled bus out of the capitol, but it seems that there are no other passengers so they cancel the bus. Not wanting to linger in what some say is the first or second mostdangerous(or at least most violent) city in theAmericas, I catch another ride which breaks down several times along the way.An amazing ayudante-mechanic saves the day with a series of patches,kicks, and scratches to get the bus back into working order.As we pause in various lugares on the sides of the main highway, I contently stare out the window atGuatemala's beautiful highlands soaked in shades of green dripping wet from the most recent downpour of this rainy season. Volcanoes burst out of the scene,covered with steep fields of corn eight feet high.Towns are buried up to their rooftops in fields ofMaize-the staple food and life force of the Maya. It'sa scene that fills my heart with joy, an gives me a sense of being home(Guatemala's highlands remind me somuch of Oregon- volcanoes, mountains, earthquakes,rain, excellent soils).
XELA
My first night in Xela finds me listening to a presentation on the politcal history and present situation in Guatemala(The short depressing end ofthat story is that Guatemala is basically run by 20 families and five military generals). But, its the elections season, so cheer up, its a democracy(Sort of) and there are some potential positive outcomes(At least on the local level) that can come out of this. And, well, they need international observers-so I sign up.At orientation, there is a man in a strange mafiaesquesuit, gold jewelery, and two cellphones that aregoing off simultaneously-both with the jingle of the theme song from the film The Godfather. This man is in charge of the observers for the entire department ofQuetzaltenango. In a few hours I am taken on a rollercoaster ride through the very interesting (and somewhat complicated) voting system of Guatemala. ThenI am given a badge and shirt that give me the credentials to be an official "International Observer". At some point during the presentation, an interesting piece of advice was slipped in: 'wear a different shirt under your official observer shirt incase you need to escape from a violent situation'.Everyone laughed at that one, but Im quite sure that Iwon't be the only one this Sunday(election day inGuatemala) that heeds the advice.Since then, I have been visiting schools that have computer labs from previous years and making plans forthe distribution of this year's donations. It has been a revealing and inspiring tour so far. I will write more on the project status in the next dispatch.Until then(if you made it this far), I wish you all well and hope to hear from you in some form or another.
LOveMatthew (aka Mateo, Matty, Matt, Mr. Matthew, Gringo,Extranjero, Gringo Grande, etc.)
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