On a completely different note form medicine, healing, and traditional practices, i have spent the last couple of weeks in Costa Rica on Vacation. Thats right, the kind where you lay on the beach all day long and dont even have time to read your book. Costa Rica has been an interesting contrast to the first months of my trip which were peppered with brilliantly colored indiengous women, children, and their artisanry. Costa Rica, in contrast, is a country that has greatly suceeded in the realm of tourism, so much so that my sister and I have taken to calling various areas that we have visited "little america". One of the reasons that CR has been so successful is that the country sits within a rich and varied environement with awe inspiring natural wonders. One of the best moments that I shared with my family on this portion of my journey was my mother waking me up from a deep sleep at 4:30 in the morning to behold unbeleivably red, molten lava pouring down the sides of Volcan Arenal in northern costa rica. My impression of CR is that one visits it not to immerse themself in a magical, colorful, different culture, but to enjoy the natural beauty that has developed into a tourist industry. Rather than maintain an expectation that you are actually leaving the united states of america, I profess that it is better to "dive" into the nature of this country in order to experience it. How better to do this than to push your own personal limits to commune with nature.
To give a bit of background, my sister, Sara, is a hardcore adventurer and advocate of nature and best sister ever. After discussions with her I have been able to develop a new philosophy and understanding of how to interact with nature, a philosophy that has required me to rethink my own phobias and anxieties...I call this new philsophy surfing. Anyone who knows me well would assume that I would not surf, that the shear terror of facing a large wave crashing down on my head would be inconceivable. My first session surfing I carried a ridiculously large long board into the ocean, which turned around to beat me as I battled the white wash of waves breaking in front of me in Mal Pais on the southern nicoya penninsula (bruises to prove it!). I spent 2&30 hours gliding on white wash waves (the foamy stuff) and attempting to stand up. After three surf sessions I was able to stand on my board for approximately 1.2 seconds. Yet I still hadn´t paddled out behind the break, I still hadnt caught what is called a green wave, and I was still anxious about the power of the ocean...but I was out there, but i wasnt really surfing. Today, Sara and I traveled to Tamarindo to get some morning surf. We woke up at 6 am, iced coffee in hand, armed for our one hour drive over intermittently paved roads to reach the beach. Its incredible how waves can look docile and small from the shore, and how powerful they are when they are crashing on top of you as you paddle with all of your might, certain that you are swimming in place. It may then seem as if it is by some christmas miracle you end up on behind the break. From there you can sit on your surfboard and embrace the shear beauty of the ocean...you know she is big, strong, and much more powerful than you, but somehow you have finally connected with the spirit of the sea. The first time you get completely pummled by the wave, swallowing at minimum thirty five gallons of salt water, expereincing a complete nasal irrigation, and then paddle back out for more, you are living the philosophy that the ocean yes, is stronger than you, but you want to be with her for the few short seconds that she actually locks onto your surfboard and draws you towards the sandy beach, only to swallow you up in the white wash again. This is what my sister calls communing with nature. I paddled back out for more...thanks sis!
happy holicays and new years! surfs up!
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Friday, December 01, 2006
Hold a Bowl of Blood with both Hands
...or a list of things that I love about San Cristobal, Chiapas, and my work here.
*Walking out of my house along a street of beautiful spanish colonial buildings, then through a Mayan settlement to walk by a beautiful mountain river and up a hill covered with pine and madrone trees, to have a fantastic view of San Cristobal and its Guadalupe Church
*When a woman tears after giving birth that we apply seaweed topically to assist in the mending of the tissue. Thats right, vaginal sushi!
*Mayan women who wash their laundry in the river, and then leave everything to dry atop trees and shrubs along the shore while their children laugh and tumble in the grass.
*Hearing the same stupid norteño song everyday, ten times a day, until you have to admit that now you love the song.
*A month after a woman has given birth we provide a "closing" which includes an herbal bath of seven plants (including rosemary and laurel...the rest are unknown, and the ancient market woman will not reveal the secret!) in which the whole family gets in. This is really special because bathtubs are nearly unknown in Mexico. Afterward the woman is given a massage, now which includes Mayan Abdominal Massage, and then a rebozo massage in which a Mexican shawl is used to rock the woman and close her hips. Its a perfect integration of western medicine and traditional healing techniques.
*Fresh popped palomitas (popcorn) in the market for 1 peso (ten cents!)
*Having the opportunity to learn women´s health and midwifery care in a very free environment unavailable in the US. I am constantly amazed at the experiences the patients at Luna Maya have shared with me from their prenatal care, births, postnatal care, well woman care, etc. I have learned how to do PAP smears, identify vaginal irritations post birth, assist with lactation, care for women during birth, and approach mexican women in a more culturally appropriate way. To top it all off its a constant spanish lesson! Added to this is my joy of sharing my work with the Mexican women. I have had the opprtunity to provide sessions (I´m now a pro at teaching Abdominal self care massage in spanish!) and teach workshops.
*Spending a weekend in Oconsingo and Palenque where my experiences included:
1. Being stuck in a bus station for three extra hours because the road was out due to a rainstorm. While there I had a conversation with a young woman on her way out to work in a hotel in Cancun. She told me everything she knew about US culture which included the fact that we ALL have blue eyes in the US, and that it is sunny and warm in the US all the time. I unfortunately had to tell her the truth!
2. Finding a guide to take me and a couple of Spanish freinds into the jungle of Palenque an abandoned Mayan city. We hiked through the mud until we found an entirely forest covered temple...it made us think that this must have been what it was like when the first anthropologists had come into the area. Later, our Mayan guide, descendant of a Mayan Shaman, proceeded to give me a traditional Mayan treatment that consisted of him pushing a crystal and a jaguar tooth into various points on my forehead and joints. He told me that I think to much, often considering three topics at the same time, and that I need to learn to connect myself more to the earth. What do you think?
Lastly, I thought I would just answer a question that a friend asked me in a recent email, whether my work here has given me more or less hope for the fate of humanity. My answer is more hope. I beleive that by being involved in an organization that is breaking down the traditonal stereotypes and roles of what a woman is in mexico is priceless. Being involved with "humanizing birth" changes interfamily relationships and promotes more understanding in the larger global community. The road is difficult, similar to anyroad or side walk that you find in Mexico or Latin America. Sometimes you have a clear flat path to walk on for a few feet, then you realize a family is walking toward you and you must decisively choose who goes to the inside and who to the outside of the three foot wide track, then you have to jump off the bank to avoid a large crack, and then quickly get back up again to avoid the taxi speeding at your back. There are lots of obstacles, but you eventually get somewhere...you also realize that the road that you took was alot more fun than just walking blindly down a perfectly poured concrete slab.
*Walking out of my house along a street of beautiful spanish colonial buildings, then through a Mayan settlement to walk by a beautiful mountain river and up a hill covered with pine and madrone trees, to have a fantastic view of San Cristobal and its Guadalupe Church
*When a woman tears after giving birth that we apply seaweed topically to assist in the mending of the tissue. Thats right, vaginal sushi!
*Mayan women who wash their laundry in the river, and then leave everything to dry atop trees and shrubs along the shore while their children laugh and tumble in the grass.
*Hearing the same stupid norteño song everyday, ten times a day, until you have to admit that now you love the song.
*A month after a woman has given birth we provide a "closing" which includes an herbal bath of seven plants (including rosemary and laurel...the rest are unknown, and the ancient market woman will not reveal the secret!) in which the whole family gets in. This is really special because bathtubs are nearly unknown in Mexico. Afterward the woman is given a massage, now which includes Mayan Abdominal Massage, and then a rebozo massage in which a Mexican shawl is used to rock the woman and close her hips. Its a perfect integration of western medicine and traditional healing techniques.
*Fresh popped palomitas (popcorn) in the market for 1 peso (ten cents!)
*Having the opportunity to learn women´s health and midwifery care in a very free environment unavailable in the US. I am constantly amazed at the experiences the patients at Luna Maya have shared with me from their prenatal care, births, postnatal care, well woman care, etc. I have learned how to do PAP smears, identify vaginal irritations post birth, assist with lactation, care for women during birth, and approach mexican women in a more culturally appropriate way. To top it all off its a constant spanish lesson! Added to this is my joy of sharing my work with the Mexican women. I have had the opprtunity to provide sessions (I´m now a pro at teaching Abdominal self care massage in spanish!) and teach workshops.
*Spending a weekend in Oconsingo and Palenque where my experiences included:
1. Being stuck in a bus station for three extra hours because the road was out due to a rainstorm. While there I had a conversation with a young woman on her way out to work in a hotel in Cancun. She told me everything she knew about US culture which included the fact that we ALL have blue eyes in the US, and that it is sunny and warm in the US all the time. I unfortunately had to tell her the truth!
2. Finding a guide to take me and a couple of Spanish freinds into the jungle of Palenque an abandoned Mayan city. We hiked through the mud until we found an entirely forest covered temple...it made us think that this must have been what it was like when the first anthropologists had come into the area. Later, our Mayan guide, descendant of a Mayan Shaman, proceeded to give me a traditional Mayan treatment that consisted of him pushing a crystal and a jaguar tooth into various points on my forehead and joints. He told me that I think to much, often considering three topics at the same time, and that I need to learn to connect myself more to the earth. What do you think?
Lastly, I thought I would just answer a question that a friend asked me in a recent email, whether my work here has given me more or less hope for the fate of humanity. My answer is more hope. I beleive that by being involved in an organization that is breaking down the traditonal stereotypes and roles of what a woman is in mexico is priceless. Being involved with "humanizing birth" changes interfamily relationships and promotes more understanding in the larger global community. The road is difficult, similar to anyroad or side walk that you find in Mexico or Latin America. Sometimes you have a clear flat path to walk on for a few feet, then you realize a family is walking toward you and you must decisively choose who goes to the inside and who to the outside of the three foot wide track, then you have to jump off the bank to avoid a large crack, and then quickly get back up again to avoid the taxi speeding at your back. There are lots of obstacles, but you eventually get somewhere...you also realize that the road that you took was alot more fun than just walking blindly down a perfectly poured concrete slab.
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