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Work 4 Peace,Hold All Life Sacred,Eliminate Violence! I am on my mobile version of the door-to-door, going town-to-town holding readings/gatherings/discussions of my book "But What Can I Do?" This is my often neglected blog mostly about my travels since 9/11 as I engage in dialogue and actions. It is steaming with my opinions, insights, analyses toward that end of holding all life sacred, dismantling the empire and eliminating violence while creating the society we want ALL to thrive in

Monday, November 29, 2010

Exhausted on the beach!


Elsa drops by and accepts tea from me. She says she has worked today at the medical pharmacy. I ask her if there is a hospital in the town and she says of course. I ask her if it is free and she looks at me like how could I not know the simplest things.

Only Josue and one other nieto has come with her this evening. Neither one wants to taste the tea or come into the camper.

We make it an early night, as I am suddenly exhausted. I climb quickly into my truck and close the door. Although I hear other visitors, I am too tired to even converse with anyone – let alone watch the sun set! Oh well, there’s always tomorrow.

Esquela y Inglais lecciones

As you might know I have about 3 or 4 holes in my screen door and I have already bought screen in Hermosillo! So I decide to tackle my screen this morning, as last night, mosquitoes invaded the beach!

I measure carefully, cut the screen and begin to replace the old screen. It is tedious work as I have bought wire screen, which is thicker than the other plastic screening I just took off and more dangerous with the metal sticking about.

It takes me about 2 hours to pound in three sides. As I am finishing the third side, two male youth appear, smiling and shy at the same time, asking me if their professor can bring the class here to practice their english.

At least that is what I believe they have said. I say Muy bien, Si por favor.

I finish the third side of the screen and no one has showed up. As I’m thinking I will both wait until tomorrow to finish the last side – and cross fingers no imaginative mosquito will arrive tonite and find the one side that is still open – and I will take a siesta, I hear giggling and trampling through the sand.

There are about a dozen kids and their teacher, Isai. He tells me in Spanish that they have questions for me in english and asks me to answer in english. So I agree.

The first four questions are from young men, who carefully read their questions somewhat in English. The what is your name, where are you from, how old are you, how long are you staying in Las Glorias, are the easy questions.

When I am about to ask if the girls do not have questions, a young girl steps forward. The questions get more difficult: what do you do, what is your daily routine, why are you here, describe your appearance, describe who you are, explain your family name (last name) – what, you mean my Jewish Lesbian name??? hmmmm

Isai good naturedly attempts to translate my answers, that I try to keep as simple as I can for such a complicated womon! Hahaha!

When each youth has asked me their question, the professor asks me if I would like to ask the kids questions.

Of course, I pick out the girls and ask them things like: do you like school? Have you lived here all your life? What is your favorite thing to do? What would you like to be doing now, instead of talking with me?

After I have asked about 4 girls questions, the professor picks out the boys for me to ask questions of, which I do.

When it is time for them to go, Isai asks me (I think) to come to school in the morning to help with the inglais class – and he will teach me Spanish while I help with pronunciation in english. I agree.

He gives me rapid directions in spanish how to get to the school and he lists the places he has been in the united states – all over the north coast and south west, basically. He likes the united states and has his visa but his husband does not.

I’m not sure if he meant husband because he then says ‘she’ and ‘her’. Hmmmm He certainly looks gay to me, but could it be?

Shortly after he leaves, one of Elsa’s grandsons, Josue, appears with another youth and a very neatly hand-written letter inviting me in Spanish to visit the classroom tomorrow.

Yeah! How wonderful to connect with the youth in this way! I’m hoping Isai will allow me to give a lesson on plastic bottles, as this beautiful place is littered with them – and other non-degradable, or edible treasures.

Fishermen and Veggie Oil

Fishermen and Veggie Oil
I greet the sun this morning, rising over the mouth of the river, which is where I have parked. I go for a short run on the beach along the ocean, to the mouth of the river, and onto the man-made mound of shells bordered by huge volcanic rocks that extends into the ocean several yards.

When I run back along the ocean past my truck, I notice fresh footprints in the sand leading up to my truck, so I return. As I get closer I see there is a large pickup truck parked a few feet to the side of my truck.

When I get there, I see two men standing by their truck, watching me. I do not have my glasses on so I can't tell if they are smiling or not - or really even looking directly at me.

I approach, saying Buenas Dias, and they politely return my greeting. And our conversation begins. One of the men, Aron, can speak a little tiny English, although we speak mostly Spanish. He has a sister, married to a gringo, in Chula Vista, so he has been to California!

We speak of my travels - solo - and their work, a fisherman and a vendador of pescado - a seller of fish. They are very curious about my truck. I show them what I (Shazam) has built. We talk about solar - and wind power, as the wind is constant here.

When they ask when am I going, I tell them about running my truck on veggie oil and wanting the oil to settle. They are very excited about veggie oil. Another man has joined us by now, and several others stand grouped several feet from the truck.

They ask me about the “Our troops are dying for your support” sign in my truck. We talk about war and ending war, violence and the united states. Even though I speak Spanish, Aron repeats what I say for the other men’s benefit. Maybe he is the only one who understands me!

I am probably the most interesting thing in town this morning!

When they finally say they have to go to work, and I am exhausted in my attempts to communicate, they all say I am welcome in their casas!

So last night I met Elsa and several of her 16 grandchildren; this morning I meet the men of the town!