This was a post that actually got lost about a month ago, but I figured I would throw it in anyways.
I’d just like to start off by thanking those who have signed up so far to support the church reconstruction and the medical dispensary. There are still about two spots open, so keep it up when you talk to friends and family. I actually had my first encouragement from the communities here in the past few days on this subject. There have been quite a few leaders of COSALCO that have approached me or said in public that without the support of Peace Corps (Cuerpo de Paz they say), they would not have had the hope or drive to continue on to establish this medical source, the nurses seemed adamant on the issue. So, just know that you guys are sustaining a cause until December, that probably would not have made it otherwise. It’s good stuff.
I’ve also started communicating with another health committee in a neighboring community that got a hold of me to help reform this dispensary to model ours. So, after meeting with them, they are going to augment their prices according to base costs, start doing at least one activity each month, visiting houses to let them know that the project is still moving along and that their prices more affordable for all the families.
On that note, I guess I’ll express some frustration right now with some of these development NGOs (non-governmental organizations), and especially some of the medical ones. This ASPS, the medical NGO that was here from 2006-2008, did a wonderful thing in my community and my municipality. Using funds from the government of Valencia, Spain, they trained 2 nurses in each community over a period of 2 years, and built medical dispensaries where they weren’t already built. They also stocked these dispensaries with some furniture and basics, as well as with basic medicines. It is an awesome process, UNTIL the ending of the 2 year program. They stock the dispensary with more medicines at the end of the 2 years, but beyond that, the pull out all support. After a years worth of time, I haven’t heard of any medical dispensary that has survived normally after ASPS pulling out. Our municipality, with the exception of my community (and hopefully now another one), has fallen victim of the same situation. It's just hard for a culture that is less "fiscally ingrained" like ours, to cope with the scope of this kind of charge all of a sudden. For example, we are brought up to keep track of money, or just to know what income/expenditures and the idea of tracking it are, and this is something not seen as important here, and very rarely done.
Back to the point though, this NGO seems to be completely unaware of the problems it has with its closing days, or just not in the state to do something about it, and it amazes me actually haha. I don’t really see the point of spending all the money to set something up if you know that when you pull out support, that it will collapse. The problem is that the nurses are left without pay because they had been paid before by the NGO, upon leaving that becomes a very, very, very big problem. As well as the fact that a lot of the medicines expire within the year of them leaving and people in all cultures are leary of using medicines that say they are expired (even though most studies nowadays are destroying that mentality thanks to the military initiative to push back expiration dates and save money).
The climb up.
The people praying.
Jose and a cheeto thing.In other news, we went to the Cerro de Las Pavas, I think that’s basically “hill of the birds,” but I’m not sure on the ‘pavas’ word, but I think it’s about right though, haha. It’s a type of pilgrimage site in the country that I had visited actually during training. We went with people from all over the municipality for the benefit of the patron festivals here in La Comunidad. I had the bus let me and Juan Jose (the youngest of Don Raul) off at the base of the hill/mountain. We climbed up it while they took the road, and got there while they had started the prayers. They continued them for another hour having hooked up with another group that had gotten there at the same time. It was pretty cool and it had some good vistas and a little zoo thing that was nifty. They had monkeys :)
The view of lake Ilopango from "Cerro de las Pavas"
Don Raul enjoying the water park
Me after it all and before my haircut.
Afterwards, we left and went to Amalpulapa, a water park that is out near San Vicente. That was pretty interesting, they did have one small slide though, but it was closed for all but an hour that day. It was pretty cool though and only $0.80 cents to get in. Check out the pics.
“It had been my mother’s [Monica, the mother of Augustine] custom in Africa to take meal-cakes and bread and wine to the shrines of the saints on their memorial days….Instead of her basket full of the fruits of the earth she learned to bring to the shrines of the martyrs a heart full of prayers far purer than any of these gifts. In this way she was able to give what she could to the poor and the Communion of the Lord’s Body was celebrated at the shrines of the saints, who had given their lives and earned the crown of martyrdom by following the example of his passion.”
Confessions, Augustine p. 112-3
This is the referring to Christian activities in the 300s AD.
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