I’ve done a poor job of blogging lately. It has seemed as though I’ve had little time
to do things for myself and I’ve been wondering what I could even say. Reflecting upon this last month, I’ve drawn
the conclusion that the main theme of the month was workshops. Facilitating or co-facilitating three or more
workshops each week, I feel like I have learned a lot; however, it was quite
stressful.
In addition to the work at the university, I've been working with Sarah, a Canadian friend, and other women from a local NGO, Centro Esperanza, doing workshops for a youth group and a women's group in Chosica del Norte and we are in the process of getting a women's group on it's feet in San Borja, another nearby underdeveloped district. I love working with these various groups of people as I am constantly learning from them.
The women in Chosica del Norte have been working with the themes of leadership and violence prevention. Some are more withdrawn and some are very willing to share their stories with me. Many of them have developed leadership skills through the program over the last few years and are continuing to grow. Their go-getter attitudes and resilience inspire me. A week ago, with the help of Centro Esperanza, a dialogue between local residents (parents as well as teenagers) and community authorities (such as women working for a women's treatment center, a psychologist, a police officer in charge of domestic violence cases and someone with a position similar to that of a mayor) was held. Ideas were laid out in hopes of being able to improve lives in the community and reduce domestic violence. I was extremely proud of several of the women from the group that I've been blessed to help with, who stood up with a microphone before the group and addressed the authorities. For several of them, it was the first time in their lives speaking in front of others in such a setting. A little bit of faith and trust in others can go a long way!
The youth have learned about a variety of topics including leadership, happiness, their anscestors and how the past affects them today, and this last week got the chance to learn some breakdancing. They were thrilled. Breakdancing was fun for many of the 12-14 year-olds, but especially for some of the more mischievous/ornery boys.
In San Borja, we are helping to organize a group of women who have worked in or are working in organic gardens which they use for a different purposes, such as providing nutritious meals for their families and selling vegetables and herbs as a source of income. As we have just recently begun going, we do not have a set location nor do we yet know how many people are likely to arrive. This last week, Sarah, Marcela and I (3 volunteers from Centro Esperanza) arrived in the community, but did not see any of the women. We were forced to fall back on a tactic that I came to know well in Kenya of asking a child that happened along our path to lead us to his/her home to speak with the mother and then to take us to other women who work in the gardens. In this way we gathered a small group and one of them offered to allow us to use her home. Throughout the next 1.5 hours, nearly all of the women we had been expecting showed up at the home by some unknown form of communication. It's something I'll probably never fully understand...the networks of communication in such communities. While Sarah and I gathered information from the women about their pasts and helped them to get to know one another better, Marcela did a wonderful job of playing with their children outside so as to keep them from pestering their mothers. Sounds of singing and laughing filtered into the adobe home along with rays of afternoon sun on the dirt floor. Some of these women have had few opportunities to strengthen their skills in relationship to earning an income or being a leader, but a few of them left us surprised, like an older woman who has been able to fly to Lima 4 times as a part of her efforts of delivering food/milk to families in her community.
I am learning a ton here in Peru and love the opportunities I have been blessed with to participate with Centro Esperanza in several projects demonstrating solidarity and learning mutually alongside other women. Our semester break at the university has just begun and I look forward to doing a little bit of relaxing, taking a short trip and being able to involve myself more with Centro Esperanza for a few weeks before beginning the next semester.
The women in Chosica del Norte have been working with the themes of leadership and violence prevention. Some are more withdrawn and some are very willing to share their stories with me. Many of them have developed leadership skills through the program over the last few years and are continuing to grow. Their go-getter attitudes and resilience inspire me. A week ago, with the help of Centro Esperanza, a dialogue between local residents (parents as well as teenagers) and community authorities (such as women working for a women's treatment center, a psychologist, a police officer in charge of domestic violence cases and someone with a position similar to that of a mayor) was held. Ideas were laid out in hopes of being able to improve lives in the community and reduce domestic violence. I was extremely proud of several of the women from the group that I've been blessed to help with, who stood up with a microphone before the group and addressed the authorities. For several of them, it was the first time in their lives speaking in front of others in such a setting. A little bit of faith and trust in others can go a long way!
The youth have learned about a variety of topics including leadership, happiness, their anscestors and how the past affects them today, and this last week got the chance to learn some breakdancing. They were thrilled. Breakdancing was fun for many of the 12-14 year-olds, but especially for some of the more mischievous/ornery boys.
In San Borja, we are helping to organize a group of women who have worked in or are working in organic gardens which they use for a different purposes, such as providing nutritious meals for their families and selling vegetables and herbs as a source of income. As we have just recently begun going, we do not have a set location nor do we yet know how many people are likely to arrive. This last week, Sarah, Marcela and I (3 volunteers from Centro Esperanza) arrived in the community, but did not see any of the women. We were forced to fall back on a tactic that I came to know well in Kenya of asking a child that happened along our path to lead us to his/her home to speak with the mother and then to take us to other women who work in the gardens. In this way we gathered a small group and one of them offered to allow us to use her home. Throughout the next 1.5 hours, nearly all of the women we had been expecting showed up at the home by some unknown form of communication. It's something I'll probably never fully understand...the networks of communication in such communities. While Sarah and I gathered information from the women about their pasts and helped them to get to know one another better, Marcela did a wonderful job of playing with their children outside so as to keep them from pestering their mothers. Sounds of singing and laughing filtered into the adobe home along with rays of afternoon sun on the dirt floor. Some of these women have had few opportunities to strengthen their skills in relationship to earning an income or being a leader, but a few of them left us surprised, like an older woman who has been able to fly to Lima 4 times as a part of her efforts of delivering food/milk to families in her community.
I am learning a ton here in Peru and love the opportunities I have been blessed with to participate with Centro Esperanza in several projects demonstrating solidarity and learning mutually alongside other women. Our semester break at the university has just begun and I look forward to doing a little bit of relaxing, taking a short trip and being able to involve myself more with Centro Esperanza for a few weeks before beginning the next semester.
Youth Group in Chosica del Norte
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