Herbs, biking and art
Posted by Kathryn Schmidt; pictures by Abby Banning, David Leaman Miller and Kristopher Schmidt
Always more to share! As photos keep coming in from various cameras, I’m reminded that this experience is multi-faceted and fast-paced. We move from one delicious meal to another; take in a fascinating lecture, then head off on a field trip; meet to debrief, share, and discuss some readings. It’s a delightful whirlwind. There is a lot of laughter, a few tears, some wrestling with our 2 little boys, some necessary bathroom conversations (for all of us). We’re becoming a family.
This week we’ve learned about herbs from Alicia, and got to try many types of teas that can heal a myriad of issues including our kidneys, altitude sickness, and even that mild cough that’s been going around. Sunday morning, a bunch of us went biking along Arequipa which was closed to traffic for this purpose. What a wonderful way to see the city; we all biked around 10 kms, including Jonah!
Still on our minds is our experience at Manos Amigas, where we tried to behave as artisans. It is MUCH harder than it looks, although Lena’s mariposa is quite cute! Also, the Museo Larco offered some much older and much more beautiful artifacts than the ones we made . . .
On the roster this week: a dance lesson; a visit to the Museo de Arte de Lima; also a visit to the Cono Sur, a suburb of Lima where we will help with a hard-working community garden. While there we will have the privilege of witessing the way of life for people in the Pueblo Jovenes, these vast and bustling municipalities of Lima that started as the poor staking a claim, taking over land, and building their own homes with limited resources. Some live without electricity or water, so we anticipate lots of gratitude for the many gifts we have. We have been told to bring candy for the many kids that will be following this crazy group of gringos around.
All of the students are grappling with our North American affluence. We don’t know what to do with it, and yet the richness of this experience (of course a result of that wealth) is something we don’t want to give up. We are all working on greater gratitude, generosity, and courage to keep on asking the tough questions.
Finally, our digestive systems are on a learning curve as well! These brave students keep on trying new foods and continue to navigate the ever changing internal symptoms along the way.
Always an adventure!
