Gifts Galore

today was an incredible experience. Sam and i got to meet William and his Mom. jeff and i sponsor two children in Bolivia through an organization called CFCA - Christian Foundation for Children and Aging. (We were introduced to CFCA the first time we went to Bolivia.) i had tried to contact CFCA to be able to meet the children when i was still in the USA. it wasn't working so well. the last call i made was in the airport in Miami on the way down and at that point they were going to have both children and their families come to La Paz at the end of my trip even though i would be in Carmen Pampa where William goes to school. His community is 3 kilometers from Carmen Pampa, but there is no middle/high school there. He is 13 years old. Well, the first gift would be getting the opportunity to see him and his family here. When we arrived at Carmen Pampa we found out that a CFCA coordinator named Daniel, who is responsible for over 200 children in 5 communities in this valley, was coming to arrange the visit. He arranged the visit for this afternoon. It was one of the most humbling experiences i have ever had. When Sam and i arrived they came to meet us with necklaces of flowers and fruit. Then each of the adults there welcomed each one of us individually by sprinkling either confetti or flower petals in our hair and giving us a handshake, a hug and a kiss on each cheek. The honor and welcome conveyed was overwhelming.

Sam, Daniel, and i (and a little friend) after the welcome. it would be an insult to brush or shake off any of the confetti or petals or take off the necklaces. Some of the older men and women were so little and bent over i had to bend down for them to reach the top of my head.

Then we went into the dining room of the school... just a few tables... and there were words of welcome from the "mayor" of the community and the president and the vice president of the CFCA organization of the community. Then William and his Mom were introduced with words of welcome and thanks from them. Then they moved the table that was in front of us and spread a blanket on the floor and put out all the food they brought. We were each given a bowl and a spoon...they used their fingers to eat...and invited to enjoy whatever we wanted from the spread. There were lots of kinds of potatoes and plantains and eggs fixed in a variety of ways. There was also lots of rice and pasta. Fresh squeezed orange juice... the real deal! (I even tried the sheep stomach... tasted a little like squid) After we had filled our plates everyone else helped themselves to the meal.

A Bolivian potluck!

They asked me to give William the gifts i had brought for him so everyone could see what they were. i had asked him what his favorite subject in school is and he said "language" so i was happy i had brought books. Sam said how much he had enjoyed "Chronicles of Narnia" as a child and how he hoped William would enjoy the stories and share them as well. William and his mom gave us coffee and honey and a huge bottle of Coke.

William, Julia, me & Sam standing outside the door of the school.

The flowers are special as they are yellow, green, and red... the colors of the Bolivian flag.

Then we went to their house... only one room with three beds..his grandmother lives with them...a dorm sized frig, a small tv... now that i think about it, i don't know where they cooked...They showed us pictures of William's big sister and the rest of his extended family. they showed us a video of celebrations... dancing.. in Corioco...

Sam & me with William, Julia, William's abuelita (grandma) and tio (uncle) in their home.

Then we went back to the school and everyone said goodbye individually just as they had said welcome and hello. By the time we left, the rest of the community had given us a huge sack of plantains and tangerines and more Coke and bread. We couldn't carry it all so William and his Mom walked the 3 kilos back to Carmen Pampa in the rain on the muddy, rocky road with us... me in my hiking boots and his Mom, Julia, in her thin little flip flops in the rocks and mud. Before we left, they gave me a traditional aguayo...the little blanket the women use to carry everything from babies to groceries on their back. It's always been a mystery to me as to how they used those things, so i was super excited to see how it worked as William's Mom filled it up with a couple of bottles of Coke. i was delighted when she tied it on me and told me it was a gift.

The community of San Pedro de la Loma.

The only thing missing in the day was having Jeff and Marilyn and B here to share it.
My thanks to Jeff and B for holding down the fort. My thanks to Sam for translating when there were too many words too fast. My thanks to Daniel for making the visit possible. And my thanks to William and Julia and all the people of San Pedro de la Loma for the gift of their open hearts and their strength of spirit and their warm hospitality. These are a gifts i will never forget. When we were getting ready to leave the people kept saying, "Don't forget us." My thought was, "How do you say 'Fat chance!' in Spanish?" Even though, officially, Jeff and i sponsor William, and indirectly help his whole community, the question that keeps going through my head is... "Who is really helping who here?"