More Teodoro Happenings...

It's a rare week at my school, Teodoro Gomez de la Torre, 

if we actually have five full days of classes.  

Here's a glimpse into the culture of our school

-- where there's always something going on ...

Mingas and Our New Playground

One day a minga was organized.  A minga is basically a community work party.  Each class was assigned a different area of the school to clean, or refresh.  These students were cleaning the weeds from the basketball courts, and the courtyard/ parking lot.  I saw other students cleaning the swimming pool, repainting murals, and cleaning/ repainting classrooms.  Some classes were working in the school garden and others were making new gardens.  This commitment to community service really resonated with me.  I wish we could replicate this idea in the United States. 

Parents also came to the minga to help disinfect desks, repaint classrooms, pick-up garbage and help keep the students busy. 

I stood and watched these parents for a long time.  They built a fence and then 
planted grass to try to improve the playground. 

Then, the following Monday, this happened...  The Mayor decided to provide city funds for a new playground.  When we arrived at school, we were all surprised to see a front-end loader in the courtyard and the Mayor, followed by the local TV crews, ceremoniously laid the first stone.
In reality, we all know why this happened: the Mayor was up for re-election one week later and Teodoro School is the largest school in the city.  He was banking on some votes
for his very generous project.

But, if I was a parent who spent all day the previous Friday trying to plant the grass, I'd be mad.  Perhaps this was part of the reason why the Mayor didn't get enough votes to win.

So, now, this is what our playground looks like. The kids have no place to play,
except the parking lot, for the rest of the school year.  

Cross-City Championships

Sports is king here in Ecuador, and the month of March meant the cross-city championships between rival schools.  Two students from each class were selected to be on the "Selection Team" to represent Teodoro in futbal and basketball for their grade level.  My brother, Pablo, played for the 3rd and 4th grade Selection Team for indoor soccer and he was able to miss many days of classes for practice and competition.  

It ended up that his team won their grade-level championships and 
were treated like royalty by the local TV news.  

Pablo is on the right sporting his new blue shoes.  He was so proud to be apart of this experience. 

Foundation Day

Again.  Again?

"Didn't we take a week in October to celebrate the founding of our school 

with parades and speeches?", I asked.

"Yes, we're doing it again- but just for one day."

It was a beautiful morning for an assembly of all 4800 students on the basketball courts. 

Then, there was an evening torchlight parade with balloons, fake torches and the school principal and student body president leading us all downtown in the back of a pick-up.  Here you can see 

Margarita and Jose in the bottom right walking in this parade.  All the members of Jose's family, including all of his siblings, most of his nieces and nephews, and now his children, have attended Teodoro.  He is a Teodorista through and through!

We paraded downtown to the original high school where a plaque was placed to commemorate 135 years since the founding of our school, and the years of historic importance in the community. 

Then they let the balloons go....

And the band led us all back to the school. 

Día del Maestro

In April, it was Día del Maestro- or Day of the Teacher... and the kids and the teachers love to take the day for food and fun.  It is tradition for students to shower their teachers with roses, chocolates, fruit baskets, cake, cards, lots of food, and speeches of appreciation. 

Some classes gave passionate speeches about the importance of teachers in their lives.  They also read poems, sang songs, or performed a special dance.  And teachers go from class to class 
all day long absorbing the fanfare.  One class of students gave me a little plaque, too. 

Culture and Geography English Club

And finally, Kendall and I pulled off another English Club for our International Baccalaureate Students.  This time we focused on geography and cultures around the world.  For five different weeks, we studied maps of each region, and then participated in activities to learn more about the history, the language, culture, music, dance, stories and food from Israel/ Palestine, New Zealand, Ukraine, Ethiopia and India.  When our sessions were complete, we asked students if after learning about these places, would they like to learn and travel more around the world? They all raised their hand.
Mission accomplished.  The students obviously enjoyed our club,
and I learned a lot from my site-mate and resident culture expert, Kendall.

My Birthday on Volcán Imbabura

50 years.  It's hard to imagine.  It's hard to say.  

But April 17th has come around 50 times in my existence 

and here I am.  Perhaps exactly where I need to be.  

I knew the day was going to be special, when, as I was finishing up my morning yoga practice, I heard a mariachi version of Happy Birthday blaring from the living room.
When I entered the house a little later, a beautiful breakfast of eggs and sausage, bread, fruit, and a bouquet of strawberry roses were waiting for me.  My Ecuadorian family sang to me and helped me start my special day.

Then, later that evening, Margarita and Pablo prepared a lovely dinner, and dessert for me.  

I loved my presents and all their efforts to make my day special. 

Pablo made me a special card, too. 

My birthday day was centered around work and family, but the next day I did something for me.  This is Volcán Imbabura.  It is a 15,190 foot inactive volcano that is the 17th highest volcano in Ecuador.  That might not sound too impressive, but at that elevation, it is higher than any mountain in the Lower 48 States.  Volcán Imbabura plays a very prominent cultural and climatic role in this valley and many believe it is the father and sacred protector of the region.  The mountain and the Province of Imbabura has also, as of this week, been designated as a UNESCO World GeoPark for its geological importance in the world.  And, since I stare at it every day, this mountain has become very important to me.

For just over a year now, I've been living on its flanks and have dreamed of seeing the world from the crater at the top.  Unfortunately, a broken rib and two sprained ankles last Fall definitely slowed my training efforts for tackling this hike.  But as April approached, I decided that on the first day of my next 50 years, I should symbolically climb this mountain to represent all I've overcome and all I still get to do.  So, I kicked up my training regimen to include early morning walk/ runs and finally felt ready to go.

From the trailhead, there are many "false summits".  I really didn't know which one 
I would get to, I just knew I had to head up through the paramo grasses, and into the clouds.  
It's the rainy season here in Ecuador now, but I was lucky to have a beautiful day!

Just follow the trail up, up, up ....

...and marvel at the views of the valley below.

The plants became more amazing the higher I climbed into the Andean Paramo. 

As I was getting close, the roiling clouds added to the drama of the altitude, 

but prevented me from seeing down the other side. 

I did it!  With relative ease, I made it to one of Imbabura's summits at around 14,000 feet.  

Although I did not attempt to climb the knife edge spine of crumbly rock forming
it's highest thumb, I felt very satisfied with my efforts.  I sat at the top,
ate some chocolate chip cookies and silently toasted my life. 

The journey through and up has been, and still is, amazing.
New perspectives keep me inspired to learn, grow and be the best I can be.  

In my 50 years, I've learned that I am strong.  But more recently, I've learned that I'm
really strong.  In fact, I know now that I can do anything, and that's probably
the greatest gift I can give myself.

I wonder what I will do in my next 50 years?

Carmen; Mi Tía, Mi Amiga

Si desea traducir este blog al español, desplácese un poco hacia abajo, haga clic en el botón "traducir" en el lado derecho y elija "Español" en la lista de idiomas.

                                        ++++++++++++++++++++

One of my goals for coming to live in Ecuador was to make a connection with the people.  In this very relationship centered culture, I have learned that before people are willing to share too much about themselves, there is a considerable amount of time spent on building trust and getting to know each other through conversation.  These conversations happen typically over cafecita, a daily ritual of bread and tea or coffee.  As my Spanish is getting better, I'm starting to have these very connecting conversations with new friends and members of my family.  And because their stories are so interesting, I decided that I want to write a few "biography" posts to introduce you to these beautiful people, too.

Biography: Carmen Lourdes Balla Carmilema

In my short time with my family, I've been lucky that so many of the extended members have welcomed me with open arms.  But Carmen, the owner of the "tienda", and the one who initially trusted me enough to introduce me to this wonderful family, has made special effort to open up and share her stories with me.

I stop by the tienda regularly on my way home from school and if I have time, I buy a soda and sit in the back of her store.  Sometimes we chat for more than an hour, in between the comings and goings of her customers.  Think of this tienda as a convenience store and an old-fashioned general store, where you stand around and gab, and get the latest news about everybody's life.  Although Carmen and I are about the same age, she told me that she considers me like a daughter or a niece.  I love how she dotes on me and always gets excited when I arrive.

Carmen is originally from Bacun, in the hills above Riobamba, 7 hours to the south of Ibarra.  She grew up in the stone house I visited during Carnaval and is the sister of Margarita's dad.  Simon, who you met in my previous post, is her father.  Carmen was the middle of 7 children living off the land out in the countryside.  Her mother died of cancer when she was only 9 years old.  The mother's death was really hard on the family, because it meant one less pair of hands.  Many of the children stopped attending school to help with all the cooking, cleaning and farmwork.  Carmen remembers carrying the laundry almost a mile to the river to do the washing.  After seven months, her father, Simon, remarried Nieves, but in Carmen's memory, Nieves wasn't so kind to Simon's young children.  Nieves also didn't know how to cook for a big family and Carmen had to teach her.  For three years, Carmen would rise at 5:00 am to start cooking breakfast for the family.  She missed a lot of school.

At the age of 12, after finishing 6th grade, Carmen decided to move to Quito.  She lived with her older brother who was already married and living in the big city.  Because they had no money to pay for the uniforms or books required in secondary school, Carmen had to start working to help pay her way.  She never returned to school.  Instead, she worked long days as a maid, washing, ironing and cleaning houses.  Her life was very hard.

















At the age of 17, she met Wilo.  He was from Ibarra but was living and working in Quito.  After only 3 months of dating, they decided to get married.  Because Carmen was under the age of 18, she needed written permission from her father.  Simon's decision to allow the marriage caused a big family riff for a few years, as her siblings did not approve of this marriage.  But Carmen and Wilo did get married in 1990 and they moved to Ibarra.  They lived with Wilo's parents, while they built a small concrete block house on the neighboring land.  To pay for the wood and nails, they had to borrow some money, but since Wilo worked construction, they formed the 3,500 concrete blocks themselves.  In addition to building the house, Carmen spent her time helping with the crops, and all their animals.  In this country, it is not uncommon for a family to raise cows, pigs, chickens, cuys or sheep, and Carmen and Wilo have it all.  They worked very hard, and paid their bank loan off in three months.

Then the baby girls started coming, four in all: Jessica, Susana, Johana, and Margorie.  As the girls were getting older and more responsible, Carmen returned to work as a domestic servant to cook, clean and take care of other people's children.  Usually she left her own family early in the morning and did not return until after they were in bed.  The girls each had specific responsibilities around the house: the kitchen, the laundry, the cleaning - and always, their studies.  Carmen loves learning and always impressed upon her daughters the importance of their education, and the value in believing in themselves and their dreams.

Now, years later, their hard work is paying off.  Jessica is a professional nurse.  Susana is finishing a degree as a Robotics Engineer.  Johana is majoring in art, and wants to be an art professor, and Margorie, who is still in high school, is interested in studying in Quito for a degree in forensic medicine.

Wilo, Johana, Carmen, and Marjorie in the bright pink
Susy and Jessy in the front.
There's so much laughter in this warm and welcoming family! 

In the meantime, Carmen decided to buy this tienda and go into business for herself.  All the members of this family take turns and work here from 6am-10pm, 7 days a week.  I asked her about shortening her hours a little, and she worries that if she closes any earlier, she'll lose some customers.  It's true, she has quite a customer base of neighbors, being the only tienda up on this hill.  But she likes the extra income and is considering using it to buy a car, or perhaps pay for some private schooling for herself.  Her big dream is to take some math courses to help with her business, and finally graduate from high school.


I hope Carmen can someday reach her dream.  She is a strong and beautiful woman.  She's very proud of herself and her family.  She credits Simon for teaching her to keep an open door to all people, and always enjoy life with a smile.

Thank you Carmen for your friendship, your love and your trust in me.