Bugs tend to get a bad rap. They’re creepy and crawly, they bite and sting, they invade kitchens and destroy wood. Yet many bugs are more than welcome in a garden, so yesterday in gardening class we added some friendly insects to our own. Serena, our current art teacher, joined us as we scavenged for rocks that looked, with more than a little imagination, like insects.

When everyone had found the perfect rock, we trekked back inside and opened the acrylic paints. Soon ladybugs, butterflies, bumblebees, and unidentifiable but ridiculously cute creatures began to appear. Jean Pierre, an artist with remarkable …Read More

I had my first meltdown since the first week here. I was about to plant all the new herb seedlings outside when I discovered that both pairs of my gardening gloves were gone. They had been Christmas gifts from Schuyler’s brother and sister-in-law, and I felt particularly attached to them. I frantically searched the biblioteca, where I keep all the gardening tools, but they were nowhere to be found.

I got a bit frantic and worked up a sweat. That happens quite easily here actually. Overwhelmed with frustration that yet another item disappeared–this time personal items that mean more to me …Read More

I did it! I made it to and from Maestro on my own. Aside from nearly getting off the first combi too soon, the trip was a pretty smooth one. I felt triumphant when I finally marched my gringa self into the Maestro, and I completely ignored the heads that turned my way.

I’m sure my presence seemed odd: I being the only white person I had seen since I left our house let alone in the store, I being a woman, by myself, in a remote mega hardware store, knowing exactly where to find the garden department, being completely comfortable …Read More

Since our classes ended, and the next session doesn’t start until next week, we have a full week without classes. I also spent several days in bed last week due to allergies knocking me off my feet. Sneezing, runny nose, sore throat, pounding headache, queasy stomach, tight chest, exhaustion…. I’m wondering now if maybe it wasn’t just allergies after all, since I now have a horrendous-sounding cough.

Anyway, all that is to say that I’ve had a lot of “down” time within the last week, and I spent much of it driving myself crazy by  obsessively looking online for job possibilities …Read More

Last week Alvaro’s beautifully painted pot was stolen. Nothing else was touched–just his pot, which happened to have the largest sprouts. I could tell he was disappointed, but he took the news graciously. Why is it that things like that happen to the sweetest kids? It’s really not fair.

Yesterday morning we had a health campaign in Zone M, so a truck rolled up outside the house at 4:45 a.m. to transport the Light & Leadership tent from our house to Zone M. Sadly they forgot to re-lock the gate when they finished. All the volunteers …Read More