A Day in the Field

Just call me Motorcyle Mama
Yesterday, since the learning center was going to be closed, I had asked to go with one of the facilitadoras or -doros) into the field to visit the Trust Banks,the groups of women who receive the Friendship Bridge (Puente de Amistad here) loans. So Wednesday morning I was told I could go with Diego and should be there at 8 or 8:30 the next morning. Then marta asked if I had a car? When I said no, she asked if I had a motorcycle? When I said no, she indicated that if I wanted, I could ride with Diego. I felt some misgivings asbout this...but said, "Sure!" since I knew it was the only way I was going to be able to go!

Fortunatley, it turned out Diego had a helmet for me, and also, fortunately, I remembered to ear my own hat, which effectively covered the atrocious helmet-hair when we were with the groups....!

The day was absolutely phenomenal!!! Off we went through town (how different it felt on the back of a bike) and up into the mountains through which I had traveled to get here. When the air turned fresco, after about half an hour, we turned off on a dirt road and went for another half hour, up into the hillside aldeas (this is the word used for the tiny little hillside communities). There we wound down into valleyd and back up onto hills, visitng three different groups of women who either ARE a Trust Bank (a loan group), want to be (one group was together for the first time),or have formed a new group. It was informative to see the different stages of service that the loan officer gives. At the first group Diego explained the whole process, what the women would need to do, what would happen at the next meeting, and how long before they wold receive their loans. Some understood his Spanish, and some women only spoke Quiche (different from the Ixil dialect here in Nebaj). Then a husband of one of the women was translating everything into Quiche for the group as we climbed back on Diego's bike and headed off to the next group.The first was at a community called Salinas Magdalena, the next across Rio Pajarito up into the hills. At this second group, loan payments were made, and then Diego delivered the lesson on maternal health including nutrition and the wisdom of limiting the number of children a woman has for health reasons. He asked how old I was, and they all said 40ish...and he proudly told them, no , 53!! See what good health and not so many babies brings!!!! He also told them that in China people had one baby, and that two was a lot! Que interesante! This location was gorgeous, as you will see from the photos. I asked one teen I was chatting with to take a photo of Diego and I on his bike, so Maria, who is in the photo of the two teenage girls took the photo.