Nebaj Part II

I'm in Nabaj, Guatemala, which is about four hours from Ixtahuacan, passing over from the Mam region into Quiche/Ixil region. Regions are more or less divided based on the native languages. Here, in Nebaj, the language is Ixil. Quiche (key-chay) is the capital of the region, where Quiche is spoken. Although I'm only a few hours away, there are definitely cultural differences here that I've been adjusting to. Thus far, they've only been minor, such as greetings and thanking everyone individually after finishing a meal (in Ixta, we just said a general thank you). I imagine there will be more once I feel settled in.

In my time here, I've missed, along with my human family, my cat and my dog. Luckily where I am now, there are always lots of animals around, and the cat here loves attention, so we've gotten along well. Pet culture (I suppose that's what you could call it) doesn't exist here. Well, sort of. Many people have dogs specifically to guard the house or warn if someone (or something) is coming. The dogs are not allowed inside (most of the time) and are fed the scraps of leftover food. In the city, there are hundreds (maybe that's an exaggeration, but in any case, a significant number) of stray dogs or dogs who spend the day wandering the streets, as some of them have owners. It's a little overwhelming, but luckily, most of them are afraid of people or at least, not aggressive toward people. I feel terrible when there's a female dog in heat and there's literally a pack of males following her...

Michelle

Mali

They were hungry and came to let me know.

The one that is perched was cold and was trying to sit
beneath its mate, who wasn't interested in warming him up.
This is from my bed.

Nebaj is a little colder than Ixta, and a lot wetter. There's a lot of mud and not many roads are paved. It's been getting warmer, though, as we're entering the dry season, but it can still be cold at night. We've had several chicks die because they wandered from their mothers during the night (though, the two mother hens don't care for them very well).

I still miss home quite a bit. Since I've been in Guatemala I've seen lots of interesting t-shirts and other clothing from the States (clothes that don't sell at Salvation Army etc eventually make their way down here). Most interestingly I've seen a few from Indiana specifically: Indiana Hoosiers, Notre Dame University (10 minutes from where I grew up), a few from Indy, and one that said Manchester Township (not quite Indiana, but close enough for me). I'm not sure if the Universe is calling me home, or if it's trying to tell me that home is here...

P.S. Something I've learned recently: the term "ladino" (previously misspelled ladrino in an earlier post) is an offensive term for those of mixed culture. If you were to look up the word in the dictionary, you would find "robber" or "thief". I'm told the term originates from back when the colonialists first arrived, when a Spanish man would father a child, whose mother was indigenous, and neither the father nor the mother wanted the child, because it was associated with the other parent's culture. So in order to survive, they became thieves. I apologize for using the word so loosely earlier, but I suppose that's part of the learning process. The proper term to use is "mestiza", or mixed, for anyone who's curious.

Thanks for reading.

Nebaj (nay-bach)

In my last post I talked about choosing a site for my two years of service, and since then I have chosen a site. Unfortunately because of the time crunch, Todd and I were only able to visit Nebaj, which is where I am now. Along with BVS, I am working with a Guatemalan organization called CIEDG, which stands for Conferencia de Iglesias Evangelicas D..? Guatemala, or Church Conferences of Guatemala. CIEDG works on a local scale, giving presentations on the basics of business, women’s rights, importance of hygiene, among other things. CIEDG has also provided greenhouse plastic (and sometimes the wood or PVS for the building structure) for several groups of families here in Nebaj as well as the surrounding aldeas (towns outside of a city). When I visited Nebaj the first time, I got to know who is now my host mother, as well as her immediate and extended family. While originally I was hesitant to agree to come here, once I found out that I would stay with Cata, I felt a lot more excited about being part of this community.

As a result of the civil war (which I will talk about later, after I learn enough to say something), many of the Ixil people were either killed or displaced and are now living in unfamiliar places, where they do not always know how to grow food. This is one reason for the greenhouses. The greenhouses serve as another source of food or income, if there is excess, during the winter months here. While a Guatemalan winter is not the same as a winter in Indiana, it is still difficult to grow food during this time. During my first time in Nebaj, it rained every day except the last and for the week I was there, there were four days without sun (The weather definitely contributed to my hesitation to stay here. I am definitely sensitive to ‘winter blues’).

Now that I am here and it has stopped raining, I am growing to like it. I live in one of the aldeas called Visajcub (vee-sa-coobp). It is about a 15-30 minute walk from the town depending on if you are camindando or paseando. It is beautiful here, and there are three green houses on Cata’s family’s property (she only participates in caring for one of them). While I am happy to be here, it has also been a struggle, even in these few days. I never really felt called to be here in Nebaj, and I may have misread a ‘sign’ to even come to Guatemala. Although I am still in Guatemala, Nebaj has a different set of cultural norms than Ixtahuacan, which I am still figuring out. In terms of gender norms, Guatemala is rather traditional, which has been frustrating for me, as I tend to be a little more masculine (especially in the way I dress). Here, appearance is incredibly important. People have outfits specifically for going into town, and most people are keen on looking sharp. I did not bring dress shoes nor sandals, and my baggy jeans are a sight sore, but it is what I like. It is difficult wanting to fit in, but at the same time being (at my core), radically different from this culture.

I have also been struggling (again) with language. I’m not sure if there is a different dialect here, but I’ve been having trouble understanding people, as well as expressing myself. I find myself dreaming of going home, what I will do once BVS is over, and even catch myself looking at other BVS sites as though I would change. I am determined, at this time, to stay here for at least six months. If it hasn’t changed, then I will work on an alternative plan. I need to be more proactive and participatory until then…

Adios.