Carnaval

Carnaval has come and gone, but I think that water balloons and kids with squirt guns will stick around for a long time. I know I plan to continue to use my own small squirt gun in class as a classroom management technique for months to come!

two of my detention regulars:)

At school, we had our own celebration. We had classes in the morning, and then spent all of Friday afternoon celebrating. Each grade had prepared a traditional dance to perform in front of the school. Some of the teachers and staff also prepared a dance, Saya-Afro Boliviano, which I participated in! It was so much fun to practice and perform this dance. My housemate recorded it, so I'll try to post it in my next blog.

me and Jenny in dance dress

It was especially fun to dance in front of my kids; they went crazy screaming for me and Jenny! We even threw in a little can-can to spice up the traditional dance when we were in front of them:)

me, the director's wife, Jenny and Alma

my students

me and Vanessa (one of my students)

two of my girls in full costume

After the dance, we had a school wide water fight. I was supposed to be supervising one section, but instead, I got SOAKED by all my kids down there with huge super-soakers. They thought it was the coolest thing ever to get to get their teacher wet at school. Even though I was sopping wet, I thought it was pretty fun, too.

Aside from all the fun of Carnaval, there's a dark side to the celebrations. It's a mezcla of both the Catholic tradition of Lent, and the pagan offerings and prayers to Pachamama, the Incan Earth goddess. On Tuesday, our landlord came over to ch'allar our house. Ch'allar is a Quechua word for the act of making offerings to Pachamama. They burn fake money, herbs, and other things in a "koa", a small coal fire, and decorate all things sacred with colored string and balloons. The belief is that if they offer sacrifices to Pachamama, she will bless them in the year to come. It was hard to know how to respond to such an empty ritual, and I felt almost oppressed by the hopelessness of it when our landlord came over to burn sacrifices at our house

There's much more to share about the last few weeks: a church baptism, the women's co-op, updates on old ministries.... To be continued

Kati

P.S. "O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things, things planned long ago." Isaiah 25:1