whims

spring

Yesterday was the first day of spring and the sun actually came out! That was exciting. It wasn't too warm but there was a bit of sun. (In case you don't know, Lima is overcast for the entirety of winter. Gray clouds. No sun, generally. The light, though not direct, can be bright...but no sun) I think the weather will continue getting better and better.

This week with the boys was not normal. While our time together went fine and I got to love them all a bit more everyday, I encountered serious frustration with the home itself. Last week one boy ran away. He went to live with a neighboor and aparently told her that they don't feed him in the home, they hit him, they keep him in a dark room, and other such lies. This is not the first time he's run away. He's done it quite a bit, actually. The women came to see the home and when they saw that the things he said couldn't possibly be true, they didn't know what to do. I believe originally they were going to go to a judge and tyr to get custody of him. NOw, who knows. I asked one of the directors what'll happen to him if they decide not to try to get custody. 'He'll go to a center run by the police' he told me. He can't come to the home. It's sad. Very sad. I respect this decision. THat place is a community and this boy obviously can't be part of the community. The reason I got upset with the director was becuase he never stopped to think about why the boy may have run away. Yes, all the boys have food, a bed, a shower, school...their basic needs are met..more than. THat's a great thing, something the boys wouldn't have otherwise, but that place is supposed to be their home and it's more like a holding cell or prison...at least it feels that way sometimes. THat director just yells and yells. He never smiles. He has so many rules that it's no wonder one of the boys is always 'doing something wrong.' THey have to finishall their food. THey have to eat a a certain pace. ON Monday they're all going to get their hair cut the same way. They have no liberty. THeir reasoning skills are not being cultivated. More than this, though, these boysare victims of violence and they not only are not reciving regular psychiartric care (because of lack of money, i believe) but they're not even being treated with the respect and love a normal child would be. I can harldy stand to be in the same room when that director talks to the boys. They don't want to be bad, but that environment is so rigid, even I want to break all the rules. He talks to them like they're adults. 'You need to change. You've been here three years and u still haven't changed. If u don't change, you know what'll happen.' He also said, 'I'm not oging back tot he school foryou. No more.' (there are some problems getting them into school because they'renaughty.) IF U DON'T WANT TO GO BACK,IF U DON'T WANT TO DO THE THINGSTHAT THESE BOYS NEED...LEAVE!!! He lives there with them. He needs a vacation. He needs a life of his own. I got really upset. I have to think abouthow i want to approach this sitiuation and what i wantto do...waht i can do.


on a lighter note, a funn sotry. ONe of the political parites of the region has an officeon the ground floor of our building. ON friday they set up a stage and it looked like they were going ot have a manifestation of some sort. I was sititng with the family at about 8 or 9 at night in the apartment and we decided to go down to have a look at what was going on. My family joked that I should hurry and take a picture with the canditate, that way he'll get elected for sure. All u needis a blonde, evidently. Well, we arrived too late. THere was already a blonde on thescene. SHe was dancing in 7 in. heels, wearing a gold glittery two piece almost nothing. SHe pulled a few guys out of the crowd to grind with her and a little later, pulled up one of the candidates. After her short show (show of short shorts) a male singer entered the stage and sang a few salsa songs quite poorly. He wore black pants and a black long sleeve button down shirt with sequins on the chest. AFter him, another woman appeared. She was wearing a green sequin dress straight form the 80's and danced moderately well to a song. My family kept laughing and laughing but I was too busy taking pictures to notice the detail that they had found so funny. Right at the end of the song,I saw it: her dress had a huge gape in the back, totally open. Poor girl, I said. After her song was over, she waltzed over to the edge of teh stage and, with the help of some man, managed to take off her dress, exposing her 'interior clothing'. The gap wasn't a mistake, but a result of the fact that that dress wasn't designed to be on for very long. She rentered the stage wearing two green sequined circles over her part of her breasts, a green sequined triangle down below, and a tail like object in the back. Yea. She danced again. Ohmy god. This was for a political party, remember. NOne of uscould believe it. I took some pictures, but unfortuntately, I can't get them to download onto this computer. I'm sure ur all completely dissappointed. After her, the candidates got up on stage and gave a pledge of somesort....to be honest and moral.....hm. Well, they certianly managed to gain a few dozen votes of the guys in the audience.

Today, I returned to the house of the woman from the airport. It nice and very relaxing. I don't know if she's trying ot set me up with her son, ornot, but it didn't seemlike it today, and therefore I was more relaxed. We drove around looking for plots her daughter could buy and wow...it was so so nice to be in a personal car again. THe sun was out and we were, of course, in a part of town with less traffic, pollution, noise, and people. I just loved breathing air that wasn't completely contaminated. Honestly, I felt like I was in Italy...but that may be because the sun in Italy was fabulous and whenever I feel fabulous in the sun, I think of the UWC. But, it very lovely and I hope that the sun continues to shine. I also hope that the people who actually live in the shanty towns in this part of LIma get to breathe clean air someday too.

posted by Marielly @ 6:52 PM