Week #37 Mother's Day and beyond
Friday May 10 is Mothers' Day in Mexico. There was very little traffic that day, not because it was Mothers Day but because the number of vehicles on the road was reduced in an effort to reduce pollution levels below what are deemed harmful level. Oblivious, senior missionaries marked it with an outdoor BBQ on the grounds of the Palmas offices where we work. We live on the west side of the city where pollution is not an issue. I cleaned up the BBQ and cooked marinated pork loins, others brought the remainder of the meal elements. We had hoped to play a few BBQ-appropriate games but that wasn't as much of a hit - perhaps when I'm in my mid-seventies, like many of the senior missionaries we work with, I won't be so enthusiastic either. The Asbell's bought a corn hole game that we have been using as an excuse to take breaks during our workdays. It got a bit of use before we ate. The BBQ is made to use charcoal and you control the heat by opening and closing the vents at the bottom and top of it, just like the one I have in Lethbridge but double the capacity. Unfortunately, neither the starter nor the charcoal we had behaved the way I expected. We ended up building a bonfire of sticks on top of the pile of charcoal and doing a whole bunch fanning to light the charcoal - the heat eventually generated was just enough to cook the meat and I was grateful.
On Saturday we went to our assigned ward's Mothers Day event (Barrio San Mateo) that started with a devotional followed by a meal, a program and then a dance. As part of the program, the brethren enthusiastically sang a version of Las Mañanitas, Mexico's traditional birthday song. I was hoping to come in on the chorus but alas mine was only moral support as this was a version I had not heard before. The meal was mixiotes, pork wrapped in parchment paper with seasonings and nopales (cactus) and then steamed for a number of hours. On Sunday morning after church, the leftovers were served as tacos.
On Sunday we celebrated Mothers Day again, this time to mark the date in Canada and the United States - we only caught the last 10 minutes as our call with our "kids" was our priority and it started at the same time.
A number of weeks ago I shared a photo of a fellow taking down a house with a 10# hammer, the front gate was open this week when I walked by and so I popped in and chatted with the project manager. He said they were taking it down by hand so as to not do structural damage to the neighbouring properties. A seven story apartment building will be going up in its stead. They still have one floor to go. A guy with a hammer was at work. This week they brought in a machine to finish the job.
On the way back from Chedraui (grocery store), I was chatting with our taxi driver, Fernando. He was listening to music that made me wonder if he was also a singer, eventually he asked me if I like to sing and shortly after he burst into song - I took a very short clip but enough for you hear how good he is. He said he has worked at the same taxi stand by Chedruaui for over a decade and told us that he sings on the return trip back to the stand. He's an aspiring mariachi...
I mentionned losing or internet access, it took 7 days to reconnect us. This is the second time this has happened with both instances taking this long to resolve. Our manager committed to raise the issue one level up, accepting that not having connectivity results in a significant opportunity costs with four of the six people having to find and maintain workarounds tagging phones, working from our Teca Once apartments or borrowing work stations in the main office building from people that happen to be working from home on a given day. Talking to the maintenance people, they are looking into providing connections to an alternate line for everyone, so that when one goes off line there is a seamless option.
The following week Sister Schlachter and I participated in a project in a place called San Lorenza Estado de Mexico, to help install tanks to store captured rain water. The activity was organized by two of the organizations that we fund, mostly for their staff, a "gentleman's" work party as the task was quite simple. What I enjoyed most was getting to know the family that received the tank we helped to install and the guys that implement projects for these organizations. The fellow directing our work said he and his family used to live in Mexico City but moved to this area a number of years ago to live and enjoy a safer, simpler life - a decision they are still very happy with.
At the end of the day the community prepared and shared a meal with us that they made with things produced by the families as a result of this and other projects (hard boiled eggs, cauliflower, beans and tortillas). This same family benefited from the water system, a henhouse with hens, a fenced in garden spot and stove with a chimney to carry the smoke away from the cooking area. In the video link, we re-attached the chimney as it had somehow been disconnected but the stove was still hot. A bunch of gals were busy making quesadillas for our meal on a the old stove (comal) when we had a look. The boy's name is Jesús. He was pleased with our invitation to leave his signature and handprint in the concrete base of the hand pump. The rain water is collected from the roof of their home. Keeping the chickens corralled allows the family to control their diet and the quality of the eggs they produce. Like the garden, what the family doesn't eat can be sold to generate cash - all designed to help them be self-reliant.
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