7/7 - Happy Bday Mom and Happy Anniversary Newmans!

July 7

Today is my Mom's bday! Happy Birthday, Mom! Luckily, we got to FaceTime for a little bit - it was so good to see my parents and have contact with the rest of the world.  I'm not homesick, but I am definitely missing all of the normal things about life (like hot water and being able to walk barefoot without the fear of bird poop...).
We attempted to go birding this morning on the canopy - but it was rained out, in the rainforest. 🙉 So, we had a dance party in the rain and hiked back to get on a boat to the next lodge. It was so perfect traveling on the Amazon River in the rain - exactly what I expected when I started this journey.  The new Lodge is a definite upgrade - wifi, a separate bar, plumbing and a bathroom/shower in our rooms - it feels like the Ritz!

We went straight to an elementary school in the Jorge Chavez village to visit with the kids, do community service and see how the tribe lives. This was an unbelievable experience I will never forget. The kids put on an assembly for us and then we split up to do service.  My group painted the water purification system tower. A company called Conapac that runs Adoot A School funded a water treatment system for the whole community so they don't drink straight Amazon River water anymore - gross.  After, the kids gave us wood gifts they made (I got a mini paddle!), we danced and sang with them and the toured a house to get a feel for their lives. 

The people of this tribe are into agriculture, with no professional jobs in the vicinity.  The men hunt for fish in the morning and farm, while the women wash clothes, cook and care for the kids.  They have very large families with at least 7 kids and barely any adults went beyond 6th grade. Now, many kids go to high school, but some have to travel an hour by boat to get there.  The house is an open air hut with maybe 2 rooms and no plumbing or electricity (they cook with charcoal).  They sleep on a sheet on the floor and only own what they absolutely need. They were incredibly friendly and welcomed us into their home.

I wanted  to help and my initial reaction was, we need to bring them up to our standards - wifi, cell phones, electricity, ac, processed foods...  Then I realized, they all looked incredibly happy and maybe they don't want these things that I think they need.  My way of life is not the only way, and certainly not better than theirs, just different. They are expert fisherman and have survival jungle skills that would make them victors of the Hunger Games - maybe their way of life should be respected. Instead, I started to think, what changes need to be made to ensure their survival and preservation of the tribe.  How can I help with their health care, education and clean drinking water? Like I mentioned, the organization Conapac is very involved in these 3 areas of rainforest life. The woman who runs it, Cinthia, came to visit from the US and never left.  She lives in Iquitos and travels to the local communities, coordinating efforts to help.  Talk about a person who's heart is full and lives out loud! So many people benefit directly from her - you always hear about people like this, but never actually meet them - she amazed me! Now, I'm not thinking of moving here with the anacondas permanently, but this company is a great place for me to start helping. 😍
Today, I was exposed to an entirely new culture and it definitely affected me in ways I didn't expect. I know I'm in a helping profession already, but it just doesn't feel like enough. I've been spending my summers working or being social (which is definitely important), but it doesn't give me that feel good, warm and fuzzy, I'm helping the world feeling.  I want to seek out more opportunities and don't know yet where I'm headed, but I know it'll be good when I get there. 😊
Next stop - a library visit with Peru teachers and a convo with a doctor from the US who came to the jungle and never looked back!