cuentepec: part one

cuentepec is a rural indigenous village about 1.5 hours from cuernavaca that has multiple different problems facing the community. the amazing thing is that it is a very communal community they live pretty harmouneously with each other. (i´m ready to sign up for communal living.) they have a food co-op and are doing other co-ops.

right next to the church a group of women work in the panaderia (bakery) one day a week and rotate with other women to watch children, etc. the men are in the fields and work all day. (we bought a lot of the pan it was delicious, i should hate coca-cola for new reasons but am still currently drinking it)

it sounds pretty ideal but there has been some governmental help/hurt done to the people throughout the years as well. it reminds me a lot of injustice that has happened in the United States with Native Americans. the government won´t subsidize any of their farms because they live this communal lifestyle and won´t be part of industrialization. so a few years ago when there wasn´t rain for 3 years then men had to immigrate to regions where there was work to sent home. this situation could be found in almost any country. theres´s a lot of poverty and hardship.

also pigs running around town

so our group of both mexican and american students were asked to help out in painting a school, repair, sand and paint the church benches, along with the women make an adobe room for a co-op of women to use to sew and make other things together and also we brought some new shelves for the library and put them together.

my group´s job was sanding and painting by hand. honestly i´ve never done this before at least sanding by hand (i´m obvious a rich spoiled american). one thing that seems to be universal is gum underneath church benches. we had some great helpers named david and rodrigo.

it was an eye opening experience and there´s not a quick fix to many of the problems but there are a few that i´d like to see started but we´ll not get into that. i may be calling upon friends and family though...be ready i´ve already thought of jobs for most of you...

we had a great time as a group and will return next week. a lot of this is good exposure to realize the problems in our own country and resolve to relieve poverty, sufferage and injustice not own at home but abroad as well.