A Sunny Day for Guatemala

This week has marked a rare occurrence in the Guatemalan highlands. Throughout the past seven days, every afternoon has been sunny. Not only has it been sunny, but it has been warm and downright pleasant.

For those of you who are not familiar with the climate of the Guatemala, the highlands do not boast the balmy, tropical weather that is associated with the rest of Central America. On the contrary, the Guatemalan highlands and Sololá, located 6500 feet above sea level, normally host temperatures ranging from 60°F to the low 70’s. The region has only two seasons of the year: the rainy season and the dry season. Currently in Sololá, we are approaching the end of the rainy season which lasts from May until November, yet sometimes I feel that “rainy” is an understatement. Like clockwork, every day begins with a beautiful sunny morning, and then at 2:00pm, the skies open and rain dominates the remainder of the day and evening. The street next to our house becomes a river, we cannot see out of the windows, and all motivation to venture outside ceases.

Nevertheless, the past week has been gorgeous and sunny. Between drying our clothes outside, opening the windows, and sunbathing on the roof, my fellow PD’s and I have been taking full advantage of the UV and overall pleasantness.

Coinciding with the beautiful weather was Guatemalan’s 189th Independence Day, celebrated annually on September 15th to commemorate the country’s freedom from Spanish colonial rule. Throughout the country, the numerous cities, aldeas (villages), and even schools all celebrate the holiday with their own unique fiesta that begins on the night of September 14th and continues all through the following day.

Absorbing ourselves in the holiday spirit, my group and I celebrated Independence Day with the Primaria Central in Chaquijyá and the event was quite the fiesta. What an amazing experience of the local culture! The festivities began on the afternoon of the 14th with the annual running of the torch. To give you a mental picture of this episode, let me paint you a verbal image. Imagine: 250 primary school children. All of them are running several kilometers around the community, even on the Inter-American Highway next to speeding semi-trucks and motorcycles. All of them are carrying jerry-rigged torches made from recycled tin cans that are strapped to measuring sticks, and that contain burning, gasoline-soaked paper. Imagine further: six awkwardly tall gringos who were not forewarned about the event, trying desperately with their skirts and heavy purses to catch up to the crowd of racing children. Sporting inappropriate footwear for running, two of the girls (myself included) cannot reach the rest of the group. Lacking options, they must accept the kind offer of an old Mayan gentleman, and hitch a ride to the school in the bed of his pickup truck. And so was the story of my Tuesday night. Though full of unexpected occurrences, I loved every minute of it.

Following our jaunt through Chaquijyá, we joined the school’s teachers for a traditional dinner of eggs, beans, and tortillas, and then sat ourselves in the basketball court-turned-auditorium to watch several performances enacted by the students. These performances continued throughout the evening and all through the next day, and it seemed as though the whole community came out to watch. Hundreds of parents, siblings, and friends laughed and cheered as the students performed traditional and modern dances, poetry readings, and popular Guatemalan songs. Personally, my favorite act was a country-western dance to the Spanish rendition of “Total Eclipse of the Heart” (“Eclipse Total del Amor”) performed by five first-grade boys wearing blue jeans, cowboy hats, and boots. No other word comes to mind but this: priceless. Overall, the days’ events were both fun and eye-opening, and I feel so honored that the community would invite my group and me to participate.



Despite all the fun, throughout the festivities, I could not help but wonder why Guatemalans celebrate this Independence Day with such enthusiasm. Once again, the holiday honors the day in which Guatemala gained independence from Spanish colonial rule in 1821, yet this date hardly marked the beginning of the people’s real freedom. Following its autonomy from Spain, Guatemala was controlled by a Mexican regime and subsequently by numerous dictators, military juntas, and corrupt presidents until the recent conclusion of the devastating Civil War in 1996. So why does Guatemala celebrate its independence from Spain? Why not celebrate its independence from Mexico or a dictator, or even the end of the civil war?



I believe that the independence from Spain is special because it represents the beginning of modern Guatemalan history. Before 1821, Guatemala’s past consisted of the Maya history and the Spanish history. Though the two histories frequently interacted, or more accurately conflicted, they were separate and could not be unified from a single narrative perspective. It seems to me that Guatemala’s independence from Spain marked the melding of the two histories into a single story. Whether they originated from Spanish or Maya descent and cultures, residents of Guatemala became Guatemalan in 1821 and their lives became inseparably linked. Therefore, although the country would experience both authoritative and civil oppression throughout the following two centuries, every trial and every success still became a part of a history unique not to Spain or to the Maya, but to Guatemala. Every event has shaped Guatemala into the mystifying and complex country that it is today, and thus the beginning of this history is duly celebrated.



Thank you so much for your support and I will have more to come next week!

Peace
Ginny