Recently the city government has closed the highway connecting Sololá and Panajachel in order to reconstruct several sections of the road that collapsed or were buried during the torrential rainstorms of September. Originally a 15 minute chicken bus ride, the trip to Pana now consists of a bus ride to San Jorge, a pick-up truck adventure through the jungle to Jaibal, and a short boat ride from Jaibal to Pana. Altogether, the detour is not too taxing.
Interestingly, before the creation of this new route, Jaibal was a veritable ghost town. Located on a steep descent down the mountain from San Jorge, Jaibal previously possessed several casitas, electricity, and even a school, yet it had no residents to inhabit them. On one occasion, Hudson and Jared accidentally ventured to the area, and compared it to a ghost town depicted in old Western movies. Nevertheless, Jaibal is now a populated and nearly thriving aldea. Within days of the highway’s closing, several Guatemalans settled in the abandoned houses and labored strenuously to construct public restrooms, eateries, and three docks for the boats to Pana. Marveling at the speed in which the local people accomplished these developments, I was struck by 2 realizations: one regarding the constant effort and persistence exerted by Guatemalans in Sololá, and two, the people’s unity and resilience during times of need.
Many Americans tend to equate poverty with laziness. In the American culture of “the self-made man,” we believe that anyone can overcome his socioeconomic origins with enough hard work, dedication, and self-motivation. A person living in poverty must therefore not be trying hard enough or using all of their available resources. However, living in Sololá and working in Chaquijyá, I constantly witness real poverty: poverty in which malnutrition plagues child health, poverty in which 12 year old children do not attend school because they must undertake unskilled jobs to earn money for their families, poverty in which my students will tell me casually of their siblings who died from diarrhea. I constantly see poverty and impoverished people, yet I will testify that these same people work harder than any other population I have yet encountered. Every day, man and children literally climb mountains with over 50 pounds of lumber on their backs so that they might warm their families’ homes. Every day, women face the elements at the market from 7am until 5pm so that they might sell the crops harvested by their families. In only a few days, men cleared the disheveled road to Jaibal and constructed three sturdy docks so that other people might travel to Pana.
Yes, I do believe that the United States is the land of opportunities, and I love the idea of self-empowerment, but I do not agree with the negative connotations of poverty that arise from this mentality. Though corruption and lack of resources may thwart their efforts, I have so much admiration and respect for the productivity and dedication of the local Guatemalans.
My second realization concerned the ability of Guatemalans to unify and cooperate in times of crisis. Having witnessed the rapid construction at Jaibal and the dozens of locals who halted their daily lives to clear landslides and aid the victims of the flooding, I was amazed at how the Guatemalan people can so willingly and readily volunteer their limited resources and time to help the larger community.
I then realized that this unity is not only particular to Sololá, Guatemala. After Katrina, residents of New Orleans reached out to each other to provide tangible and emotional support. Likewise, during the power outage that afflicted New York City several years ago, the stereotypically unfriendly New Yorkers went out of their way to assist lost and scared individuals. Following the earthquake in Haiti, thousands of doctors, NGO’s, and volunteers rearranged their schedules to aid the victims and reconstruction.
This ability to unify in times of need is indeed a universal trait of the human race and gives me hope in the world’s future. Newspapers and television may portray the world as violent and corrupt, yet I don’t see that. For every instance of suffering in the world, there are 10 instances of compassion and unity. I feel so fortunate to live in a place where these positive qualities are so evident.
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