"Cambia todo que te toques, Toque todo que te cambias"

As we round the bend of our first week here in Mexico we are starting to realize how special of an experience we are having and are going to continue experiencing. It took us some time to get settled and comfortable meeting so many different people, our group, the staff of the museum, the staff of the organization we're working with, etc. Everyone here has an amazing and unique story explaining how they wound up in Chiapas of all places and where they plan on going next. I first encountered this mysterious ability to be so nonchalant about traveling through Latin America last year when my dad and I took a road trip from El Salvador back home to California. We met travelers from all over the world who were spending months in the area with only a backpack and a good attitude. It didn't make sense or seem possible for me to be able to do anything like that, until now.

Natate is an organization we found randomly online while searching for opportunities of things to do in the Chiapas region. They have several ongoing projects ranging from a week to a year each with a set cost which usually includes all food and living accommodations. We jumped at the chance to work with the Mayan Medicine Museum because we are both very interested in gardening, plants in general, and the connection with nature present here. Natate sets up camps for international volunteers and tries to make each group as diverse as possible. We have volunteers in our group from: Spain, Japan, Belgium, Germany, Austria, France, Mexico, and the United States(us).

The goal of Natate is to bridge the gap between the volunteer and the projects in Chiapas that are needing of assistance. While at your chosen project you are given the opportunity to go on "field trip" type excursions to other organizations and projects going on in Chiapas, all within the vein of what your project is all about. A spiderweb of options begins to lay itself before you, all you need is the motivation and the time.

This weekend we were shown examples of the movement here for new ways of conservation and living sustainably. There is a renovated trash collection site which has been turned into a perma-culture demonstration area. According to Wikipedia Perma-culture is an approach to designing human settlements and agricultural systems that mimic the relationships found in natural ecologies. It also includes using refuse and waste more effectively by being harmonious with the environment you are living in. Jaguar de Madera (Wood Jaguar) has structures such as domes, kitchens, animal pens all made of "trash" and natural resources. Bicycles that are deemed undesirable are converted into human powered electricity providers. Adobe structures with glass bottles allowing for sunlight to enter are another example of their creative spirit. A major issue here in Latin America is the wood burning stove and how the smoke is causing individuals respiratory and vision problems. A new stove has been developed that still uses fire wood, but uses an exhaust pipe and the differences in air pressure to push the smoke out of the kitchen and into the open air above. All of these concepts can be seen in use and the services to have them be created in your home are offered by Jaguar de Madera.

On Saturday Faith and I with our group visited the small town of Teopisca. It is about a forty- five minute drive from San Cristobal where there is an ejido (communally owned land) that is applying these methods to the production of their crops and goods. We met a farmer who uses the urine produced by his pigs as fertilizer after the urine has been fermented for long enough it can be diluted with water allowing for the plants to absorb the nutrients properly. We then hiked up a steep road to an area owned by a couple named Annette and Jose Luis who have converted their land into a sustainable living area. On their property they have: greenhouses, a worm farm, corn field, avocado plantation, water channels for irrigation, waterless latrine, untouched ancient forest they call "bosque magico" (magic forest) that they leave pristine and only use the fallen branches for firewood, and an adobe and wood structure with a kitchen that has a smokeless oven. They have plans of incorporating aquaculture where easy to maintain fish such as tilapia will be farmed there. There is a lot planned and a lot that needs to be done, so there is an example of a future opportunity for us to get involved with something that interests us.

Sunday we were taken to Tzajala, a small town even further away from San Cristobal- about a two hour drive. There a beautiful piece of land has become a functioning co-op called Ha Omekka which means "Alpha Omega". Here they welcome long stay volunteers to get involved with their lifestyle and experience all that it entails. This small group of families all lend a hand in the different projects they have there such as: beekeeping for honey production, fruit trees used for marmalade, greenhouses, gardens, cornfields, mushroom farming, and arts and crafts for selling. We were hosted by Sylvia and Marzo who have created and designed their habitations to have as little ecological impact as possible allowing the forest to grow freely around all the structures and attempting to make each two-story high to utilize ground space. A strong flowing river runs through their property that has chillingly fresh water murmuring over rocks as low hanging tree branches allows for you to suspend yourself above the water in a tree or balance yourself as you fjord across it.

It being near the date of Christopher Columbus' discovery of the Americas a ceremony was held at sundown on Sunday. Marzo is a Zoque Maya and conducts sweat lodge ceremonies on the premises. The name given to the sweat lodge here is Temascal, and it is for purification of the body and spirit. We were all invited to partake in the ceremony dedicated to 518 years of cultural resistance and conservation. We faced all four of the cardinal directions and touched the earth all while respecting the meanings behind having all these elements to life. Life is based on four elements: fire, water, air, earth. The corn of the region also comes in four colors each representing a different cardinal direction and element to life. The Temascal was built out of bamboo for support beams, a ring made of a stone wall, and sheets, blankets, canvass, and tarps covered the outside to seal the Temascal making it practically airtight. There were traditional dancers present wearing body paint with symmetrical shapes of Maya type design and headdresses adorning feathers and animal skins. After the performance including drums, maracas and flutes we all entered the Temascal in boy-girl fashion. Outside of the Temascal a large fire pit had been burning for hours with stones inside the fire to be used inside. All twenty- seven of us entered and sat down on the pine needle covered floor with little room to spare. We all entered asking for permission from the leader of the ceremony as we pressed our foreheads against the dirt at the entryway. The refrain used by all when there is an appropriate moment for response or praise is "Aho."

I was pleasantly surprised at the parallels between this ceremony and one I was lucky enough to be a part of in the Fresno area of California. At the Spring Equinox this year I partook in a sweat lodge ceremony where the structure was made of willow branches and the pit was also in the center of the space. Both ceremonies didn't focus on the person conducting the ceremony, but rather on the individual experience each person will be having connecting them with nature. Respect for all elements of nature and its antiquity was emphasized at both ceremonies. Heated stones from within the fire enter into the sacred space which are said to be the oldest of our ancestors. The space is then sealed shut without any light being able to enter and the purification begins. Water which had plants with medicinal properties soaking in it was poured over the rocks creating hot scented vapor that fills the space. Within the Temascal we brought instruments such as maracas, drums, flutes, and our voices which were used to create a unifying sound all while experiencing the intense heat. The Temascal was opened four times to release the heated vapor and to allow more ancient stones to enter. Anyone who would like to leave during the ceremony is allowed to by completing the circle and walking around the stone pit and exiting facing the center as they leave.

The river that runs through Ha Omekka is a godsend after the Temascal. The water was cold during the day, freezing at night, but I wouldn't have asked for any other temperature. As I sat in the flowing waters I saw fireflies dancing in the night where there were more stars visible than I had ever seen in my entire life. Faith and I were blessed to have been given the opportunity to be a part of this ceremony and love the fact that volunteering here is also an option for us.

If you have the ability to ever visit, please do. We are experiencing things we had no idea we were going to and all we would like to do is share that with you.