Homecoming

Day #75 - Friday, April 8, 2022

Homecoming

Leland picked me up from the airport today.  There was very heavy Friday traffic given that it's Spring Break.  I drove us home on the 405, and the 101.   What a joy to hold his hand as he drifted in and out of sleep at the top of the hill as we slowly crawled our way into the San Fernando Valley. I didn't miss the chaos or having to be fully focused to avoid pedestrians crossing the highway, motorcycles carrying a family (without helmets), and speeding buses hurtling at me while trying to pass a slower car on a curve.

We stopped at a chain restaurant near our home to have a late lunch. It wasn't my first or second choice, but I was unwilling to be in traffic any longer. I had a serious craving for a salad and a drink with ice in it.  Both of which were off limits on my trip given that I've gotten sick from each on previous trips.  I thoroughly enjoyed the crunch of lettuce between my teeth, and sucking the ice cube in my mouth.  

When we got home, I went to the back gate and called Sparky.  He excitedly ran out the doggy door to meet me.  I've never experienced such unfiltered joy before.  He was ecstatic to see me.  His sixteen month tail was wagging ferociously.  He kept wanting to jump on me, while at the same time trying to sit so I could pet him which we've been working on.  My human (dog) training task is to wait for him to sit so I can pet him, otherwise he'll continue being rewarded for jumping on people.   It didn't take long, and we finally made contact. 

Sparky looks smaller, lighter and  younger with the warm weather haircut he received while we were away.  I changed the water in his bowl, and proceeded to get myself a glass of water from the tap, which has a filter on it for flavor. This would be a serious risk where I was born and raised.  

I then proceeded to take a shower, and I could finally open my mouth and rinse with the water from the showerhead.  It was incredibly difficult for me to keep my mouth closed while showering in Guatemala.  

The enormity of the material gap between the world I was born and raised in, and the one I inhabit now is incredible.  And yet, they both live inside me.  It's easy to dismiss one and prefer the other.  However each culture has dealt with life’s circumstances in different ways. One is not better than the other.  There's violence in each, one more obvious than the other.

I'm in awe of the resilience of the people I come from.  There's been a tremendous amount of violence inflicted, received, and perpetuated in the culture.  I had encounters with people who stand out as unique, different, who are unwilling to uphold the norms that maintain the status quo.   

There's a desire to break the patterns of corruption that keep public works from being implemented properly.  There's a desire to disrupt the violence cycle that makes life and health cheap.  There's a desire to break out of the hierarchical interactions that pervade the culture so uniqueness can flourish.  I'm grateful to have the opportunity to see what others might miss on the surface.  

I hold Guatemala in my heart, and I grieve the unnecessary pain so many have suffered because it maintains the power structures of the few ruling the many through fear, intimidation, and violence.   My desire is that others also benefit from experiencing the magic found in Guatemala, I already have.