This pulsating world

Under the clarity of a sliver of moon by the illuminated lake, I walked in the thick sound of scintillating crickets and frogs. The occasional snort of an invisible horse in the reeds below and the trajectories of fireflies like another, gentler, stream of tracer bullets.

By day, the reeds rustled louder than usual, surely not the usual nesting birds. A red t-shirted man emerged clutching his home-made harpoon, just one fish at his belt so far.
I’ve been invited to go harpooning with the hordes of small children and teenagers who try their luck daily. They’ve explained clearly that only one species of small fish can be taken - those that will grow no larger. If it’s a Petenero white fish, or the other favourite staple, then it must not be taken until it is cubit length at least. Stock management, village style.

Yesterday was my first involvement in the project. A young Polish microbiologist has arrived for a few days and is taking a 3-day project on recycling and making recycled paper postcards to sell to tourists. It was fun to take a back seat with the littler ones while I admired her excellent group management and communication skills, before finding out she’d trained as a teacher as well.

They were startlingly happy to be handed a single piece of paper and some crayons and worked assiduously on their first images, gradually getting used to me and eventually working up the confidence to request HB pencils and colouring books from which to take inspiration for their next drawings. I’ve displayed them all, and given them books in which we’ll make a portfolio of their work over time. And an ongoing project is to encourage them to write their names large and in bold colours, as part of my intentions to bolster self-esteem and the sense that ‘I matter’ over the next few weeks.

We’re intending to open the space every afternoon, sometimes hosting special activities and sometimes simply putting out materials for them to use, ringing the changes with different things on different days. It’d be great to try to organise a group outing to Tikal nearby, but I’m not sure how feasible.

Anne has said they’re keen to do some yoga. I’ve yet to decide whether to offer this in the morning or as part of our afternoon open time a couple of times a week. It’d be great to incorporate it into an ongoing ‘Who am I’ project with social identity, physical and mental and emotional, self-awareness & well-being strands, some basic health and nutrition, arts and crafts on the themes, etc.

Meawhile I began reading them The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe in Spanish. I’ve no idea if it sounds OK or sounds horrible, but am pretty secure that my reading is more fluent than theirs will be, since handing over the book to another teenager for a while. I’d like to structure in opportunities for them to be read to and to read aloud a few times a week.

So it’s all kicking off! Meanwhile Bill’s to get involved in advising about sustainable tourism in the area, and I’m about to swim in the lake before wandering up for an afternoon at the project. I’m looking forward to learning to make recycled paper too!