Article written by Fred L Hammond
Fred Hammond is a Universitarian Universalist Pastor, and a student at the Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago. He visited Mexico in July as a part of a 2 week delegation that was organized by the Peace House. Here, Fred shares his thoughts about the 3 day visit that the delgation made to El Pacayal, a small community in Chiapas situated near the border with Guatemala.
Children play. Children sing. Children laugh and cry. So why was I surprised to discover this universal truth when I and several other students from Meadville Lombard Theological School visited the small ejido of El Pacayal in Chiapas?
Part of it has to do with the propaganda of the international charitable organizations that seek to raise funds by showing third world children. You know the video clip. The image of Sally Struthers walking down well-trodden dirt roads with children cast aside along the way unable to move from hunger or disease is meant to pull at our heartstrings and inspire us to donate money. The closing clip shows her holding a young girl all gussied up and smiling. See what your money can do?
The children of El Pacayal are poor. They don't have much in way of educational materials for school. Few will be able to go on to high school, let alone college. And their options once they reach adulthood are fewer still. They can continue working the ejido like their parents, or they can leave and risk not finding adequate work elsewhere. Our delegation learnedof one personwith the opportunity to get an engineer's degree at a university; but because of the lack of job opportunities, he returned to work the coffee fields of El Pacayal. In Mexico higher education does not always lead to increased opportunities.
However, poverty does not mean poverty of spirit as well. The people of El Pacayal are a spirited people. They welcomed us into their homes and openly shared their meager resources of food with us. It was a humbling experience being served as honored guests before any of them would eat. At these meals they shared with us their vivid dreams of what will make their lives better. For me, these hopes and dreams were translated into the now with the children's playing.
The people of El Pacayal are seeking funding to build and sustain a health clinic. They want to make available to their community and the surrounding communities health facilities that are accessible. The nearest clinic is 3 hours away by truck, a distance too far when one has a life or death emergency. They have just under 20% of what they need to build this clinic. They have the blue prints made and the foundation poured. I'd like to see them receive the remaining 80% sooner rather than later.
Playing football (soccer), basketball, cat's cradle, and Simon Says games with the children revealed the universality of children everywhere. Their drawings of their homes, mountains, and rivers revealed their values equal to children's values in Chicago, El Paso, San Francisco, New York and elsewhere. For me, these images are a more powerful incentive to support this community. Having children continue to thrive with the proper medical attention is important to me.
Children play. Children sing. Children laugh and cry. May the children of El Pacayal always be able to do so.
