Another monsoon yesterday afternoon at 7PM. Two days in a row. Well, at least the plants get watered and the yard gets washed. This time no power outage. Thank God.
Today’s gospel reading is one of Jesus’ most challenging messages: the last shall be first and the first shall be last. In the privileged west, we are keen to point out that Jesus couldn’t have meant it literally when he spoke of excluding the rich from heaven. Perhaps the most dangerous part of wealth is not the money itself, but the way it makes our hearts proud. The nations ‘void of sense’ surely comprise the entire western world. Our proud hearts ignore the struggles of the developing nations. What can I do to make the kingdom of God come here on earth, right now? How can I make my heart less proud, more compassionate? How do my own lifestyle choices deal death or give life to the world’s poor? Live Simply, So That Others May Simply Live is what I am learning here, in the Yucatan.
DON’T LEAVE THE WATER RUNNING. This is one lesson I learn daily. Whether it’s running the water while brushing my teeth, taking a shower, the locals make me aware of how much water I am using – or on the other hand, how much water I was wasting. “Don’t leave the water running!” “ I have learned that water is NOT a mere luxury that is to be taken for granted. We are lucky to have a water and sewer system that allows us to have clean water whenever we want it. But there are people around the world who live each day with little or no access to water – and those that do have access sometimes have no other choice than to deal with dirty, microbe-infested waters in their towns or villages. There are children in Africa who must drink from the same water that the community bathes and washes their clothes in. There are people in Bolivia who must carefully boil their water before using it to cook or scrub vegetables with. There are villagers in the Pacific Islands who must wade and canoe through mosquito-infested waters after torrential downpours and tsunamis. Can you imagine how we would react if we had to deal with these issues every day? We often get upset if we can’t find our favorite bottle of Perrier in the grocery store, or if the hot water won’t come out fast enough in the shower, or if we have to actually do the dishes in our sink, rather than running the dishwasher.
DON’T LEAVE THE LIGHTS ON. This is a piece of advice that I really do try and pay attention to. I pay even more attention now, after hearing some ringos complain about their 500 USD a month electric bills., all due to lights being left on when not in use. How many light sources do we have at home? How many light bulbs do we have in our office building? How much electricity is actually being consumed each day? When our power goes out for a few hours at home during a storm, it’s like the end of the world. We must live without the everyday convenience of light – not to mention refrigerators, electric can openers, TV’s, hair dryers, computers, palm pilots, cell phones, and the Internet. We scramble around, trying to figure out how to get our work done and how to keep ourselves fed and entertained.
DON’T WASTE YOUR FOOD. I have a hard time understanding why some people have to spend SO MUCH on the fanciest kinds of food that they just “must have,” while others are starving and have no food at all. Here are two instances that I recently heard about. Number one – a $1,000 ice cream sundae. There is a restaurant in New York that serves this outrageous dessert, and it’s only served if they are given 48 hours notice. (I think it’s 48 hours – but it’s definitely not the 20 minutes you need in a typical restaurant). The ice cream is a fresh vanilla bean ice cream, covered with real edible gold, real gold covered nuts, and imported chocolate shavings. To top it off, it is served in a Waterford crystal ice cream dish.
Number two – a $1,000 pizza. There is a restaurant (again I believe it is in New York) that makes a pizza nothing like I’ve ever had! Its toppings are thinly shaved slices of imported lobster and four different kinds of caviar, each with their own unique taste, color, and texture, which is meant to give you a one-of-a-kind pizza experience. It is served on a china plate by the owner of the restaurant, and even comes with a silver fork and knife. (Since that is the way everyone eats pizza!)
Anything else similar to these outlandish food items or along these lines, regarding food, upsets me. It’s amazing to think what a variety of food so many people have access to, and even have the money to pay for – like lobster, caviar, steak, and wine – while others around the world are literally going hungry. The two worlds are so different. Which one would I rather be associated with? Definitely not the lobster and caviar world. I’d much rather help those who are hungry and take part in a solution to the world’s hunger crisis, rather than eat whatever I please and disregard the rest of the world.
One such person affected in “the rest of the world” is the hungry child. We’ve all seen the photos of the hungry children whose little stomachs are bloated. I once heard someone say, “Oh, they’re not hungry – look how fat their stomachs are!” I was shocked. Their stomachs are not fat due to overeating or obesity. Their stomachs are bloated because they are not getting enough nourishment, such as protein, vitamins, and other nutrients, which basically affects their systems and the way things are digested and flow throughout the body. This can cause fluids to build up inside the body (stomach). Thus, bloated stomachs. It is just one symptom of extreme starvation.
LOVE ONE ANOTHER. “There is a terrible hunger for love. We all experience that in our lives – the pain, the loneliness. We must have the courage to recognize it. The poor you may have right in your own family. Find them. Love them.” Mother Teresa sure had it right – we all need love, and it is up to us to spread that love to others. It takes a very caring and courageous person to see when someone is in need, and that the easiest thing they can give to him or her is a smile, a hug – or more simply – love. Imagine what a difference we could make in the world.
WATER, LIGHT, FOOD, AND LOVE. These are the simplest gifts we can give to others. To us, they may just be everyday things … but to others, they may just be the gift of life itself.
I am pleased to report that USA Today has just published updated crime statistics for Mexico, including Yucatan. Their findings show that the State of Yucatan has the lowest murder rate in all of Mexico. Its murder rate of 2 per 100,000 is comparable to that of Wyoming and Montana. In fact, the murder rate in Washington, D.C. (31.4 per 100K), is nearly quadruple the murder rate of Mexico City (8 per 100K). Yes, if you factor in the murders at a few of the border cities, the murder rate of Mexico is higher than that of the U.S., but Yucatan is far removed from all of that!
GAS: At the beginning of 2010, it was decided to raise the price of PEMEX gasoline at a projected annual average rate (on a monthly basis), rather than allowing big increases to hit consumers all at once. Each month, on the second Saturday of the month, gasoline prices are raised. As of now, magna is $8.44 pesos per liter, Premium is $9.94 pesos per liter, and diesel is $8.80 pesos per liter. Rates of increase seem to be holding at 8.2% for magna, 3.9% for premium, and 7.8% for diesel.
Kids: Is It Back To School Time Already? This past week saw the annual Back to School Fair at Poliforum Zamna. The fair brings products directly to buyers from manufacturers on many items, with a corresponding discount of up to 30%, then gives parents a list of stores where those and other products can be purchased. There were a total of 50 exhibits to show everything from computers to clothing, and even cars and furniture! Just in case anyone is confused about all of these products, PROFECA actually has a form on their website to help parents navigate the mysterious and expensive path to getting their children back in school after summer vacation on August 30th.
Mexican Schools: Goodbye Junk Food Soon, there will be no more junk food available for purchase in Mexican schools. Instead, school stores are to become an educational tool that will be used to help in the fight against childhood obesity and diabetes throughout the nation. Our hats are off to Mexico for having the foresight to step in at this critical juncture in the lives of children and help ensure a long and healthy life for them and for the children they have someday. This is a lasting gift to the future of Mexico and we are happy to see it at last.
Pets: Law in Mexico City: Dog Feces on the Street We saw it with cigarette smoking in public buildings and with biodegradable plastic bags. If it becomes an environmental law in Mexico City, we can almost be certain it will be the law in Merida within the year. Mexico City calculated that the pets that live there produce almost half a million kilos of animal feces per year. All of that must be disposed of properly in order to protect the health of its citizens. Now, after 9,200 dog bites in one year, Mexico City has had enough. The fine for not picking up and disposing of dog feces, or for not keeping one’s dog on a leash, is 10 minimum wages and 6 to 12 hours of arrest. Keeping dogs on a leash and cleaning up after them is part of being a responsible dog owner. We hope that everyone in Yucatan will take this to heart before it has to become a law and before anyone has to pay a fine or go to jail.
Guatemala: Why Do They Come Here? Every once in a while, we hear complaints about migrants who enter Yucatan illegally from Guatemala. For the most part, as long as they behave responsibly, these migrants are left alone. Many marry and create new Yucateco families. If problems occur, it is when they are sick or elderly and in need of social services. This week, we discovered one of the reasons they leave Guatemala specifically to enter the State of Yucatan. In Guatemala, the Maya have little to no access to education and health care. For the Maya in Guatemala, racism is alive and flourishing. With no opportunity to change their situation at home, imagine how the Maya of Guatemala feel when they enter a state that, through Indemaya, encourages the Maya to be not only politically active, but economically active as well. While we do not advocate illegal migration either into or out of Mexico, we can certainly understand how the State of Yucatan can be viewed as a haven of rest by people who have not been treated as they should have been. We can offer no solutions to this problem – only our observations concerning at least one of the reasons why they continue to come.
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