The following are excerpts from the reflections they write at the end of each day’s experiences.

Day One
On Saturday, February 28th, a wonderfully diverse group arrived safely in Guatemala: 2 mother-daughter pairs; as well as 3 or 4 recent graduates; some who have been here several times and some who are coming for the first time.

This is the 17th year that Cabrini has visited San Lucas Tolimán in Guatemala. Why did we come here in the first place? Cabrini had just begun its unique core curriculum focused on social justice, where the College wanted all students to deeply examine injustices in society and search for the root causes and learn how to create a more just world. The College asked Catholic Relief Services (CRS) where they could take students to experience a town trying to create a more just community. CRS said to go to San Lucas.

Day Two
We visited Panajachel, a charming town surrounded by mountains that we reached via a 20-minute boat trip. The town is full of vibrant outdoor shops and street vendors selling handmade shirts and purses with handmade embroidery. We attended Mass at the church which is part of the mission coming together with locals to celebrate. The theme for the day was the common good. We discussed how we experienced the common good throughout visit. The group witnessed the empowerment of local people encouraged to grow into leadership and management positions.

Day Three
We visited a beautiful farm owned by a hardworking gentleman. We spent the morning harvesting coffee beans and made a valiant effort to fill up our buckets! Afterward, we went to the women’s center to see the women at the sewing machines either learning how to sew, strengthening their skills, or practicing what they had just learned.

We learned that we must not take our privileges for granted. Behind everything that we get to enjoy or even , there is a lot of hard work and dedication. We also learned to be grateful for the things we often overlook, such as our jobs or the work we do at home. We are beyond blessed in many capacities and seeing others who do not get the same experience is eye-opening.

Day Four
We toured all the programs the mission provides for the community. First was the Women’s Center focusing on the intricate details of how the original Maya family lived and built their home. There we saw a cooking station, a sewing room and a modernized kitchen used for cooking lessons. Second, we learned about improvements in the coffee growing capabilities. Our 3rd stop was the construction program, focusing on building individual homes and constructing the new visitors’ center. The 4th program is the charity program. Poverty is severe in Guatemala and in the area around the mission. For example, 79% of Guatemalans live in poverty. In San Lucas 16% live in severe poverty, defined as living on less than $3 per day. The 5th program is the visitors’ program. The program welcomed over 126 groups last year. The kitchen serves more than 2,000 meals yearly. The goal of the visitors’ program is to bridge cultural gaps through listening, learning, and implementing skills

Day Five
group returned to the Women’s Center which offers a variety of classes such as cooking, sewing and weaving so that the local women can learn from one another and support their families. During their visit the group learned how to wash clothes using a “pila” as many Mayan women do. All clothing is washed by hand and different soaps are used for different fabrics. If washed properly clothing can last up to ten years.

Although kitchens have been somewhat modernized, many Mayan women still cook tortillas the way their grandmothers instructed them – without electricity – in “la cocina de la abuela.” The process requires great arm strength!

learned that the Maya people very much honor their culture and traditions of their ancestors. Many tasks are still done manually and require a great deal of effort.
The group noted this was a humbling experience since we are so accustomed to modern conveniences.

Their evening discussion focused on subsidiarity – the idea that social, political and organizational decisions should be handled at the most local level possible, by the people impacted the most every day.

Day Six
This day, the group traveled to a construction site at a family’s home which sat below a steep embankment. They had to establish a safe and efficient way to bring buckets of gravel down the hill. The were befriended by a little girl who wanted to help and who also recruited her young cousins to assist. The determination of the children touched the hearts of the group.

That afternoon, they spent time in the Charity with Dignity program. Those in the program once worked on a plantation but were relocated to this nearby town after a 2005 storm destroyed their homes. Through the group’s visit with these community members, they came away with a deeper understanding of resilience.

Fittingly, their evening reflection focused on human dignity. They posed a question: if every person truly has inherent dignity, how would our actions and the way in which we treat others, change if we remembered their dignity every single day?

Learning about the colorful murals in San Lucas Toliman was a focus of the day. They heard directly from the artists about the symbolism and culture behind the artwork.
Later in the day they attended a presentation on coffee beans and their preparation. They even learned how to prepare a latte complete with latte art!

The day drew to a close with a combined Gannon University-Cabrini gospel choir which sang the grace before dinner. Following dinner, was the farewell ceremony and a time for sharing with the students from Villanova University.

As a final element of the trip, the dedication ceremony for the lending library that the group had gifted the community took place. They were able to place over 100 books in the library. The hope is to continue the tradition of bringing books to San Lucas for years to come.

 

 

We thank you for following our journey!
~ with love from Ang, Bonnie, Charlesetta, Connie, Faith, Hollie, Janet, Jerry, Joanny, Madi, Paula and Yeredith