Elvis and his mother appeared at the house last night just
as I was fixing dinner with Roxana. The water had been turned on for a few
hours and I said, “would you like me to fix…”
“mashed potatoes!”
So, lamb, carrot, and pea(all harvested by Roxana, even the
sheep) gravy/stew over a bowl of mashed potatoes. Then chamomile tea to wash it down. This whole living out of
the chacra thing still hasn’t lost it’s charm.
Elvis was surprisingly unexcited to see me. I couldn’t quite
place my finger on it. Even when I brought out gifts from family and friends in
The States he politely said thank you, but I didn’t get the excited response I
expected. Quickly I realized he was exhausted. He had hiked down from the
alpaca ranch that morning.
This morning I laid in bed awake for a bit waiting for the
family to head for the fields. I know, its horrible. But everyone knew I still
had weeding to do and won’t be going to the fields today, and I am still in the
pattern of waking up everyday for the honking 3am bus. I can usually get myself
back to sleep by 5, but when the family has their huititi music on at 6am it is
uninvited.
I rolled out of bed at 8am to find (eureka!) water! I
started filling everything in site. Buckets, pots, wash tubs, then sorted laundry
into them. Then an excited smiling face rolled out of his room.
“Luuuuuuz”
“Well, good morning elvis.”
“What can I help you with?”
There’s my boy!
His mom had gone with Roxana to pick more peas (which
apparently I had narrowly avoided; The payment for picking peas is a bag of
peas, forget that, I hate peas). I told him I was doing laundry and he sat by
me and watched and chatted for about 5 minutes until he couldn’t contain his
energy and started walking in circles around me while chatting.
“How about you hang the things on the line that I put in
that tub?”
He was on it. Watching everything I did to make sure he
replicated it perfectly.
I battered him with questions, “How is your grandmother?
Your brother? Your dad? Your vacation? What have you been up to? Did you go to
the salt mine with your dad?”
The most interesting news was that instead of going to the
salt mine to buy and sell salt here, he and his dad went fishing in a lake up
by the ranch and sold over 200 tiny trout.
Oops, more interesting I that Roni (Elvis’ malnourished
brother) is going to live with his padrino. WOOT! I was about to bring a kid
out of Peru with me, thank god someone has lifted that responsibility.
Apparently some more wealthy miner met the family and has insisted roni come
live and study with him… there was something about the church in Elvis story
that I didn’t quite catch. Whatever gets this kid out of a rice and alpaca diet
and into something stimulating I say, “woot”. Did I mention that when I last
saw Roni he was 3 years old, still not walking or talking? It is safe to assume
that Elvis was the same.
As we are rinsing the last load of laundry and I am day
dreaming about a hot bath (Gray got me a medium sized recycled tire wash tub
that I can pull into my room and use to bath), the faucet spits a few times and
the water stops. I can’t even complain, all my clothes are clean except for
what is on my back (admittedly it has been on my back for 4 days, but who is
counting… other than me?
I sent Elvis to meet Don Juan in the fields with lunch for
them both.
“You know, these aren’t so bad. I can eat them like they
almost taste good.” Elvis says pointing to the broccoli I am steaming. When I
told him dark vegetables would make his body stronger against sickness and help
him grow (true fact) he would take the plates I gave him and inhale the
‘disgusting’ vegetables first, then eat the yummy dish of meat or whatever. He
is the first Peruvian I can say that I have converted into (or have ever met
that is) a healthy eater.
As he headed off with a warm plate wrapped in towels, I lathered up with sunscreen, put on my
floppy hat, and headed to the garden for the 3rd day in a row. There
aren’t as many vegetables as I would have liked. The carrot seeds must have
been duds because not a one of the hundreds we planted came up, I can’t find
any chard, and there is one, solitary, red lettuce plant. But, under this
garden of weeds, I am finding spinach, radish, green bean, cucumber, beats and
onion.
Ok, I am about to expose me breaking the law on the
internet: I snuck some sweet corn seeds into the country (mainly because I want
to eat sweet corn, which doesn’t exist here). Roxana and I planted it about a
week ago and I have yet to see sprouts. Cross your fingers for us. These people
love maize so much, I think sweet corn could change their lives.
Now, I will return to my TEFL certification downloaded
course (as has been my nightly tradition). I am more than half way through a
100-hour class that will certify me to teach English anywhere in the world. It
is more of a fall back in case I decide to live in Tailand for a few years
(just kidding, mom…. Or am I?).
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