LOH Community Contest #175

Hello, hello dear @ladiesofhive!,

I am so glad to be sharing with all of you once again. And today I am particularly excited to participate answering this week's question. Thanks for the great prompts @nainaztengra. I chose question #2 as it gives the chance to share with all of you what I have been up to and the reason I hadn't posted in the last days. Indeed it is true that travelling brings freedom. But as in all things it depends on the perspective. I have always cherished traveling but as I traveled more and more I also grew aware of the perks of a place to call home. But today I am not talking about this. I will let you know about my recent trip, which was and not, a solo trip. Why, you might ask? It turns out I was hired to interpret in the northern most part of Guatemala, for a medical brigade. I have done this in the past so when the opportunity came and I was available I accepted. I thought there would be a group of physicians and more interpreters, but it turns out the whole team, was 2 women doctor's, approximately in their 60's and myself. The trip was remarkably great!

The community we worked in was one I had heard a lot about. It's called Nuevo Horizonte and is a cooperative made up of ex guerilla fighters. They are one of the few around the country that are still constituted as such. When the civil war ended many people had lost their land and been displaced from their hometowns. This is how many people decided to establish themselves into small cooperative communities and Nuevo Horizonte is one of the few that survives up to this day.

To see this with my own eyes was truly precious. A group of people that have united and worked for a better life, together. I was glad to be part of a useful event. With the doctors we spent the whole week giving medical consultations from 9am to 4pm. We would end our days feeling tired but good. And then the 3 of us would sleep in one room. But that room felt safe and nice with the 3 of us in it. Us 3 women. 3 strangers sharing this space, sharing a routine and having all our meals together. Driving everywhere together.

I enjoyed our drives towards the other communities we worked at. I learned
a lot of medical information from them, as having 30 years of experience, ain't nothing. And I also felt inspiration from these women. I admire their stories, as they speak of love and commitment paying off. Through the clinics I also got to know the communities and its people. Especially women and their aches and illnesses. We heard stories of midwives and warriors, of the present and of the war, stories of reunion, migration and death.

I am grateful to see the places I have see and heard the stories I've heard. Thankful for the knowledge and love that has been shared and given to me. Thanks to all the people with whom we have experienced life with.

See you soon, LOH fam