Simple Reflections...and Cuentepec!

I am genuinely happy here. Life often consists of the simplest things, but they are full of meaning. For example, I can sit on a bus an talk with Dani for two hours and feel complete. I can also sit and watch una senora make tortillas. I don't even need to talk. Just sitting there I feel present, alive, and full of life.

Last weekend I went to Cuentepec with Dani. Dani is from Cuentepec, which is a small pueblo very close to the famous Xochicalgo. The village is in the mountains, surrounded by a river, and the people living in the village continue to speak Nahuatl, the native language of Mexico. All of the families in Cuentepec are bilingual - Spanish and Nahuatl both.


(Cuentepec)

Cuentepec is a place I know I will return to over and over again. It has even crossed my mind to begin some sort of sociological research project there, but we will see...Modernization and generational differences in this village are astounding! For example, Dani has eight sisters. Her mom and her two oldest sisters continue to wear traditional clothing, but the other six girls have chosen to wear modern clothing. However, although Dani, for example, looks no different than any other person walking throughout Cuernavaca, she nevertheless carries within her the practices, traditions, values, and customs of her village. I began to ask the younger girls about the differences in dress and changing values, but they didn't seem to think it was that strange or out of the norm. "It's only modernization," Dani told me.


(Dani and her mom outside of their house)


In Cuentepec we visited a cave that runs underground for miles. The center of the cave has a hole in the top that allows you to see the sky (see below)! There are hundreds, probably thousands of stories about ghosts and spirits in the cave.




We also went to the river (see below), which is about a 2 mile trek down a steep canyon, walked about two miles down the river, and two miles back up again. Dani's sandals broke about half-way up and she continued on without them. She made it up about twice as fast as I did, even without shoes! Along the river were hundreds of mango trees, y por eso, voy a regresar when they are ripe!!!




I was completely welcomed into Dani's house. Everyone was constantly making sure I had enough to eat and that I had gotten enough rest. I would wake up in the mornings to girls laughing and giggling, and as soon as I showed my face I was immediately fed. People were constantly coming in and out of the house throughout the day. It's nice to be surrounded by so much life. Days pass so quickly. Even though I am up by 6:30 every morning and do not go to bed until ten or eleven, I am always wishing there was more time in the day! Every day is complete and has a purpose to it. There is never a lack of things to do. Estela has been gone for the past ten days and is to return Monday. My parents and Janey come to visit Sunday for a week and then we are off to the playa! Until next time...


(Dani, two of her sisters, and I)