I need to get back on top of this

It's been so long since I've posted and I apologize to anyone that has been eagerly waiting for my next post. Your patience has been noted and appreciated. I do still need to update this blog on the rest of my HELP International experience and my time in Belize. So much time has passed so I'll have to either do several small blogs with the best of my memory of those events or 1 large one that recaps the past 6 months. Regardless if you're reading this then I thank you for even reading my blog and I want you to know you're awesome. Here is a picture of a duckling for your patience.

Here's my first post for an official rambling. I wrote this for a class last year and thought I'd share it with everyone. Let me know what you think. 

Weeding out the Problem

            Cannabis, weed, reefer, dope, pot, toke, and Kush, these are but a few of the many different names supplemented for the plant commonly known as marijuana. About as many different names as it has uses, the marijuana plant is cause to a wide variety of controversial topics, arguments, and political discussions. Why is this plant and its products concern for politicians and doctors as well as the average American citizen? The reason why is because marijuana is illegal in the United States. It is deemed to be an illicit drug by our nation’s government and thusly its use has been outlawed throughout the country. Not only has use of the plant been outlawed but the propagation of marijuana is illegal as well. I feel it is necessary for people to become educated about marijuana, which in turn will lead to the legalization of the plant.

            If this plant has been banned from our nation there must be a good reason for it. After all Marijuana, also known as Cannabis, used to be one of the largest agricultural crops throughout the entire world, United States included. From a very well done documentary called Hempsters, I learned that hemp comes from cannabis and many don’t know that hemp is the most durable, robust, natural soft fiber on the earth. (Henning, M) Hemp was used throughout the world and has thousands of uses. Paper, lighting oil, medicines, most fabric and fiber, to name a few, all were predominantly made from hemp. “In 1938 Popular Mechanics had prepared an article called ‘New Billion Dollar Crop’ and listed Hemp as being able to produce over 5,000 textile products from its thread-like fibers and over 25,000 products from its cellulose, including dynamite and cellophane.” (Holowach, J)

            Oddly enough one of the first laws enacted in our country was to grow marijuana for the use of hemp, in the Jamestown colony, Virginia in 1619. Our founding fathers used cannabis-hemp in daily life and even for very important events. One of America’s first paper mills made paper from hemp and was opened by Benjamin Franklin. The first two copies of the Declaration of Independence were written on Cannabis-hemp paper.

Up through the late 1800’s, America’s textile production was made using hemp as well as up to 50% of the medicines used in our country. Queen Victoria actually used the resin from the plant to relieve pains caused by menstrual cramps. An interesting documentary called the Union describes the history of the plant. (Harvey, B)

Although people cannot get high from industrial hemp, it was wrongly associated with Reefer Madness. Reefer madness, in short, was a term coined from yellow journalism that all Blacks and Mexicans smoked pot, which made them play devils music and cause disrespect to white people.

In 1937 a tax act was placed on marijuana, as well as medical cannabis and industrialized hemp. It was speculated that because hemp was such a versatile plant it would be conflicting with other sources. With this act in place, in order to grow marijuana you needed a stamp; however, the government wasn’t issuing out any stamps. (Koch, K) This act, along with the belief of reefer madness, eventually led to the downfall of cannabis and its use in our industry, and caused all forms of cannabis to become illegal.

Marijuana remained illegal until World War II when the government realized how useful hemp was, releasing videos on the many uses of hemp. After the war, in 1948, the marijuana issue resurfaced and Congress realized that marijuana was made illegal for the wrong reason. Studies showed that pot didn’t, in fact cause you to go into a state of violence or madness, but actually calmed you down. Our government took this calm state as a state of pacifism. Afraid that communist countries would use marijuana against the American people causing them to lose their will to fight, congress once more outlawed it.

Throughout the years many reports, with commissions from the Mayor of New York to the president of the United States, have all come back with the view that marijuana should carry no criminal penalty attached to it. From the CNBC documentary concerning marijuana we learn of reports that included: The Wootton Report 1968, England; The Le Dain Report 1970, Canada; The Le Guardia Committee Report 1944, New York; The Shafer Report 1972, United States; Ganga in Jamaica: A Medical Anthropological Study of Chronic Marijuana Use, 1975 and CANNABIS: Our Position for a Canadian Public Policy 2002, Canadian Senate. (Regan, T) However, even with all these reports on the plant, marijuana remains just as illegal today as it did more than 70 years ago

When asked if prohibition works, Senator Larry Campbell states, “The fact of the matter is that prohibition has never worked.” (Harvey, B) Most people are familiar with the prohibition of alcohol in the early 20^th century, which gave rise to some of America’s worst criminals. The goals of a prohibition are simply to reduce the supply of the drugs available and to reduce the demand for the product. In both cases of reducing the supply and demand for marijuana it is a complete failure. In 1937, the same year as the Marijuana Tax Act, there was an estimated 55,000 marijuana users in the U.S. Now there is an estimated 50 million marijuana users, a 1000% increase, during a time of prohibition where marijuana is outlawed. Dr. Perry Kendall of the British Columbia Provincial Health Office stated in a documentary titled A Norml Life, “Whether or not the drug is criminalized or decriminalized does not affect the rates of smoking of cannabis, either uptake or of discontinuation.” (Pitman, R)

A common misconception about marijuana is that it is harmful to the body. Some people have suggested over the years, that marijuana kills brain cells and therefore makes you dumb. In 1974 a study was done to scientifically show that marijuana caused brain damage after the governor of California Ronald Reagan was asked about the negative affects of marijuana. The study was called the Heath/Tulane Study. Monkeys were given thirty joints a day and after a ninety-day time span the monkeys had begun to atrophy and expire. The brain cells of both monkeys, subjected to marijuana, and ones that were not, were counted after the study was done. The amount of brain cells in the monkeys subjected to marijuana was significantly less than the other monkeys. Brain damage from marijuana was determined as a result of the study. Ronald Reagan then went on to say, “The most reliable scientific sources say, permanent brain damage is one of the inevitable results of the use of marijuana.” (Harvey, B)

However, six years after the study was conducted, the methods used in the study were finally revealed. Instead of giving monkey thirty joints a day for a year a method was used by Dr. Heath of pumping sixty-three Columbian strength joints through a gas mask in five minute intervals over the course of three months. Oxygen wasn’t pumped through the masks and the monkeys were suffocated. The dead brain cells in the monkeys were not from marijuana but from the lack of oxygen. Nevertheless, it had already been associated that by using cannabis you would lose brain cells. New studies have gone on afterwards to prove that marijuana didn’t kill brain cells. In 2005, a study done by the University of Saskatchewan reported in the ‘Journal of Clinical Investigation’ “marijuana could possibly stimulate brain cell growth.”

Another common misconception is that marijuana causes lung cancer. There have been no studies to prove that this accusation is true. Elements in the tobacco products have been proven to cause cancer but the elements in cannabis don’t. Even in the case of other lung related diseases such as emphysema there have been no such cases. “Marijuana use does not cause or potentiate emphysema, in any way.” Dr. Donald Tashkin, M.D., UCLA. (Harvey, B) Even when looking at the amount of deaths in our country the number one cause of death in the U.S is from tobacco. It alone beat out Aids, heroine, crack cocaine, car accidents, murder, fire, and alcohol combined. The amount of deaths from Tobacco is averaging 430,000 people per year. In the amount of deaths from marijuana Dr. Lester Grinspoon, MD –Professor Emeritus, Harvard Medical School states, “There are no deaths from Cannabis use anywhere, you can’t find one.” (Harvey, B) It’s interesting to note that tobacco receives government subsidies and is grown with radioactive fertilizer yet it’s illegal to grow marijuana. Why?

Skeptics of the drug have dubbed marijuana as the “Gateway” drug and have developed the Gateway Theory. In essence the Gateway Theory suggests that if a person tries marijuana they are susceptible and more likely to try harder drugs. Out of every 100 cannabis users only 1 has tried cocaine and less than 1 have tried heroine. (Edwards, J) It’s used as a scapegoat as to why people are trying the so-called “hard drugs” in the first place. Studies have shown that there is nothing in marijuana either chemically or naturally that encourages users to pursue anything else. Norm Stamper, PhD who was the Seattle Chief of Police from 1994-2000, claims, “If this gateway theory were true then his addiction of alcohol was started with milk.” The theory holds no justification or evidence to support that marijuana is indeed the gateway drug. John Conroy, QC Criminal Defense Lawyer claims, “Because of the black market, because of the prohibition, people may be susceptible to seeing these other drugs and be willing to try these other dugs.” There is indeed a Gateway Effect but it’s a gateway caused by prohibition and a mixing of hard and soft-drugs markets. (Edwards, J)

We have a problem in our country and the problem is that the misconceptions of marijuana from our past are still being carried over to today. Marijuana is still in prohibition when its affects and uses are almost entirely beneficial to our nations economy.  By keeping marijuana in prohibition the people that benefit from it the most are the growers and dealers of pot. It really says something when drug lords are against the legalization of marijuana. Why would they be against it? Because by legalizing marijuana it would create a regulated market which the drug dealers would have no part of and wouldn’t profit from it. Without control from legalization it’s hard to monitor where marijuana is going, for example into the hands of children. Norm Stamper also states that for the past decade it has been easier for teenagers to obtain illegal drugs than it is to get beer or cigarettes. (Katel, P)

By making marijuana regulated in establishments, it would place the necessary safeguards on the product instead of having it roam the streets with no safeguards at all. By legalizing marijuana and not just decriminalizing it, then it would pump nearly 14 billion dollars into our economy. That money could go towards our health care systems, our national defense and better our economy overall. The producing, packaging and sales of marijuana could be handled in the same way alcohol is handled in our country. Monitoring the sales of marijuana and punishing those by revoking the license to sell if they break the law by selling to those under the influence or to minors.

When surveying students at my school, I found that a majority of students are for the legalization of the plant both for medicinal purposes as well as recreational use. When asked if they would vote for it to be legalized more than half of the students surveyed replied yes. The students were also asked what their suggestion to the government would be if marijuana were legalized. The answer from most was to regulate it similarly to alcohol. (Woodhall, B)

We should be making use of this marijuana plant. A plant that has so many good uses such as bio-fuel should be in use. The markets and money that would open from the legalization of marijuana are astounding. The fibers from hemp are the strongest natural fibers in the world and last much longer than cotton. I feel that by making the marijuana plant legal it would boost our economy from the thousands of different uses that come from the cannabis plant.

            

A good start to the week

Every Sunday night we try to have a team meeting where we discuss what we’ll be doing over the week with different projects and backup plans if anything falls through. That happens surprisingly a lot here. This most recent Sunday was different as it was the first team meeting with the new volunteers. Kyle and Kristina went over house rules as well as general safety rules while being in country. These are pretty standard so I won’t go into detail. The different projects were explained in more detail and we mapped out our weeks.

            My week looks like this:

Monday: Morning: Meeting with Bernard/grocery shopping for group/computer lesson planning,

   Afternoon: Special Olympics and King’s Orphanage in Belmopan

Tuesday: Morning: Cornerstone lunch program

                 Afternoon: Computer Class @ Cornerstone

Wednesday: Morning: Cornerstone lunch program

                      Afternoon: Cadet program @ Police station

Thursday: Morning: Cornerstone lunch program

                   Afternoon: Computer Class @ Cornerstone

Friday: Morning: Deep cleaning apartment

              Afternoon: Cadet program @ Macal Park

The schedules are always tentative though and really depend on whether or not people show up to appointments and classes. I’m glad I have the Cornerstone lunch program to count on because it’s consistent and reliable. Plus I’m able to help feed a lot of children that wouldn’t have the chance to get food if they were not on this program. The cadets is new for me as I didn’t do it last wave so I’m excited to work on that as well. And of course my computer class has been fun too.

            Monday morning Trellany and I had an appointment with Bernard to plan for a youth summer camp at St. Andrews school. However as I’ve said before TIB (This is Belize) and things don’t go to plan. We weren’t able to contact Bernard for a meeting so we went on and did whatever else we had planned. For myself that was getting groceries for Carmita so she had something to cook for us. I’m not too sure if I’ve said anything about Carmita yet. She is he hotel manager and she also cooks for us. Breakfast on Tuesdays and Thursdays and lunch Monday, Wednesday, Friday.

            I went with Sarah to get groceries and we got things for Carmita to make stuffed jacks. Jacks are very similar to Indian Fry Bread but instead of being flat circles there in half circles and you can fill them with various fillings, breakfast meats, eggs, beans, or even jam and butter. They are delicious and I want to learn how to make them. We picked up some flour and chicken breasts and then grabbed what we thought were refried beans but they were just regular beans. Oh well.

            For lunch Carmita made the stuffed jacks and they were awesome. Sarah and I had to eat quickly because the bus for Belmopan left at 12:30 and it was 12:10 by the time we started eating. We scarfed down our lunches and then literally ran to the bus station. By the time we got to the station there were a ton of people waiting and we were glad we didn’t miss the bus. We waited there but the bus never showed up, again TIB, and it wasn’t that surprising. However the next bus that came around at 1:30 was absolutely packed full and they were cramming more on. I figured the time it would have taken us to go to Belmopan and then take a taxi to the school for Special Olympics it would have already passed.

            Sarah and I were waiting at the bus station when Kyle and Jessie met us at the bus station. We had originally planned to go with Jessie but she was still at Cornerstone when we had left. So luckily she was still able to go to Belmopan with us after all. The 2:30 bus came early at 2:15 and we got on the bus to Belmopan.

            After the hour bus ride to the capital we walked the 10 min walk to Kings Orphanage to spend time with the orphans there. When we showed up we saw another big group of volunteers from a church group that had just arrived for the week. I think there may have possibly been more volunteers present than there were kids. My previous experience with the orphanage was somewhat negative. It had nothing to do with the children, but the lack of staff and direction was a big deterrent from wanting to further work with King’s orphanage again. Nevertheless I came again hoping for a more positive experience.

            Inside the orphanage was a small room with two large bookshelves filled with all sorts of books. One little boy had Sarah sit down with him on the floor reading a book. He saw me and promptly ordered me to sit down beside him and read with him and Sarah. I followed his order and sat on the dirty floor next to this little boy who just wanted someone to read to him. He told us his name was Lindy, and he cuddled up next to me as I read him a book. I felt bad for him and the situation all those kids were in but was also glad I could help be a friend for at least a few hours. It’s a sad reality that many back home have no idea exist and when faced with the reality simply turn the channel to whatever football game is on. I honestly wish I could do more for these kids and improve their situation. That’s why I’m here to try and help even if it that entails sitting on a dirty floor reading a book to a child.

            Tuesday was like most of my previous Tuesdays have been here. I accidentally hit the dismiss button on my alarm clock instead of the snooze so I was late to Cornerstone in the morning. Trellany was already there and there were just finishing up the lunches getting ready to go. I opted to stay behind this time so I could meet the kids that come to Cornerstone for lunch. Normally around 25 kids come for lunch at Cornerstone but Tuesday only 12 came. I don’t know why but it seems that the closer school gets to getting out for the summer less and less children actually attend school.

            At 1:30 I started my computer class and wouldn’t ya know it, I got a new student! Hurray. Trellany and Laura had made fliers on Monday to advertise my computer class for me and it seemed some of the fliers had actually been seen. Rita, the head of Cornerstone, said a man had also come in the morning to enquire about the class, however I didn’t see him in the afternoon. So my new student actually attends the sewing classes also held at Cornerstone so she knew previous of the class but finally worked up the nerve to come.

            I worked with Anna as well as Jaclyn and Anne helped me teach this time. That was nice because I was able to focus on Anna while Anne helped introduce Microsoft Word to Jaclyn. We worked with them until 3:00 and then I locked up the building.

            Anne wanted to grab a bag from the market, apparently she didn’t grab one from Xunantunich, and so we walked around San Ignacio for an hour. It was nice to get out of the house for a bit, and oddly enough the market wasn’t selling the bags that day. It had been raining so a lot of what they normally sell wasn’t out. It was a good day overall and the afternoon I just relaxed in a hammock on the veranda. I accidentally fell asleep and my leg was eaten alive by mosquitoes. Nevertheless I’m still alive and without Malaria so all is well here. Thanks for reading.

            

Xunantunich

If you made an attempt at saying the title of this post, whether out loud or in your head, then I applaud your attempt. The easiest way I was taught to say it is by saying Tuna Sandwich. Then you simply switch the ‘S’ and ‘T’ so it becomes Suna Tandwich. Then you simply drop the ‘d’ and ‘w’ and then have the ‘ich’ sound like the word “each” So you end up with Soo-Nahn-Too-Neach Xunantunich. Now that our English/Mayan pronunciation lesson is completed, I’ll tell you about our experience in Xunantunich and the rest of our Saturday.

The morning consisted of a household full of people. Kim and Danielle were putting their final items in suitcases and getting ready to head out. Kyle had left early to travel to Belize City to pick up our last volunteer who would join us later that afternoon. We said our final goodbyes to Kim and Danielle and watched as they headed out to the airport. It was great getting to know each of the first wave volunteers and form friendships from our experience together here in Belize. However with every sad farewell there soon follows a joyous greeting of someone new. Which is the case with our new volunteers for wave 2.

So after saying goodbye we headed out to the spot where taxi’s circle around a certain block to pick up passengers that are wanting to go to Xunantunich. I don’t exactly know how it works, as the spot where we waited isn’t designated at all by any sort of sign. I guess it’s something only the locals know about. Anyway a taxi showed up and that’s when we met Orson. Orson is a local taxi driver who was gracious enough to take all 7 of us in his car for only $3 Belize each. That’s the cheapest cab ride I’ve taken since being here. The drive was a short 20 mins when we came to the river crossing leading up to the ruins. Orson told us he’d take us across the river on the ferry and up to the ruins for $5 more. Even though it was only a mile away the group consensus was to take the taxi the rest of the way and not have to hike the mile all uphill and be worn out for the ruins.

Me at Xunantunich

Orson drove us up to the top of the hill and we convinced him to join us while we were exploring the Mayan ruins. Xunantunich was so cool. There were two huge grass courtyards. One was between a smaller set of steps and a ruin on the North side and then another between the same set of steps and the looming temple to the South. The temple stands a staggering 125 ft. tall and gazes over the jungles of the ancient Maya. We had a chance to take some single pictures and group pictures in front of the large temple, which made for some fun shots. Orson was nice enough to take our group pictures with our phones and cameras.

Orson and I

We hiked up the front of the temple with the steps easily being two, sometimes three normal steps in height. Before I went up though, I managed to snag a cool photosphere on my phone of the ruins. As we hiked up the ruins of the ancient temple we all took a step back through time. Each step along the side was a step ancient Mayan priests and kings had previously taken. The steps leading along the backside of the temple were slanted outward just enough to give the perception of them being flat but making you feel as if you were tilting and could fall of the side. With no handrail I hugged the wall and tried not to think about what serious injuries would befall me if I were to lose my footing.

Slanted steps of doom

Finally we all reached the top and looked out at the same view the ancient Mayan people once witnessed. (I should note that the Maya are not extinct but are very much alive and thriving in Central America. When I refer to the Maya in past tense I’m referring to theancient peoples) The view of the surrounding jungle and the rest of the ruins nestled within the green was amazing. There was a strong breeze at the top and the wind relieved us of the sweat accumulating on our bodies. We spent the next 30 mins taking pictures and enjoying the view from the top of Xunantunich. As more groups of tourists joined us at the top we decided to move aside and descend down the slanted steps. Going down was a bit frightening as there were no handrails. The steps being small but tall and slanted prompted me to sit on my butt and slowly maneuver down one step at a time. Eventually we all reached the bottom safely and proceeded to view the rest of the ruins.

We saw the ball court and then went and saw the stelas (Stee-las) Sarah, a new volunteer, had just graduated with a degree in Anthropology so she clued us in on the purpose of the stelas. A stela is a huge stone slab that is carved for someone of high ranking within the Mayan societies. The carvings would depict life achievements of the individual and would sometimes include a history carved out through symbols and pictures. Kings would have carved on theirs a history of the peoples and lands they conquered and the times they ruled. It reminded me of the movie “The Testaments” when the main character carves out a stone wall for Cohor depicting his life achievements. Of course anyone that isn’t of the LDS faith wouldn’t understand the reference but it’s the best example I could think of at the present moment.

After Xunantunich we headed down the hill with Orson and across the ferry where we stopped for 30 mins to do some souvenir shopping. The girls wanted to get some bags because… well because that’s what girls do. I bought a recorder that was made out of wood and had different Mayan and Belizian things carved into it. It was cool and I thought my older brother Blake might enjoy it. Then I found a nice hammock and Orson, being a local, was able to snag a cheaper price than what they were asking foreigners. So I got a very nice hammock for only $40 Belize. I can’t wait to be able to hang it up at home. Hopefully I can convince my mother to let me put it up in the house. Think about it, Mom. J

On our way back we got to talk to Orson a bit more. He was a really friendly guy and the way he spoke he reminded me a lot of the actor Luis Guzman. (He’s the servant in the Count of Monte Cristo) Orson sounded just like him when he talked and I couldn’t place which actor he reminded me of until a few days ago. Anyway Orson dropped us off where we’re staying and then we all paid him. Apparently there was some confusion as to how much we owed him. I think he may have been under the impression we all owed the amount in US but he never specified so Belize is what he got. He wasn’t mad and I think that was due to the fact that we included him in our excursion and the fact he may have had a thing for Kristina. While we were at the ruins he kept snapping quick pics of her when he thought nobody was looking. Harmless but funny. He whispered to Kristina to “call me” before getting in his cab to drive off. I couldn’t help but laugh.

Saturday afternoon we met our last volunteer who had just arrived with Kyle from the airport. Michelle was the last of our group and now Wave 2 would officially begin. We gave Michelle an hour to settle in and we all got changed in our swim suits to head down to Hammock Bridge to swim in the river and swing on the rope swing.

We all walked to 45 min walk down to the river and had a fun afternoon playing in the cool water and watching everyone swing on the rope off of the bridge. Trellany brought her GoPro camera and captured the fun times and even the mishap of Kyle. Kyle was attempting to swing off the bridge while holding the camera to have a cool shot. As he was focusing on his hand positioning we both failed to notice the excess of rope dangling off the wooden grip. The rope had been position just right so that when Kyle jumped off, a knot in the end of the rope was caught and wedged between a part of the side railing. The entire rope went taut and Kyle was given a nasty surprise. He managed to hold onto the wood for a couple seconds before he was sent flailing off the bridge into the water.

We all checked to see if he was ok. He came up out of the water, body and ego bruised but OK overall. After ensuring he was alright the laughs kicked in and we were all crying from laughing. I couldn’t stand up I was laughing so hard. Best part of the whole thing was that it was caught on film from his point of view. We still laugh when we see it. After more fooling around we tried to make a human ladder with myself on the bridge and the girls trying to climb up. Kyle was on bottom, then Michelle, and Anne on her shoulders. I was able to grab Anne long enough for Kyle and Michelle to be knocked over by the current and as I was trying to pull Anne up onto the bridge, I felt my shoulder give a little pop. I didn’t want to risk injury so I let go of Anne who then dropped onto Kyle’s head as he was coming out of the water. A dangerous situation that ended with a few bruises. All in all we had a great time being able to bond as a group and an awesome weekend.

Czech out our weekend video

Wave 2 and goodbyes

So if you’ve been keeping track of the days this summer you’ll have realized we hit the middle of June on Saturday. That means my time here in Belize is half way done. Also that means the first wave for HELP is at an end and unfortunately we had to say goodbye to a few of our volunteers. Before I get into that let me catch you up to speed to Friday.

Thursday I went about my normal Thursday routine and went and helped at Cornerstone prepare lunches for the children at Santa Elena and the various elderly throughout the sister cities. I went with Stanley again to the school and hung out with the kids for an hour until we came back to Cornerstone to clean up the mess. Cleaning out 80 bowls, forks, spoons, and cups takes a while. I don’t know if I’ve said this before but around 25 kids come to Cornerstone from another school nearby, that combined with the 55 is a lot of hungry, rambunctious children.

In the afternoon I taught my computer class again, this time only one of my students showed up, Jaclyn. However, it was nice because I was able to focus on her skill level and not try to have everyone progress at the same rate, sometimes that can be a slow process. I was able to show her how to find a file off the computer and attach it in the email. We ran through a few different ways to find, save, attach, and download files using her email. She was excited and even got a few of her friends email addresses to send them emails.

Men at Fuego

Ladies at Fuego

Thursday night was fun too. It was Randy’s last night here in Belize so we went as a group to a restaurant called Fuego. It was really good food and pretty expensive but it was provided for by HELP so my wallet didn’t take a hit. After Fuego we hiked up the hill to a place called Cayo Twist and got ice cream shakes and blizzards. We spent some time sharing some of our favorite moments from the past month and it was a good last team bonding. I was a bittersweet moment for all of us. We were all happy to have shared the past month together getting to know each other and we’ll definitely take the memories we’ve shared with us forever.

Friday morning I went with Trellany to Belmopan for her girls volleyball tournament. We both had to renew our visas to be able to stay in Belize, which required us traveling to the capital. While we were gone Randy left for the airport with Kyle and Kristina who went to pick up the new wave of volunteers. After getting our visas renewed I took the bus back to San Ignacio and Trellany stayed in Belmopan to finish her volleyball tournament. She said the girls played well but unfortunately they didn’t advance to nationals.

In the afternoon I went to Cadets, a program through the local law enforcement for children. We played some netless volleyball at the park and ran around for a bit, the kids were full of energy and I was worn out by the end of it. After Cadets, Danielle, Kim, and I went back to the apartment and hung out on the veranda where we were soon joined by Trellany from Belmopan. We chatted for a while and then we heard the van show up with our new volunteers.

Wave 2 brings a few new faces to Belize. Anne, Sarah, Jessie, and Laura joined our team and we talked for a while over dinner and then later went to get more Cayo Twist ice cream. We made plans to visit Xunantunich the next morning as we all weren’t able to do that on Thursday.

I’m excited to work with our new volunteers. They all seemed pumped to be here which is excellent for me and Trellany, it will give us some energy boosters and psych us up for a new wave of fun and service.

Update

It’s been a while since I last made a post on my blog. I’ll try and be brief yet still include the majority of things that happened during this past week. In the future I’m going to make a conscious effort to post at least every two days so I don’t let events pile on top of another like I have for this post.

            This past week was, for the most part, relatively the same as previous weeks here. I’ve been continuing my computer classes every Tuesday and Thursday and also helping prepare and deliver lunches at Cornerstone. I’ve come to know a few kids at the Santa Elena School where we deliver the lunches and most of them are pretty rowdy but a few just like to sit and talk to volunteers.

            Last Tuesday there was a citywide volleyball tournament for the schools in both San Ignacio and Santa Elena. My cousin Trellany is in charge of coaching the St. Andrews’ girls volleyball team. She had been coaching them for a while and preparing them for this tournament. The winners would go to the capital to compete in the district finals, and then on to Nationals if they won. With Trellany being really good at volleyball it seemed a natural fit for her to coach. Kyle and Randy were in charge of coaching the Santa Elena boys team.

            All of us went down to Santa Elena School to cheer on the teams that our volunteers were coaching. Kyle and Randy’s team unfortunately didn’t make it and were eliminated after 2 losses. I watched Trellany’s team play 1 game, which they lost. However, that was due to the terrible attitudes the girls were displaying and not my cousin’s coaching. Trellany had a chat with her team after the loss and told them something to boost up their confidence and better their attitudes. By that time however I had to get back to Cornerstone to teach my computer class with Kim, so I didn’t get to watch as Trellany’s team took 2^nd overall and advanced to the District finals.

            On Thursday everyone started to feel a little sick. I was at Cornerstone in the morning doing lunch prep when I started to get sick, I ended up throwing up there and so decided to go home early. Much to my surprise Danielle, Trellany, Randy, and I were all sick with something. Our stomachs were not in good moods and the three of them ended up passed out in the living room on mattresses while I was in my bed. I was woken up by Randy violently hurling in the toilet in the next room at like 2:00 am. Needless to say we weren’t having fun or feeling well.

            On Friday Trellany, Kristina, Kim, and Randy all headed out to Caye Caulker for the weekend. Caye Caulker is one of the islands off the coast and they wanted to go to the beach there. I didn’t really want to go due to the fact that it was a $200 + weekend, so Danielle, Kyle and I stayed back. I still wasn’t feeling good with my stomach so it was a good thing I stayed back. An hour or so after they had left we got a text from Kristina saying their bus had broken down and that as soon as the next bus came and picked them up it hit a car. What luck. I laughed as I read the text at the absurd but comical situation.

            The weekend was very chillax and we had some quiet time to ourselves. I like doing a lot of adventurous excursions but every once in a while it’s nice to just relax for a while. The three of us went out to dinner and played a few more get-to-know-you games. After dinner on Saturday we met up with a woman who is in charge of putting together a camp of sorts out at Pineridge. It sounded very much like a scout camp and we were interested in having a few volunteers going there to camp for the week and help teach different skills. I’ll have more details on that later.

            The rest of the group got back Sunday afternoon and we played some card games like BANG! After we were done playing games we had our weekly meeting and discussed goals for this week and filled in our calendar to ensure we had at least 2 projects everyday. At the end of this week however we’ll be losing Randy, Kim, and Danielle and the 2^nd wave will be coming in on Saturday. We decided that Thursday afternoon we’re going to try and go to Xunantunich, another Mayan ruin. The ruin is about a 15 min drive from our place and we hear it’s a cool place to go.

            Monday morning I spent time making a lesson plan for my computer classes for the week. It’s definitely been interesting teaching someone how to use a computer. I started out with 3 students but one of them stopped coming. She really only showed up for the first class and I think she just wanted us to make a facebook for her. I’ve been having them do the Mavis Beacon typing program part of the time and the rest of the class I’ve been trying to show them how to use other basic computer skills.

            In the afternoon I went to Belmopan with Danielle to go to what they call the Special Olympics. I had gone to Belmopan last week as well to spend time at an orphanage with the kids there. The bus ride is an hour and you’re pretty crammed the entire way. So yesterday we got to Belmopan and then took a taxi to the Garden City School to volunteer with the special education students. There are 6 total in the class but yesterday there were only 2 to begin with. We had P.E. with them and ran around and threw softballs. The kids were fun and very loving and happy to see us. A 3^rd student showed up later after he had gotten off work. The class has students from the ages of 12-18.

            Today I went with Kyle and Kristina to meet with the head of ProWorld, another volunteer group here in Belize. We’re trying to have a big community movie night with a big inflatable screen and projector. We spent a short time going over details of what we wanted to do and made a goal to make it happen by July 2^nd. I’ll keep you posted on how that goes.

            After I was done I went over to Cornerstone to help do the lunches again. I went with Stanley to Santa Elena school and did the lunches. Apparently one of the girls that was so nice to me before now hates me. I had no idea why until her friend told me. Apparently I don’t treat the girl better than everyone else so she hates me. I really don’t know what she expects me to do but whatever. Kids will be kids.

            In the afternoon I taught computer class with Trellany and I was finally able to set up an email account with one of my students. A cellular number is required to set up most and one of my students doesn’t have one. So we’re stuck with him. But with Jaclyn, I set her up a gmail account. It took a while because they have questions on every single step. When she was filling out her birthday she put the actual day, Saturday, instead of a number. Funny mistake but it took a bit of explaining to tell her what it was really asking.

            So that’s what’s been happening so far with us here in Belize. Tomorrow should be a good day. It’s another day with Cornerstone and then doing a program with Kyle at the police station called cadets. Stay tuned.

Actun Tunichil Muknal

Imagine you’re living 1000 years ago as a Mayan prince who is preparing to enter into   the underworld. You’ve been preparing for 260 days and fasting for the past 3 weeks. You make the long journey through the jungles of Central America to the entrance of the underworld. Actun Tunichil Muknal, the cave you must enter is before you. It’s entrance waters, turquoise, like the jade beads around your neck. This is where you must go and meet the 9 gods of the underworld, to perform a sacred Mayan ritual of bloodletting or even human sacrifice.
            On the first morning of June our small group got to experience a small piece of what ancient Mayan princes, shamans and nobles would experience when they would enter into the Actun Tunichil Muknal cave. Or as everyone calls it here, ATM cave.
            The ATM cave is one of Belize’s most well known adventuring destinations. It certainly wasn’t for the faint of heart, nor those with a weak mind. It certainly is a test of your mental strength as it’s claustrophobic caverns envelope you in a cool blanket of blackness. However if you manage to face your internal fears it rewards you with a myriad of amazing geological formations and an archaeological treasure trove.

            When we got to Belize ATM was one of the things most recommended to us to do while we were here. So Saturday morning we left at 7:00 AM and met with our guide Luis who would drive us out to where we’d start the hike to the cave. I had heard before that there were a lot of small passageways and cracks that people would have to squeeze through so I had been somewhat nervous to embark on this tour but Luis was a bigger guy with a nice big beer belly so I was somewhat relieved.
            When we got to the parking area we headed out on the 45 min hike through the jungle to get to the cave. The hike was relatively easy and Luis showed us some wildlife along the way like leaf cutter ants and basilisk lizards. He warned us several times about snakes and how they would kill us if we were bit. However he failed to mention what color they were or what to watch out for until the end of the hike. We crossed through a river at 3 different points until we finally reached the picnic area where groups coming out of the cave would scarf down any food they could find.

            Luis attached headlamps to our helmets (safety first) and then we all headed to the mouth of the cave. The cave itself was seriously something out of a story or even Indiana Jones. Jungle vines crept down the sides and the water was a light turquoise blue and so clear. We jumped in one after the other and the water was cold. It was a nice feeling after being in a hot jungle for the past hour.

            Oddly enough the look and feel of being just inside the cave was so surreal I couldn’t quite comprehend that we were actually going inside a real cave. It almost felt like something you’d see at Disneyland. We turned on our headlamps and delved into the inner workings of this ancient cave.
            For the majority of the journey we were in water that was anywhere from knee deep to sometimes your neck. Climbing up rocks took a bit of upper body strength and positioning of your hands and feet was key in making sure you didn’t slip and cut yourself on the jagged rocks that surrounded you.

            At one point I was second in the procession with Kyle ahead of me and Luis calling out to us from the back. He told us to go through a certain spot that was not size friendly at all. The hole he wanted us to squeeze through demanded that we first squat, turn our bodies and wriggle through the hole to the other side. After seeing Kyle do it I saw the size of the hole relative to him and knew I wouldn’t be able to do it. I had a moment where a huge fear of mine came to a realization and I started to have a panic attack. The fear of being trapped in a confined space underground with no way of being rescued is a huge fear of mine and seeing that little passageway and the rest of my group squeeze through it set me off. I had to let the others go before me and was trying to calm myself down. Claustrophobia set in quickly and I had to work harder to calm myself down and tell myself that I could do it. After all, the majority of challenging things like this were mental.

            Luis was a good guide and he saw that I was struggling mentally with this part so he showed me a much easier way to get to the same area as the rest of the group. Soon I was away from that awful feeling of being trapped and in a wide hallway that led deeper into the bowels of the cave. We stopped for a moment and Luis told us of how the Mayans regarded caves as sacred and as entranceways to the Underworld. I could see how the Mayans would think that. Everything about the inside of the cave was unlike the outside open air. It literally felt as if we were in a different world. And with the help of hallucinogens the Mayans would soon cross over into the spirit underworld to commune with their gods for answers they were seeking.

            After the short break we continued on again and Luis showed us some cool rock formations that the Maya had configured using the stalactites and rock structures to look like a giant head’s shadow when hit with light from the angle of someone approaching. These configurations were used to frighten away the unworthy or those that had no purpose in being there. In all honesty if I hadn’t known where the shadow was coming from I would have been creeped out as well.     

            We worked through more twists and turns in the cave wading through ice cold water. Finally we reached a rock where we climbed up to reach the dry cavern. This is where we would take off our shoes and either go barefoot or put on socks. The reason they have us do this is to reduce the impact people made on the portion of the cave where the artifacts were found. We climbed up a bit and saw our first pieces of ancient pottery. Luis explained a bit to us what they were and then we moved on to the next portion.

            This is where I was faced with the second small opening. Although this one wasn’t as intimidating as the first I managed to psych myself up to go through all the while being encouraged by my group, which helped a lot. Coming out of the opening was a huge cavern filled with stalactites, stalagmites, and columns and of course more ancient relics. This was seriously something you’d only see in movies but here it was right in front of us. Thousand-year-old artifacts inside an ancient cave millions of years old right in the middle of the jungle. Again it was surreal.
            Luis told us more stories and explained the ancient pieces of pottery from sacred rituals done by the Maya a thousand years ago. It was amazing to hear the stories and explanations to these archaeological findings. He explained the patterns in each small site they’d find in the cave and the meanings behind them. For example the 3 stones placed around a pot represented the 3 previous creations which all centered on the 4^th creation (our creation) and how they would pour the energy of the previous ones into the center. I don’t remember all of what he told us but it’s definitely interesting stuff.

            We were also shown a few skulls from humans that had been sacrificed in the caves. I’ve seen skulls before but this was the first time that I’ve seen them not behind glass and actually right at my feet. In their original position from when they died. One skull you could see had the flattened forehead that I had read about many years ago. That was cool to see the actual flatness in the bone structure. Luis said this wasn’t a form of beauty as I had previously thought, but purely a religious practice.

The third challenge for me came in the form of a ladder that went up to another shaft in the cave. I hate heights and took my time getting up and around the large rock that blocked the upper portion of the ladder. However at the top we were greeted by a full skeleton still in its religious pose from when the young 18 year old had died. Next to his skeleton we saw the skull that had been broken from a clumsy tourist last year. That incident prompted the archaeological society to ban cameras from the cave.

We made our way out of the dry cavern back to our shoes so we could once again plunge into the cold waters to make our way out of the cave. On our way back Luis had us line up and grab each other’s shoulders. Then we turned out our headlamps and we were quickly captured by the darkness’ clammy grasp. It was black. I know people say how black it can get in caves but I’ve never experienced it for myself until now. At one point I couldn’t tell if I had my eyes open or closed. It wouldn’t have made a difference anyway. We walked single file for about 50 meters or so until a faint light from an opening in the cave’s ceiling came into view. It was a cool experience and we really had to trust the person in front of us.

After a few more minutes we were back at the opening and swam out to where we had started. The ATM cave was an amazing once in a lifetime experience. I would love to go back through with a geologist to view the amazing geology that was inside as well. There is so much to learn in there. I’m so glad I pushed myself mentally and had the encouragement from my group the whole way. Also I was shocked at the physical parts I was able to do as well. All in all it was an awesome experience that I would highly recommend to anyone willing to risk their lives for an amazing adventure.