Nicaragua 2010…if not us, then who?

What can I say about a trip that has so vastly affected my life in so many ways? When first presented with the idea to go on this trip, I instantly wanted to be apart this life changing experience. It was time to leave the simplicity and mundane routine of my life in New Jersey for a more meaningful experience. The idea of going to a third world country, a life that was so outside and foreign to mine, not only excited me but at the same time terrified me. Regardless, I was determined on going and opening my eyes and heart to the loving people and vivid culture of the beautiful country of Nicaragua.

When we first arrived to Nicaragua, we were immediately met with smiles, and for the remainder of the trip we were shown a kindness and a hospitality that transcends any we were accustomed to in the States. It was as if the people of Nicaragua, a people who have very little, were willing to give whatever they did have in order to make us happy and comfortable. The best example of this was seen all throughout our stay in the campo. Our campo families, who we all developed close and loving relationships with, taught us that even though you may not have worldly possessions or materials, there are much more important things in life like community, laugher, soccer games, thunderstorms, family, friends, and most importantly love. All of the people we met throughout this trip taught me so much about the human will to survive, endure, and persevere. My most vivid memories of this spirit were shown through the Nemagon workers and the hundreds families that lived and worked out of this enormous garbage dump. There was this sense of community that I have never experienced in America. We heard testimonies of their overwhelming desire to provide for their families, but to also provide and protect those families in their community.

Ironically, I went to Nicaragua with the idea that our group would somehow have something to teach the people, but it was us who learned so much from them. I not only learned much about the country and how the relationship shared between Nicaragua and the United States greatly affects every policy of this rich land, but I also learned a lot about myself and what it truly means to be a servant leader. Every experience we shared with the people was filled with emotion and this overpowering urge to help. I want everyone to know the struggles and heartache of these people and to know that we as a county need to become educated on the unjust American policies that continue to hinder and stunt the growth of Nicaragua. The people of Nicaragua have spoken, and for decades their cries have fallen on deaf ears. It’s time for change, and that time is now. Through my experiences I now feel that it is my civic duty to not only bring awareness to my personal communities about the injustices and adversities that plague the Nicaraguan people, but to allow this awareness to encompass a larger scale of people, perhaps state or even nation wide. If we do not try to campaign for the people of Nicaragua, then who will? Certainly not the representatives of the US Embassy we visited, nor the corrupt Nicaraguan government officials, and unfortunately not even their very own president.

I will never forget the people and culture of Nicaragua. This is experience was beyond life changing and I hope that in the future I am able to participate in trips just like this one. It’s hard to believe that it only took 10 days for me to fall in love. In only 10 days I realized that something had to be done to try to help our family in Nicaragua, and I truly hope and believe that through all of our delegation training we will be able to develop some type of concrete plan to help alleviate and bring awareness and later change to many of the pressing problems in Nicaragua. It was not enough to simply sit idly in classroom learning about the country, its people, and their problems. We had to truly submerse ourselves in that culture and get down in the dirt and dig, plant, protect, cry, sing, dance, laugh, and nurture right along side of our brothers and sisters of Nicaragua.

Bonner love,

Ashley

Back at Home

I wish I could have blogged more while in Nicaragua but we had limited internet.

There are so many things and experiences I want to share but it is impossible to convey everything via a blog post. I come back to this country after seeing all of the theories and models taught in campus classrooms with airconditioning and smart boards put into practice. Professors who worked at the world bank lecture about the greatness of free trade agreements, market control, and marvel at the wonders of neoliberalism. But citizens living with these practices live without sovereignty and with poverty and inequality. The same bandaid cannot be used for every country; yet over and over again it's slapped on despite overwhelming evidence that it is not providing higher standards of living for these people.

Every person we spoke with said you are our microphone, and when we asked what we could do for them they all said share my story with your family and friends in america. We can do so much more that we think we can to help these people. I don't think Americans understand the power they have to create positive change. The people we met use their limited resources and limited access to power to fight for a better Nicaragua. They all continue to fight for their communities and their people. They want a better Nicaragua for their children.

Since I've been home, people have asked were people nice to you and it makes me think of how welcome we were everywhere we went. The warmth and strength of these people was astounding. People brought us to their homes, introduced us to their family and their history. When we went to see the nemagon workers, this woman who can sometimes barely get out of bed saw Narolyn scratching a mosquito bite. She went to and brought back medicine for her and then wanted Narolyn to take it with her. That would never happen in the US.

I never expected to love this country so much and to love its people. I never imagined the effect it would have on me. This was not a textbook or a DVD; these were real people who shared stories, homes, hugs, tons of emotions, and hope. I thank Witness for Peace for their existence in this and in other countries. I wish I could bring more people through this program and watch them learn.

I cannot wait to begin taking my experience and sharing it, taking everything I saw and bringing it back to TCNJ and fighting to create change.


Since it came on while i was writing this, i thought i'd share this song
Wavin Flag-K'naan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlV6t1k3y00&feature=related

"un pueblo con hambre es un pueblo sin paz..."

Day 1 and 2 in Nicaragua
what is Solidarity...what is nonviolence?, questions that were asked to this delegation as we embarked on learning about this country's storied history and fragile present as well as site visit around the city of Managua. We thought about the question asked and realized after much deliberation that both words have evolving meaning and a sliding scale of acceptable meanings. Nonviolence for instance could be interrupted as I suggested would be the strict adherance to the law while in pursuit of progressive ways to fight for justice...., but in the context of Nicaragua, how about of the laws created were inherently unjust and the "system" created never allowed you to be a winner, but a peg in a growing machine of inequality and injustice. Yesterday we visited a community cultural center that had a visual time line of the country's history, and in part of the mural there was the quote from a Nicaraguan nobel peace prize winner that said, "un pueblo con hambre es un pueblo sin paz...", when theres hungry there will be no peace...
peace and hoodlove
-Fred