Thursday, March 12, 2009

Heifer Project Time (Langue, Honduras)

     Our last week in Honduras was spent with Heifer Project International and one of their partner organizations, Simiente.  We spent three eventful nights all in a home stay in the beautiful, hot, dry mountains very near the border to El Salvador.  We learned to identify trees in a small protected forest and painted signs that will soon adorn each tree with its common and scientific name, informing people of each tree’s importance.  This forest will become a source of income for the community as visitors and students come to study these trees.  It was amazing to see an area of protected forest when so much forest is lost each year for firewood and fuel.  It is good to see that people are concerned for the deforestation that is devastating much of the country. 
     One of my favorite parts of the trip was learning about t
he “passing of the gift.”  Heifer Project receives donations from anyone around the world and with that money they purch
ase a va
riety of animals to give to families in need.  The family we all stayed with had two c
ows, thanks to Heifer Project.  A family that receives a new animal will pass the gift of th
eir first-born animal to another family in their community.  Each animal that is
 passed as a gift is pregnant, symbolizing the hope and ability to share with others what they have received.
   Through receiving an animal, a family is able to feed themselves and potentially have a source of income, especially as the animal continues to produce offspring.  We had the opportunity to talk with the eight women who make up the “Circle of Friends and Neighbors.”  These women, part of the same community, work together to determine who is ready to receive the next gift of an
 animal, considering need, space and ability to keep and care for an animal.  We met pigs, goats, and cows that are
 all gifts from the Heifer Project passing of the gift. 
     Discovering our obvious monkey ancestry through banana obsessions, learning of the difficulties and rewards of sleeping in hammocks, among many other animal and insect encounters, a good time was had by all, and our unique experience was certainly appreciated.  It took a day or two to realize how unique our time was there and how lucky we all are to have been able to see and experience the life of people so far removed.  To survive the dry season so far away from additional resources must be somewhat of a trick.  They have an incredible way of life and knowledge of their surroundings.  It further proved to me how much I have to learn from this lifestyle and these people.
~Nora

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