March 21 Cabañas and Ecumenical Worship at the Plaza

Today we traveled in buses by caravan with others from America and Canada to the (what we would call a state) of Cabañas.

Below are some of the sites and sounds that touched my heart:

People selling ALL kinds of things in sidewalk areas

The beautiful mountains and valleys of the area through which we drove

The excitement when our banner was hung on the side of the bus

The messages, during our ecumenical worship at the Plaza, from pastors of different places -Stanford, Berkeley, Cuba, Los Gatos, Guatamala, El Salavdor. Geoff Browning compared the California Gold Rush with the current stuggle: how the land and the native peoples were displaced and that issues continue to this day.

Watching Elsbeth TeBrake play a finger game with a 10-month old little girl

As we were riding home, I noticed a fence made from tree limbs. Some of the limbs were sprouting new leaves. I found myself reflecting on how people are sometimes the fence, holding the space. Some of the people will sprout ideas and be removed (like Romero) by others who do not want new growth, but the roots are in the ground and moving. They (like the people of San Isidro, Cabañas) will (and do) sprout new growth, making the fence (line that has been drawn) stronger. What a joy it has been to be in their company today!

Diana Aldrich