Rainy Christmas and Runny New Years

Christmas Time

Christmas time arrived on a day warm like any other. In Curva del Río where electricity is readily available, some houses were decorated with festive lights.

In Lado Oeste, celebration meant going to days-long church marathons in Curva del Río in the days leading up to, and through Christmas. I assumed the same happened in Ladera as most of the people there were of the same religion.

Only a skeleton crew, so to speak, remained in Lado Oeste, keeping watch on the homes. Add to that, a storm passed through and the flooded river made crossing alternately dangerous and difficult.

Prior to Christmas time, I had begun experimenting with making flour tortillas. My first attempt at them resulted in tortilla-looking pancakes. Corn tortillas were easier to make, as one only needs Maseca (brand corn-flour), water, and a small tortilla press as well as plastic to keep the masa from sticking. Flour tortillas are more finicky requiring a good ratio of water, flour, and vegetable shortening. Add to that, they're more of a pain to roll out.

On the eve of Christmas, a family from elsewhere who was temporarily staying in Lado Oeste invited me over to eat and watch a movie. I agreed, and got to work on some tortillas as my contribution. I recall that while I was rolling out tortillas so that they would be ready to cook, Kobäre ran into the house and started playing at my feet. I was mildly annoyed at first, but then I looked down and realized he was playing with his prey.

Blood was streaked across the floor and my foot as he decapitated a mouse and began consuming the body. I quickly went to wash my feet vigorously before returning to clean up the blood left over. At the very least, Kobäre didn't leave left-overs. Now I know why no mice were stirring the night before Christmas.

Morbidity aside, my Christmas miracle came in creating an item of food that could be defined as a flour tortilla.

Tortillas Coming to Fruition

First Batch of True Tortillas

For those who might be interested in making flour tortillas for themselves, I used the assistance of Mely Martinez's website "México en Mi Cocina". Information on how to make flour tortillas can be found here.

While the website sets you on the path, it ultimately takes practice to start making good flour tortillas.

Anyways, I contributed these tortillas when I arrived later in the night. I was offered a plethora of "unusual" fruits such as a pear, some grapes and an apple. On top of this, they gave me rice with chicken.

On their phone, set up across from the seating on a table played the movie Falcon Rising (2014). Why that movie? No idea. But a movie is a movie.

The following morning, Christmas morning, we got more rain. I suppose it was the closest we could get to a snowy Christmas.

New Year's Eve

I had been invited over to Bernardino's home during the day in Ladera. His family had prepared a small feast and also offered gifts for the children. As for the gifts, I cannot remember if the tradition is to give gifts during this time, or if they were supposed to be given at Christmas but delayed for other reasons.

I recall feeling a little queasy after eating, but I suppressed any urge to vomit.

I was surprised when suddenly they pulled out a piñata for the kids to hit. Unlike the ones I've seen in the United States and México, these ones were filled with flour as well as candy. The result was a powdery mess all over the floors and the children who scrambled to collect the candy. It may well be that the flour is intended to be fun and/or part of tradition, but it also had the effect of marking those adults who intervened in the fray.

The event wrapped up in the afternoon. Most people, including Bernardino had plans to be elsewhere. As did I. I had been invited to spend the night with Nelly of Curva del Río. She owned a home in Ladera, and was listed as my back-up host family. However, the fact that she never got to be my host-mom didn't stop her from referring to me as monso tikwe (my son).

Come dinner time, I had to refuse food. My digestive system was not being agreeable. Then the diarrhea hit.

Remigio, Nelly's husband, suggested I may be suffering amoebas. His treatment: down a bottle of Seco (Herrerano), and clear them out. Such a thought nauseated me further, but maybe that's what the amoebas, acting in sel-preservation, had wanted me to feel.

2020 arrived when I was on the can. I would get up several times that night to visit the toilet.

The first day of 2020 I only ate some toasted bread and ended up utilizing some oral rehydration salts. A good start to a good year.

Race

Racism

Panama, like nearly the entire world, is no stranger to racism. It holds a diverse population of Latinos, Indigenous, Asians, Blacks, and a few non-hispanic whites. While the power is held predominantly by Latinos, race still exists under the white supremacist system established since the colonial era.

While some Latinos have a superior position than other owing to lighter complexion, all at the very least share a privileged position above the indigenous people.

Below are my observations from my brief time in Panama. By no means is it a complete picture of the racial dynamics in Panama.

Stereotypes About the Indigenous

The indigenous are thought of as lazy savages, undeserving of the government aid afforded them. There also seems to be a sense that the poverty experienced by much of the indigenous community is a result of personal action (or inaction) as opposed to say, present and historical discrimination.

The "Chinos"

Not all Asian-Panamanians are of Chinese descent. Nevertheless, the Spanish language tends to refer to all Asians as "Chinos". A disproportionate amount of small-business stores are owned and staffed by Asians. So much so that "Chino" is synonymous with Mini-Supermarket. This has caused resentment among various quarters of Panamanian society, including among the indigenous.

Blacks

Panama has a large population of people of African descent. As with the rest of the Americas, blacks were brought over as slaves to provide labor. More recently in Panama's history, they arrived largely from the Caribbean to provide labor for the construction of the Panama Canal, as well as to work in the banana plantations. As such, they play the role of "immigrants stealing our jobs / driving down our wages."

Stereotypes against blacks are very similar to those in the United States. Dehumanizing language, particularly with reference to them being monkeys is commonplace, even in indigenous communities. When I pointed out to one of the youth in my assigned community how Latinos used similar language to describe the indigenous, he merely shrugged it off along the lines of "It's not true about us, but it is about [blacks]."

White flight also applies in Panama.

Personal Experience

My experience with direct racism in Panama was about equal to zero. I belonged to the primary culture and as a result I easily blended-in in urban areas.

Once I was established in an indigenous site, things were different. Outside of my assigned communities, I was met with distrust and minor hostility. They didn't use the word sulia to refer to Latinos in this region, but rather Chuy. I remember when walking down the street of Curva del Río, a woman looked back to see me and immediately called out to her daughter who had run ahead: "Ven acá! Viene chuy." A woman in Ladera initially refused to speak with me until weeks later when her sister vouched for me.

These weren't acts of racism, as racism is a system that targets marginalized groups. These acts were the result of fear. Over time, I managed to allay concerns. Not only because I was a common face in the region, but I also carried around a kra and an indigenous name. I spoke some of the language. I had proof that I was a friend.

My real brush with racism came from having the Hispanic identifier. One of the first things I was told, was that I didn't look pure American. While I overlooked the comment at the time, further commentary started to grate at me. People began asking questions about why Peace Corps placed volunteers where they did. They asked me why I was placed in their respective communities, and most tellingly, if there were ever cases where volunteers swapped communities. What they were getting at was, why did everyone get a (non-hispanic) white volunteer except us?

White people are viewed as more capable and intelligent, if not also kinder and amiable. The communities I was assigned were dedicated and organized enough to pull out all the stops in welcoming the Peace Corps staff during the site selection process. That the Peace Corps chose to send a Latino to their community was viewed as something of a snub.

Even as late as after in-service training (IST, yet discussed), when I would show them pictures of my (Latino) host family there, I was told "Se parecen a tu familia. El Cuerpo de Paz debería haberte envoyado allí."

I did what I could to ignore these comments and try to prove my worth. I studied Ngäbere using all materials available to me, I stayed active with project work, and I got out and about in the community as often as possible. The commentary persisted to my dismay, but it helped to remember that a great many people did truly appreciated my presence.

Water Surveying

Water Committee Trial Run

I met with the water committee to discuss water surveying. I proposed the water-leveling method whereby a transparent tube is tied between two metered sticks.

Cutilio put down the money for the plastic tubing, and together we gathered bamboo to create the measuring sticks (measured in centimeters). José Guerra pitched in the use of his 50 ft. tape with which we could measure the distance between points.

Survey Sticks Ready to Use

For the trial run, we decided to survey the existing water system of Lado Oeste. At the very least, this information could serve useful for future projects. But primarily, it would ensure experience for when the time came to survey Ladera.

Things moved slowly at first as we were all new. But as time wore on and everyone got accustomed, they started to speed up. Each day, as new people took on the job, things would slow down again until people were used to their role. The primary issue was ensuring communication between the stick bearers to ensure water didn't spill from either end. If a spill was particularly bad, air would enter the tube and work would be delayed while we coaxed the air out (lest it caused errors in or measurements).

After three days, the system of Lado Oeste proper had been surveyed. What remained were the remaining three houses located a great deal away. Nevertheless, the people of Ladera were invited as a test of logistics. Prior, the people of Lado Oeste volunteered (or were volunteered, in the case of the youth) to work ad-hoc and went home to eat after the day's session. This time, it was decided that there should be volunteers to cook for the survey team.

Every household was expected to participate, but in order to incentivize people to work (and keep working), the water committee decided to offer credits. Normally, water installation costs an upfront fee, followed by a fixed water fee monthly. The credits would reduce the installation fee and/or provide credit towards the monthly fee. Such benefits were also made available to the cooks who were to provide their own ingredients.

I laid out a December Calendar for people to sign up for particular days. In the upper portion of each day, were the names of those who were volunteering to take part in the survey teams. The lower section consisted of those who were volunteering to cook and provide food.

The survey team, it was decided, ideally consisted of 1 data recorder, 2 stick bearers, and 2 measurers for a total team of 5. In certain cases, an additional person may be needed to clear a path through foliage. A team of four faced a small decrease in efficiency as the data recorder would have to take on a measurement role. A three-person team was deemed to be the minimum as any fewer would result in little progress over the span of a work-day. Work would occur for 4 hours, six days a week.

I initially imagined the 4-hour workday being completed before arriving to the home of the cooks for a meal. Instead, the cooks hauled the food (and drink) out to the survey teams which at times were a great distance away.

Female Participation

In general, people were apprehensive about signing up in the early days. The process of surveying sounds quite complicated and people were unsure if they were up to the task. Add to that, women refused to sign up for days where the role of cook was filled. This was because the work of surveying was assumed to be men's work. This remained the case until two women accidentally signed up in the wrong section.

When they showed up prepared to cook, I informed them that they had, in fact, signed up as surveyors. But rather than refuse the work, they took up the sticks and performed admirably through mud, ravines, and thick foliage. During later recruitment drives, women would begin purposefully signing up as surveyors, no doubt due to the previous example set forth. I remember while passing through Los Estados Unidos in Ladera during the final recruitment drive, the women there signed up to fully staff the remaining two days telling me "queremos ver el agua lo antes posible."

Surveyors Take Their Lunch Break

That nearly every household participated in the water surveying event was quite the feat, but that women provided nearly half the labor was an unexpected miracle. While it is the goal of Peace Corps volunteers to build capacity among all sectors of a community, gender roles can restrict participation in certain activities. But because of a happy accident, and the determination of the women of Ladera, the elevation survey was completed without any days lost to labor shortage.

I'm hopeful that the experience built during the course of the surveying will provide confidence for women in the communities to continue directly participating in technical work activities. I'll always remember the persuasive words one veteran surveyor told to her on-the-fence friend, "No es tan dificil como dicen los brares."

Kobäre

When I arrived at the home of Cutilio and Juliana, one of the first things I noticed were the animals. Along with their dog and brooding hen was a cat with two kittens.

The cat had no name and was just referred to as minchi, Ngäbere for cat. A neighbor, Margarita, once had a big orange cat named Ilario. Apparently however, he took to living in the hills. Nevertheless, he would occasionally come by the home of Juliana to pay a visit to his feline friend. I only ever laid eyes on him once.

According to Cutilio, they once had a major mouse problem which prompted them to get a cat. The mice have since disappeared. However, this cat hunts more than just rodents. Lizards are the most abundant prey, but she also hunts bats and Juliana claims to have seen this cat fight and kill a snake. She also ate half a loaf of bread I left unattended.

Brai Subduing a Salamander (Bolitoglossa schizodactyla)

In Ngäbere there is a word for someone who hunts all manner of animals with excellency, brai. I wished to refer to the cat by this name, but it never really caught on. She just remained minchi.

Brai's kittens, one male and one female, would play with each other while she went out to hunt. They were good friends and often I found them curled up and sleeping on top of each other. However, Cutilio's sister once came to visit and took the female kitten leaving only the male. In the neighborhood, there weren't any other cats as cats are unpopular.

I was promised the remaining kitten so that my new house would be protected from rodents, which are attracted to penca (thatch).

So I worked to gain the trust of this kitten which had gotten big enough to follow its mom into the house (to Brai's dismay). I would feed both cats and in that way, the young kitten came to be comfortable with my presence and even allowed me to pet him. What I would notice though is that he would finish the food I gave him quickly and then steal the food I gave his mom from right out of her mouth. She would respond with cat slaps to no avail. For this reason, I named him Kobäre (Selfish).

After settling into my new rented home, I took Kobäre and relieved Brai of the ingrate. Prior to my evacuation, I would witness him kill 1 mouse, 1 bat, and a few lizards.

Gallery

Watching For Prey

Patrolling the Penca / Plotting My Assassination?

Acting as a Door Stop

Stealing Jametaka's Food