¡hola!

Update from Carorita

Hello all! I hope this email finds everyone happy and healthy! Things here in Carorita have been a little rough recently. Just after my first blog, we found out that my godmother Auxiliadora was pregnant. Just last week, however, three months pregnant, she miscarried. For the 3 or so weeks before the miscarriage, she had already been on bedrest, so the household has been out of whack for a while now. Fortunately, she and Francisco have been recovering well, and things here at home are starting to get back to normal. I must say I learned a lot about the healthcare system here through this experience. It is absolutely amazing to see the results of free healthcare - poor people who need medical attention can actually get it. The health mission seeks out poor communities and expensive operations take place for people with no money to pay for it. That said, however, the actual medical experience can be extremely different than what I have experienced working in the hospital in the States. We were in the waiting room of a government hospital with women who were literally going into labor in the waiting room chairs, and the nurses still would not let them through the doors to the delivery room. Everytime the delivery room doors would open, to actually be let through, the woman would rush to the door before it closed, begging and groaning to be let through. In my godmother's case, she had been given a pill in a clinic to expel the fetus and then sent to the hospital where she was not given a room until she stood up and expelled right there in the middle of the waiting room. After she was actually given a room at 9 o'clock in the evening, she was not allowed to have any visitors until 4 o'clock the next day. Furthermore, the only information we were given about her all night and the next morning was that she had come out of everything fine, and they weren't sure when she would get a room or when she would discharge her. Francisco and Yuderly stayed in the hospital, or should I say, NEXT to the hospital, because there is no overnight waiting room. Needless to say, the experience was enlightening, and particularly so for me as I am going to study political and economic development.

---

The community as well is sad today because yesterday evening there was a car accident here in the fields. A truck hauling cabbage had several men riding on the back, but it was overloaded and tipped over and rolled down a hill of the fields in the part of the community called, La Esperanza, or The Hope. One man, about 30 or so, was killed, and the other 2 were sent to hospital with some minor injuries. A friend of mine and I found out at about 7:30, and with the rest of the community, headed straight to La Esperanza. It took the fire trucks and ambulance over 4 hours to arrive, and I'm not even sure what time his body was finally removed. I had always seen this man in the community, but was only formally introduced to him about 2 weeks ago when I visited his home. As with many people here, I only knew him by his nickname, La Cierra, the Closer. Carorita was dead quiet as my friend and I walked to La Esperanza last night. No one was out on the streets because everyone else was already at the scene. Arriving at the entrance to La Esperanza and seeing most of Carorita gathered there was truly nauseating. Today everyone will make visits to La Cierra's house. A funeral is one experience I have not had thus far in Venezuela, and I can't say that I'm looking forward to it.

---

As far as my work here in Carorita, I've been continuing my English classes on the weekends now, because my students are in school during the week. I've started computer and typing classes which are going great. It's amazing to see how fast kids pick things up! At the same time, it makes me a little sad because it's proof that all people need are opportunities. And sometimes, in some places, the opportunities just aren't available. We also started back up weekly youth group meetings last week, and it's good to see the youth unite outside of work and school. The Bible text we studied was from Matthew when Jesus feeds the four thousand.

---

---