Monthly Archives: August 2011

(by Colleen)

Okay folks, here´s the scoop. Let´s talk poop! After learning that 2 people had fear of coming to visit us only because of where they thought they would be doing business…it´s time to set the record straight!

We have a composting toilet. (One day it will be a composting latrine, but right now, we poop in a bucket!) Joking aside, it is very clean and believe it or not, no smell! If you were thinking it would stink, then you have a misconception because you´ve been in a nasty pit latrine or port-a-potty.

The difference…with the composting latrine-bucket, you cover your waste with a mix of dry material such as saw dust, dirt, charcoal, etc.  A pit latrine is stagnant and has no dry material, which contributes to the smell, because all of the wet material sits and festers. The former stays aerobic while the latter goes anaerobic.

On to the pigs! One day after Alan emptied our composting bucket; I smelled something bad and thought it was our own waste. Alan set me straight and informed me that our compost has little to no smell, that what I must be smelling was pig poop. Unfortunately, our house sits downwind from our neighbors pig pen…and of course the smell always seems to be most noticeable when we are ready to eat! They have 3 pigs in a very small contained area, and if their waste isn´t washed out immediately, the smell lingers. We plan on talking with our neighbors about this problem after this batch of piggies goes to market.

As for our composting waste…I have smelled it, and it smells a bit like sweet hay. So, if you’re ever in our neck of the woods, please stop in and have a seat.

“People say that colds are contagious, you know, that one person can pass it on to another… but that´s a bunch of lies,” said the sweetest little old lady that lives next door to us and has made it her personal mission to make sure we never pass a hungry moment. I could hear little Kalea cough and whimper in the background, struggling to get through the second illness of her lifetime… which onset a couple of days after an unannounced visit from the sniffling, snotty, 4 year old daughter of our neighbors.

“Actually, the people are right, sister Florencia. The common cold is caused by one of several viruses, all of which are contagious from one person to another through coughing, sneezing, and contact. I would recommend you not visit… and what is that delicious-smelling concoction that you´ve brought us?!”

“Oh… I´m old enough… that ‘ol cold won´t get me.”

Florencia was sick 48 hours later.

“I guess it´s goin’ around,” she says “… but you see, I didn’t get it `til today… and I didn´t even visit you yesterday.”

I try to explain the incubation period briefly and make mental notes for the curriculum we´re developing.

“How are things going, Angel?”

Angel is a 50+ year old Colombian who owns a farm and the dry goods store. He´s lived in Panama most of his life, has done well, and has a car, block home, and 2 young sons with his second wife.

“Ok I guess.”

This translates as “Not ok. There is something wrong in my life.”

“What´s wrong?”

“Hermít is sick.”

…”We took him to the medical doctor and the witch doctor, and we think he´s been eyed… the evil eye,” he twists his face a little for effect.

…What am I suppose to say? I decide to keep quiet and listen.

I, for one, believe firmly in the evil eye. I would describe it as the polar opposite of the placebo effect. Hermít has bacteria. He´ll be fortunate if his parents’ beliefs don´t intervene in the healing process.

 

 

“Don´t eat that fruit in front of your brother!” shouts Hermít´s mom. “You know that sick boys can´t have fruit!”

And these are some of the more educated, affluent members of our community. I shudder to think what types of beliefs lurk out there for us to encounter. But we are learning about them day by day and have begun to develop a curriculum aimed at helping folks here understand creation… the micro part.

Some supporters are donating a microscope and we´ll acquire a digital microscope camera and projector through a project we´ve helped organize. Connecting it all to this computer, we´ll be able to show people what the “evil eye” is all about… when it´s not psychosomatic, of course. Be careful out there.

Blessings,

alan