I slept really well last night on just straw and ship skin. I woke up around 8 and joined my family kitchen room. I was given coffee and popcorn kernel type things. I sat there with little conversation, slowly sipping my delicious coffee. When I put on my clothes this morning and stepped into the room, I felt out of place for the first time the whole trip. I was just so different. I don’t know why at this particular moment I first felt this way; maybe it was the language barrier or maybe the huge difference in lifestyle. Despite feeling a bit self-conscious from all the curious glares, I felt welcomed and happy to be there. After finishing my coffee I walked Hugo and Ana to school. They picked up friends along they way and together they giggled, probably at my clothes or how different I was. We walked down the gorgeous hill that overlooked the valley and rest of the town. In all different directions, you could see kids walking down towards the school. I ran into Becky and her sister as well. We finally got down to the school a little past 9:00 when school started but a bunch of the kids didn’t go in. Becky and I tried asking why they weren’t going in but we didn’t get much of a response—more of a cold shoulder. I decided to leave despite not entering the school; I wanted to get back to help my mom around the house.
When I got home I was served more soup and potatoes. My mom and Edwin were sitting in kitchen but my dad had left for the fields. After Edwin left, the only Spanish speaker, my mom and I sat in silence. I did the dishes once I finished eating and then sat reading outside my room. My mom then came outside and started to pile hay. I sat and watched her for a little until she called me over with a hand gesture. I stood behind her and without words she slowly instructed me how to disperse the straw. I attempted…we laughed. She then took my wrist and shook it back and forth showing me the proper movement. Nodding her head, she told me to try once more. Stroking back and forth, I followed her every movement. Soon enough we were working synchronized side by side. We shared smiles, but very little words. It is weird how close I felt to her even though we barely spoke. Once we were done with the straw, we headed for the kitchen. I attempted to peel potatoes but yet again I needed my mom’s help. She laughed and helped me through the process… I didn’t pick it up as easily as I did the straw! It took forever for me to peel just one but my mom could peel one in 10 seconds. We ended up making papas fritas, eggs, and rice and once my siblings returned from lunch we all ate together; it was delicious. I used to not like eggs but now I love them! After lunch we went to the store to get some cookies. When we got back we played some soccer in the plaza until the weather started to turn. It started to storm, so I went to my room and read as I listened to the raindrops hit the tin roof—so relaxing (I ended up falling asleep for a little). When I woke up I got some tea and popcorn. I had a group meeting then came back home and had soup for dinner and played chess with my siblings. They were SO good at chess!
Later that night around 9:00 we all gathered at the instructors house for a Quechua ceremony. We all sat around the edge of the room with two Kayawallas (traditional Quecha healers) in the middle. They were setting up seashells with different ornaments in them while smoking and drinking in between. It was really slow and boring at first but then we got to participate by putting more objects into the seashells; I added some llama fat. Once the seashells were filled the Kayawallas took a guinea pig out of a bag, held it up, and cut open its throat for a sacrifice. It was really graphic but I would later slay a pig and lamb so now it seems like nothing. The sacrifice was sad though because the guinea pig was squealing and squirming until the neck was snapped off.
The Kayawallas then ripped open the chest and you could still see the heart beating. They then examined the intestines in order to read our future. Like the other Kayawalla, they said that our trip will go as expected. Once the sacrifice was over we all got a shell and went outside and stood in a circle. Everyone was completely silent, waiting for the Kaywalla to come around and put his hands over our head while chanting a prayer. We were supposed to think of a good journey, home, and the Pacha Mamma as his hands were over our head. It was a very cool and powerful moment. After the Kayawalla’s started a fire next to the guinea pig grave. We dumped the contents of our shells into the fire and then took the pig blood in the cup and sprayed some into the fire. When we sprayed it into the fire we had to think of a good journey and thank Pacha Mama. Right after I sprayed blood into the fire, I went to the other side of the circle and sprayed some blood towards the mountains thinking of home and a safe journey. We had one last circle then ended the ceremony. It was a very cool experience and I felt so alive afterwards.
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