Oben´s Cows and Water Filters

Today one of my kids came to practice chasing his cows. I was sitting on Monsanto’s porch calmly watching the half diamond baseball game that was going on. Through the trees to my right I noticed two huge cows barreling down the dirt road. Then as they came into clear view I saw Oben sprinting behind them. I guess he forgot his horse. Or just didn’t want to bother, relying instead on his family’s speed and agility. His two brothers are the quickest kids on the soccer team. Their horse is named Relampago (Lightning) as well. They always ride it barebacked and often backwards for kicks. One day I might take them up on their offer and go for a little horseback riding in the hills nearby.

But anyway, the two cows proceeded to cut directly between the mound and home plate with Oben right on their tail. I looked at the guys playing baseball expecting some sort of reaction but there was none. So I laughed out loud instead. Oben continued chasing them for a few hundred meters more until I suppose they were where he wanted them to be. He turned around and walked to join the small sided soccer game that was going on in the outfield. I guess he decided his afternoon job was done. Or he had had enough of chasing around cows.

Today was pretty slow. Yesterday I had a meeting for anyone interested in getting a Bio-Sand filter. A disappointing eight people came, but we had the meeting anyway and I gave them the whole “why this is important” spiel. Afterwards I was thinking how that in order to have a worth while meeting, it sometimes takes a previous meeting to get people on board for the actual meeting that I wanted to have in the first place. It’s crazy I know. A little frustrating too. I was hoping to meet once, get 25 people on board, take care of other business, and send in the application for these filters by tomorrow. But tomorrow is now the real meeting as yesterday was just the warm up. And it’s not that people didn’t know. Because they have been stopping me in the street and telling me to apuntar them - put their name down so they don’t miss out on these filters and how they really really need it. Then I tell them don’t worry because we are having another meeting(heavily winded emphasizing “another”) and that they just need to come to this one. One girl in particular was insistent in telling me to put her name down and I kept telling her how she just needs to come to the next meeting. Then she dared to ask, “¿y si se me olvida mañana?” – and what if I forget tomorrow? That really got me. I told her just don’t forget and walked away, leaving her there standing still for a brief moment and probably a little frustrated and wondering why I wouldn’t just apuntarla.

I don’t want to rant and so I won’t too much. But I think I see the culture of poverty coming through in the beginnings of this whole filter project; apathy and not taking personal responsibility or the initiative for something that they could truly benefit from. I mean they only have to come to a meeting! I can understand that a few people here may not see a problem with the water they are drinking. I can excuse that, and just ask them to come to the meeting anyway, because that’s what I am going to convince them of during the first half of it. But I have also heard enough complaints since I’ve been living here to know that there are many people who do understand their water is a problem. Why didn’t they jump on this thing the first take? Why do they give me an excuse for not being at the first meeting and then say they can’t come to the next one either, but ask me to apuntar them anyway? Things like this can be frustrating sometimes. But that’s enough. I will stop there for tomorrows’ meetings’ sake.