Sacred Rocks and Being Real

Rocks from the sea, balanced on each other at sometimes inconceivable angles.

We have seen them before, in remote places where travelers and seekers have left offerings to the coast or to the gods of wanderlust.

And here we find totems, scattered along the shore.

But there is a difference. Here the spirit is not the same.

While others I have seen hold a sacred quality, built under sacred circumstances, as amazing as these may look, they hold sadness and a feeling of desperation for me.

You see, they were not built by pilgrims. They were built by a man and his wife who live here. Not because of any holy endeavor, but in a desperate bid to make a living.

I stood and watched as this old Mexican cabellero demonstrated his ability to balance one stone on another. He did it with the pomp of an entertainer and somehow it lost all its magical charm.

He had been balancing rocks for twenty years he said. In truth, it wasn't amazing. Not at all.

He held his cigarette in his lips as he took a stone off the top of a tower, tossed it from one hand to another and deftly showed me how he could return it to its original place.

He faltered several times and I waited patiently, not so much because I cared about seeing the balancing, but because I saw his daily struggle to live and I desired to honor it.

His wife sputtered at me in Spanish, concerned I might just walk by after the well rehearsed show without leaving the dollar fee for the ticket. She was beautiful. Her face was pained and her body darkened from a lifetime spent in the sun. I would have given her much more than the suggested dollar if I'd had it on me. But that day, my own pockets were disturbingly light.

We as travelers look for authentic experiences. We pass by performers looking for a tip in search of something more real. But I challenge you to see this couple. Imagine where they might live, the condition of their home, what they eat for dinner at night.

It couldn't be more real....

With a full heart,

laura

Please check out our FULL WEBSITE at www.PovertyProjectInternational.com

Connect with us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/povertyprojectinternational/

If you want to chat, you can email us at povertyprojectinternational@gmail.com

Or if you want to help us out and DONATE, you can go to PAYPAL and send your donation to povertyprojectinternational@gmail.com All donations are tax deductible.

Live is an adventure, Live it!

Comments

The Secrets of Happiness and How to Happify Your Life with Happy Food

Maria with a guanabana ripe off the tree. Panama Tell me please: What are SECRETS OF HAPPINESS? According to the Happy Planet Index , Costa Rica is the #1 Happiest Place on Earth! I love this quote from the study: People living in Costa Rica have higher well being than the residents of many rich nations including the USA and the UK, and live longer than people in the USA. Panama has repeatedly been the NUMBER ONE SPOT to retire overseas according to International Living. Check out this quote: Internatio nal Living’s Annual Global Retirement Index is hitting the presses. And in the top spot: Panama. I should say: Panama again . Because this tiny powerhouse has topped this index more times than any other country. And this year, International Living is going over the top promoting Mexico as the up and coming best place to retire saying: The U.S.’s southern neighbor consistently makes...

Why I Am Here: The Beauty in the Poor Places

I don't write about myself very often, but this time I just want to share a little bit. I want to tell you why I am here. I have been in Central America for five years now. I came on vacation and never went home. Something happened to me that is hard to explain. I walked streets I wasn't sure were safe. I went places I wasn't sure I would come back from. I got really far out of my comfort zone. And in the most unlikely places, I found life. Now I understand why Jesus ate with the prostitutes and drunkards. Why he went to the lost and the broken. They are actually cool people! You cannot imagine how amazing it was to hear their stories, to feel their pain and share their joy, to meet their families and get to know their names. I wish I could explain to you the beauty I see. I wish I could take the feeling that swells inside me and put it in your heart. I am without words, and so I try to convey in pictures the depth I see in their eyes the joy in the e...

Surprising Discoveries About Why Poor People Are Happy

My time spent living with the poor and the indigenous people of Mexico and Central America has turned up some interesting correlations. You understand that your life is full of stress in the Western world and I am sure you have been exposed to the idea that people who live simpler lives with less things seem to be happier. But do you know WHY? Is it just a mental thing? Is it because they don't know what they are missing? I believe it is much more than that. I lived in an impoverished community in Panama. Many of the home were square wooden boxes that were partially open to the outside. There was no plumbing, no running water or electricity. There were no beds nor any furniture. Families slept on the ground and cooked over an open fire outside. They had no refrigeration (and neither did I for nine months). They collected rain water in buckets which they used for drinking, cooking and bathing. They often went without shoes. They ate very little meat and instead a lot of th...

Poverty Project International Stories

Search This Blog