Once Upon a Time, in a Peublo Far, Far Away

...There lived a young woman who had a dream. Her name was Ariadna Elisa Vasquez Torres and she lived in a village of 6,000 people, called Diaz Ordaz, in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. She had a husband and a beautiful, little two year old daughter, who didn't really know what her dreams were yet, but that is for another story...

Ariadna runs an abarrote, or general store. She was able to start her business with a microfinance, zero interest loan, provided by the non-profit organization, En Via. This organization was started as a project in 2008 and has since then provided over 1500 small business loans to over 260 women, in five different communities. En Via also provides opportunities to tourists to be involved first hand in "socially responsible tourism". Thus, the money we pay, goes to fund the loans, education and small administrative fees.

One of the key goals of the organization is to provide affordable credit to women who have the drive and talent to start a small business, just not the access to affordable credit. The organization loans only to women, as it has been statistically shown, says Mickey, an En Via volunteer, that "women invest in their family, thus investing in the community".

The businesses vary, from Ariadna's general store, to small chicken farms, to the old art of weaving traditional tapetes (rugs) and so on. In order to secure the initial loan, the women must first do a presentation about their business. They then receive 1300 pesos ($130 USD) to purchase the raw materials or supplies needed for their business. In Ariadna's case, she would use this money to purchase merchandise to sell.  The women pay back the first loan over a few weeks time and then can apply for a larger loan, i.e. 2000 - 3000 pesos, ($200 - $300 USD). They use this money to grow their business by purchasing even more raw materials. At the time the first loan is acquired, the women must also take a total of six business courses, provided by En Via. The payback success rate is 99 percent!

Ariadna's abarrote is open every day from 7am - 11pm at night. She is expanding her business by crafting little woven purses to sell, to pass the time at the store. When our group was there, a little boy came in to buy a couple of eggs and some cooking oil. Oh, the days of old, when you could send your kids to the store and not worry....yet, I digress. I asked Ariadna what her hopes were for her daughter and she replied that she wanted her to study so she could have more opportunities in life.

It was inspiring and moving meeting Ariadna and the other women.  The 600 pesos I paid to go on the tour ($60USD) was well worth it as it gave me the opportunity to see first hand the good work of En Via, an organization that helps so many women establish a good livelihood for themselves and their families.

Freedom is...

An interesting way to get a lesson in the Spanish language is to be sitting in a hostel in Mexico, trying to blog, and using a Spanish language interface on BlogSpot.com! All that aside, la vida es en Mexico! I have been one week in Oaxaca, in southern Mexico and will look forward to spending the next 6 weeks here. Last year, while living in Guadalajara for a month, I fell in love with the Mexican people, the culture, the land, and, of course, the sun. When I created this blog a few years ago, I named it, without truly having a grasp on the "freedom" part of the name "folk, farming and freedom". I knew it was in me somewhere, just as much as the "folk" and "farming" part, but I wasn't quite sure how it was going to unfold.

Skip ahead a few years later....now, it is unfolding. Freedom! After a couple of years of embracing frugality I set forward on a plan to exit the corporate world for a spell in order to embrace la vida. We have one life, last I heard, and I am going to make the most of it. As a childless person, (whether by choice or by circumstance), one has more time and money to do as we wish. Some of us even do what would be crazy to many, like up and leave a job. But, preparation is always key and I firmly believe that baby steps will get you to where you need to be.

I embraced frugality because it wasn't that I didn't want to spend money, I just wanted other things more. I. Wanted. Freedom. To do as I wished. If even for a little while. I look forward to posting some stories about my adventures in Mexico and I hope that you enjoy them. Today in the streets of Oaxaca, I enjoyed outdoor markets, artists painting in the street, flamenco dancing, Jicama on a stick, the sun....la vida!

A Kneady Note...

I have wonderful memories from my childhood of my Dad baking bread on Saturday mornings. He would let we kids make a little loaf  for ourselves that we didn't have to share. I recall one morning Dad got fancy and made a braided egg bread. He was the baker until my Mother stepped in to start making a more healthful whole wheat for her brood. Oh, the smell of bread baking...

So, I made my first loaf of homemade bread yesterday and I enjoyed the entire process, asking myself why on earth it took me so long to attempt such a task. It was not difficult. I mean how hard is it to stir together flour, yeast, butter, salt, brown sugar and water?

I love the idea of having control of what goes into this staple I eat most every day. Keep the preservatives out of my body, thank you very much. I love that I don't have yet another bread bag to recycle.  I don't have a mixer, so used a wooden spoon, just like women used long ago. Any type of baking from scratch requires a little bit of calorie burning effort, and I could definitely feel the effort in my arms from the mixing and kneading. A little bit of a workout was one benefit, but so was the reminder of what it means to be self-reliant. It felt good to take back a bit of power that I gave away so freely in our modern, convenience culture.

Last year, my folks gave me a wooden spoon, a large mixing bowl and loaf pans for my birthday. I can guarantee this will be something I use over and over again. Let's face it, homemade bread does not just taste better, it is also less expensive and these days the baking of it is an act of empowerment.Well, for me, anyway.

The recipe I used was from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, but I am sure there are many simple recipes online. Bread making is not hard, it just takes time, like any worthy pursuit.

Make a loaf of bread...you knead this experience!

Parsley, Sage, Rose Marie and Thyme...

November inspires me to reflect...I don't quite know why...perhaps because it is the month that we really start hunkering down, or is that October? Either way, today is a Pacific Northwest gem of a blue sky day and it makes me grateful. And, just in time for Thanksgiving.

Today, after I shopped at the local farmers' market I stopped back at the ranch to check out Mom's garden. I was able to harvest some parsley, sage and thyme. I returned home, washed the herbs and set them out to dry. I chuckled...as would every folk singer, when I looked at my herbs and realized I had no rosemary. I thought, "I need rosemary so I can have my herbal foursome, "parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme"", just like the traditional Child ballad that was collected more than 200 years ago, that Simon and Garfunkel made famous.

Well, I thought about going out and harvesting the rosemary we have growing in front of the apartment. After a minute or so I thought better of it. Who knows how those herbs are tended? I do know, however, how my Mother tends to her garden, with love, respect and time. Just like she tends to her children and grandchildren. So, I smile as I sit in my kitchen and think, I am part of Mom's garden, too...parsley, sage, Rose Marie and thyme.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Strawberries Forever

There is beauty in simplicity. To celebrate summer I had a strawberry, champagne and poetry garden party. I got the idea from a long distant memory of visiting my friend Nina in Finland twenty years ago. We spent an afternoon with her friends, sitting around a garden table eating strawberries and drinking champagne. I wanted to share that idea with my friends and family and create a unique memory.

I have long believed that our modern world of over connection, but not true connection can be tedious and that the beauty of simplicity has somehow been lost by the wayside. I wanted my guests to experience simple pleasures on a beautiful summer afternoon….the delight of the luscious strawberry, the color, the taste and the  idea that this early summer fruit is fleeting and should be enjoyed while its short season lasts. My little niece Gracie, age 4, got the idea brilliantly and ate a large bowlful! Exactly what I wanted! I also served a simple and inexpensive sparkling wine for the grownups and strawberry lemonade for the children….The ruby red color of the strawberries popped on the table and the champagne glasses sparkled. I adorned the table with ferns from Mom and Dad’s garden, and created bouquets of fresh herbs.

All of us brought poems to share. There were many beautiful moments, especially, my father being moved to tears whilst reading a poem from his childhood, “Excelsior” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. I’m sure the meaning of the poem took on a different and more profound meaning for him reading it all these years later, the idea of the fragility of life… And, from the old to the young, my six year old nephew Liam, sharing a poem, “Spring” that he chose from a book that my parents gave us kids for Christmas in 1976.

 Sharing words can move us and take us to a place of deep emotion. Poetry is a neglected art, I think, because it requires effort to commune with words. It takes time. Sometimes poems can be elusive in their meaning and it feels like a code needs to be cracked. And, sometimes there can be a forthrightness in the author’s directness of an idea that grabs hold of us. Such is the poem that my sister Nora, a gifted poet, wrote and shared with us that afternoon:

Stardust

As parents
We see our children as miracles
It matters not
if you believe in God
You must simply

Believe in love

And if you are lucky
and see this miracle

a collection of stardust
and water
of cosmos
and the sea

of coursing blood
and dirt underfoot

and giggles
and cries
of heartbreak
and pride

joy,
perfection,
mistakes

And realize that it's not
just your child

but you too
are made from stars
and the sea

and the blood coursing
and songs singing
inside
and outside
of you

You too are the love

You too

are the miracle

We all had a wonderful time. We all created a unique memory, that won't soon be forgotten. Here's to you and the simple but memorable pleasures you partake in. Happy Summer!

Nifty and Thrifty...

A good friend, Yuka told me years ago, the Japanese equivalent of the western, "a penny saved is a penny earned" is, "you laugh over pennies and you cry over pennies..." Isn't it the truth? Ever since reading the book, "Your Money or Your Life" by Vicki Robin, I have been trying to reshape my relationship with money. I've always been a saver but at the same time, it seems I have always paid full price for everything, mostly due to laziness. Now, I've learned to have fun finding the deal and it has become a new hobby.

I made the decision recently, that I wanted to present myself in a more sophisticated way. I am in the decade of the FABULOUS FORTIES, afterall. Gone is the folkie girl of yore, thus, I have been upgrading my wardrobe. I have found fabulous deals at many a consignment shop in Seattle, lovely garments with tags still on, Banana Republic, Talbots, you name it. Another shop which I love is the Discovery Shop, which benefits the American Cancer Society, Franko Sarto shoes, never been worn, $16 bucks, the same brand 2 weeks ago $5 bucks. While I have never been much of a consumer I find I can feel good about these purchases because it is basically clothing recycling. And, further, when I am done with these items, I can put them back in the system and someone else can enjoy them!

Well, I hope I might inspire some of you to thrift. I learned from the master, my sister, Nora. The thrift is nift!

Should Auld Acquaintance Be Forgot?

Robert Burns, the 18th century Scottish poet asked the question, "should auld acquaintance be forgot and never brought to mind....?" The translation being, "should we forget about old friends?" The answer is a hearty, NO. Old friends, in my book, can be compared to that of an old sweater, they are comfortable. They fit. They make us feel secure. After all, they know us best because they knew us as children. We all still have that little person in us, even if we are all grown up.

A dear friend that my sister and I grew up with died recently. We went as far back as 1st and 2nd grade. Lori was always there through the years, weaving in and out of mine and my sister's lives, a tapestry of memories. This past year I feel very lucky that I was able to spend good quality time with her as we would walk every Tuesday together and then have dinner afterwards. The last time I saw Lori we talked about how we both looked forward to Tuesday evenings. We talked about how precious we felt our lifelong friendship truly was. On one of our many walks, I would talk about the different poems or songs I was learning and I was able to share this one with her by William Butler Yeats, a poem about the special and unique bond of old friends.....

Though you're in your shining days
Voices from the crowd and new friends busy with your praise
Be not unkind or proud, but think of old friends the most.
Time's bitter flood will rise
Your beauty perish and be lost
For all eyes but these eyes.

July 1, 1967 ~ June 16, 2012

To my friend, in heaven, I would say....I miss you, dear friend. Thank you for your loyal and enduring friendship over the course of mine and my sister Michelle's lives. You left us far too soon.......but your laughter and your memory will live on in our hearts and minds, forever.

Rest in peace, Lori.