Welcome from visiting professor Rosemarie

Hello!

My name is Rosemarie Merrigan and I have the extraordinary opportunity to be the visiting social work instructor this semester.

Our semester started off with a whirlwind of activities that introduced all of us to life in Cuernavaca as well as starting courses. There were many ‘Get to know Cuernavaca” and “Get to know you” types of activities with students and staff. One activity had students going to the market and buying items that people use every day. The initial impression was that they were fairly inexpensive to purchase. The next day we learned the actual cost of these items - how much people are paid and how many hours they need to work to purchase these items. We were astonished by this reality.

We spent time talking our “cultural selves”, how much of how we make sense of the world is based in our culture and all of the factors that influence this. We learned about national cultural patterns and some of the contrasts between Mexican national cultural patterns and USA national cultural patterns. 

There were introductions to all the courses.  And of course we are eating wonderful food. 

At the end of the week we had an all day session at Ann’s home (Director of CGE Mexico) ending with a barbecue and swimming.  Then to top off the week, on Saturday we went to Teotihuacan - an ancient holy city - where we saw the Temple of Quetzalcoatl and the Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon. Many of the students hiked up both of the pyramids.

Here is a link to read more about this historical site: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/414

It was an amazing week.

Katelyn Stanoch: Final Project

Katelyn Stanoch, a junior at Augsburg College, painted a mural for her final project of the Social Work in a Latin American Context program this Spring. At the end of each program, students are required to complete a final project which will be presented in some way upon their return to their communities in the States. Most students choose to do a creative project like a mural, video, newpaper article or poetry, and Katelyn used her artistic abilities to make the living room in one of the CGE houses here in Cuernavaca even more lively and meaningful.

The mural is of a tree with twisting branches and falling foliage, and next to the tree is a poem that is an ancient Nahua poem (below). When asked about her mural, Katelyn said, To me my mural represents a sense of sorrow yet the presence of strength. The poem is about searching for peace and a place to be free from whatever it is that is not positive in life and the strength it takes to keep moving forward. This subject of suffering related to the oppression of the people of Mexico. More specifically related to drug violence, domestic violence, and the effects and causes of migration. The strength I feel that allows the people to move on in times of hardship which in the mural is represented by the tree that looks aged and twisted but yet is still standing strong. The mural represents suffering yet a strength that allows those to keep pushing through."

The poem Xochicuicatl, or A Flower song, was originally written in the native Nahuatl language.

In the place of tears, I the singer, watch my flowers; they are in my hand; they intoxicate my soul and my song, as I walk alone with them, with my sad soul among them.

In this spot, where the herbage is like sweet ointment and green as the turquoise and emerald, I think upon my song, holding the beauteous flowers in my hand

In this spot of turquoise and emerald, I think upon beauteous songs, beauteous flowers; let us rejoice now, dear friends and children, for life is not long upon earth.

I shall hasten forth, I shall go to the sweet songs, the sweet flowers, dear friends and children
O he! I cried aloud; O he! I rained down flowers as I left.

Let us go forth anywhere; I the singer shall find and bring forth the flowers; let us be glad while we live; listen to my song.

I the poet cry out a song for a place of joy, a glorious song which descends to Mictlan, and there turns about and comes forth again.

I seek neither vestment nor riches, O children, but a song for a place of joy

CGE House in Mexico

Interested to know what our house looks like in Mexico? Take a tour with this video!

Stephanie and AnnMarie: Final Project

Stephanie Villarreal and AnnMarie Eliason, both Junior Social Work majors at St. Olaf College, painted a gorgeous mural on the wall of one of our CGE houses in Cuernavaca. The mural represented their views on the immigration debate - both from political and personal perspectives - and encompassed a semester of studies here at CGE. "Through the mural, we hope people get inspired to fight for migrant rights and give them the respect they deserve," says Stephanie about the images and meaning behind their painting.

This is a video of the process. Please watch!

Dylan Peterson: Final Project

Dylan Peterson, Junior at Augsburg College, and Spring Semester participant in the Social Work in a Latin American Context made this touching video on immigration in Mexico for his final project. Please watch!

Parts of the dialogue in this video comes from the book Debating Immigration by Carol M. Swain.

Closing Time

The semester is over! It doesn't seem possible that four months have flown by in the blink of an eye. We spent Friday at the director Ann's house and had all day to hang out with CGE staff and friends. It was a fun, relaxing - and slightly emotional - end to the semester. We had our closing ceremonies, ate incredible Mexican barbeque complete with nopales (grilled cactus), grilled chicken and beef, guacamole, rice, beans and even tres leches cake! Then we got to swim in the pool, the students worked on their last minute tans, and we got to hang out together as a group for the last time. 

To say that these students will be missed is a complete understatement. After living and eating and working and hanging out with them for four months, they have become some of my dearest friends. Here are some hilghlights from the semester:

Group pyramid - why not?

At the UNAM in Mexico City

Hanging out in Mexico City

Students with host-families in Amatlán

Students at an Ameríca soccer game in Mexico City

Parasailing in the beach town of Zihuatenejo

Riding the rails in the Mexico City subway

Students and host-mom at the Nevado de Toluca covered in snow!

Stephanie at Teotihuacan - ancient pyramids

Showing off their new wool purchases in the cold town of Toluca

Ministerios de Amor

As I write this, I am looking out at the house full of children who I have bonded and lived with for the past two months and who I unfortunately need to say goodbye to tomorrow.  It is my last night here in the house and although I always have been aware of how my goodbye may affect the children at the house, I have little thought of how it will affect me.  During my entire stay, any of my preoccupations have mainly been focused on the children: “Is he really grasping what I am trying to communicate to him?” “Can this self-esteem activity even make a difference with this kid?” “I wonder if she feels safe with someone in the house.” “How will the kids react to my short time here with them?”


I realize the grand importance and necessity of closure of the relationship that I have experienced with the children, especially considering their past experiences of abandonment; I have replayed and rehearsed how I will say goodbye to the children at least one hundred times, but I have yet to set time apart to think about how I will process the end of my relationship with my clients.  I have experienced many goodbyes in my life, but nothing like this. 

I feel as if there is no way for me to emotionally prepare myself for goodbye rather than look forward to how I can use the valuable experience I had here with the Tias and children in the future.  Here at the orphanage I had the unique opportunity to work outside of my own language and culture, and that in itself was extremely empowering and affirmed my desire to work with the Latino population when I return to the United States.  Although I unfortunately need to say goodbye to and physically separate from people I have come to love tomorrow, in a way I will bring them with me in my future work.  I look forward to see how they will help guide my work and continue to inspire me to serve populations in need. 

            

Written by Nichole Hulstein