Yesterday a couple of us were sitting around at the center and having good ol chats. It was quite the diverse representation of the center: natives from Guatemala, Mexico, El Salvador and also the US, including myself and a native born African American guy who just recently started to come to the CLRC due to losing his job. We held an interesting conversation, as I tried to keep up with translating for the US native since he doesn't know any Spanish. Our friend from El Salvador shared with us that before he left his native country 3 years ago, he was making at most $3 a day, which was with his advanced skills. He also told us that there are no families in his country that don't have at least one relative in the US - there are 3 million Salvadorans in the US and only 5 million in the country itself. Families simply cannot afford the cost of living with the money they earn there. Others chimed in, sharing their own similar experiences with leaving their country in hopes of being able to send money back to their family to improve their lives, in hopes of providing shelter, daily bread and education to their children, siblings, parents and other relatives that remained behind. The hope and dedication that these men demonstrate just blows me away every time they share their stories. My heart breaks when they tell me that regardless of the financial insecurity or physical burdens they face, the hardest thing is leaving their family behind. They've shared how it's painful to call home and hear their children ask them when they will return and why they left them behind. I'm slowly digesting more and more but have so many emotional responses as I try to understand and learn more about these passionate and hard-working individuals.
After a little while into the convo, I mentioned that I had traveled to El Salvador and our friend who is Salvadoran was perhaps equally as excited to hear about my trip as I was to talk about it! Since it's his native country and it's pretty small, I thought I'd go out on a limb and ask him if he was familiar with la Región del Bajo Lempa. He replied, Sí, lo conozco. After continuing to share with him about my trip, I figured I'd inquire more...sure enough, he is familiar with BOTH Rancho Grande and Taura - the two very small rural communities that I visited almost 3 1/2 years ago. It's a place that has always had a special place in my heart since my trip, and I just find it incredible to be able to share it with someone in Virginia.
Just for old time sake, let's take a brief flashback of my past journey in El Salvador:
Linnea with Ana & Beatriz, the same beautiful girls as above, a couple years later. SO special to have been able to see them grow over the past few years through pictures with Linnea and others who have returned to Taura!
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