Puebla has been very good to me so far! I arrived on Saturday morning and made it from Mexico City without any trouble. Maru, one of the women who lead Yo’on Ixim, picked me up from the bus station and took me to breakfast where I ordered my favorite, chilaquiles. After running errands with her and buying 2 large jugs of water, she drove me to the apartment where I’m staying. This place is beautiful and spacious. The apartment belongs to my friend, Sam, the founder of Yo’on Ixim. She is working abroad for a few months, so I am house and dog sitting for her.
On Sunday morning, Maru called and asked if I could start working that day. The women from the organization are invited to a textile fair on September 01-02 where they’ll showcase their work, and we have to organize and prepare their products. I spent most of the day looking through bins and boxes filled with blouses, pillowcases, purses and other material and creating an inventory. I also photographed all of the clothing that the women had woven so we could keep a catalog of their products. After hours of work, we had a better idea of what we could sell this weekend.
Today, I had the opportunity to visit the school and the center where the women work. The school houses about 15 students. I estimate that the children range in ages from 3-12. The school is located in a home that Yo’on Ixim rents, and it is made up of 3 small classrooms. The school does not have tile, the door handles are falling apart and the school as a whole is in need of a lot of repairs. However, there are 2 teachers- Francisco and Alma- who are immensely dedicated to the students.
I also met the women who participate in the personal development workshops and are learning to sell their hand-made products so they can earn a living and keep their children in school. (Without these opportunities for women to work, they and their children end up working or begging on the street). I don’t speak Tzotzil (a Mayan language), and they don’t speak Spanish well, but we were able to start making a game plan for this weekend. As I tried to build trust with them, and we attempted to communicate, I felt reassured in my conviction that helping women in impoverished communities is key to fighting for equity and bringing about positive change for future generations.
I left the center overwhelmed by the needs that exist in this community but also deeply inspired by the mission of Yo’on Ixim.
Trails And Travels 