Recycle, Reduce and Re-use

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

We did absolutely nothing today.  Aunt Mar (blind aunt) and I spend the day lounging around.  Our plans were ruined early this morning when the water went out and we couldn’t take showers and go out on the town.  Talk about recycling, here they take it to a whole new level.  I sense that here it’s not about the ozone and saving mother earth as much as it is about a way of life.  Excess food, crumbs and spoiled goods make their way into the white buckets which is picked up once a week from a man who uses it to feed his pigs.  Have hard bread, leftovers or food that won’t get eaten by the end of the week?  There are people who have less than you and would be happy to help you sweep or mom your porches or help with any other chores for those scraps.  Anything made out of paper or cardboard goes into a different bucket.  The wood, paper and card board is used to fire up the boiler for a hot shower.  Yes, they recycle plastic and aluminum bottles here too and small fees are paid for them at the local dump.  The weekly bag of trash that is generated by all of us on a weekly basis is a small grocery bag of trash, on a week filled with lots of relatives maybe two and when grandma and grandpa are here alone they may not have any trash generated between them.  A garbage truck comes around once a week and instead of 10 or 20 gallon size plastic containers they take one or two small bags from each house. 

Water, I have come to find out is a rare and scarce commodity around here.  I have learned so much from my trip here and one of those things is that I am spoiled and take so much for granted.  At home I am used to a daily long shower; I shampoo and condition my hair, shave my legs, lather up my face, scrub my body with body wash and brush my teeth.  Besides my family and friends I miss long showers, manicures and pedicures the most.   Although now I know so much of that is wrapped up in all the beauty bull shit we’re fed in the U.S. and our vanity.  Here water is a necessity and thus should be treated us such.  The state of Zacatecas takes all the water it gets from rain and rivers and distributes it to the local municipalities or counties.  What it can’t gather it buys if there’s money.  The local municipalities distribute the water to its residents.  Sounds simple but if there is no water for the county then there is no water for its residents.  Water can sometimes be gone for a few hours or a few days.  Today is one of those days when there is no water and so dishes get left in the sink, no clothes gets washed and no showers are taken.  In the last few days there has been little rain but the few drops have been collected and saved in bins for times like this.  Rain water allows us to feed the plants and animals but more importantly it allows us to lush the toilets.  I never though I would be so happy to say rain.  So many are things I have take for granted that I promise to appreciate them more when/if I am allowed to return to my home and family.  Today I read, write and sit with my thoughts, a dangerous thing to do so far from home but there’s not much else I can do.