Oops...

Ok, so, my bad… it’s been more than a month since I last posted!  I’m not so good at this.

Well, since I last wrote things have been really great.  A little complicated but the issues have been resolved and I am learning so much from being here which is exactly what I needed.

Christina is a psychologist who has a ton of experience with horses and she has created a program called Horse Guided Empowerment.  She has her own horses on her property and by working in collaboration with them is able to provide therapy/empowerment sessions for children, teens and adults.  Basically if someone has a trauma, difficulty, problem or lack of something in their life they can come and work with the horses and Christina and through various techniques and methods will be able to find the answer on their own and/or with the help of the horses. It is a great program and there are similar ones, but I particularly love the way Christina runs hers.  She is writing a book as well and I am reading and editing it for her so I’m really getting to the depth of the methodology behind it.  This is exactly what I want to do with my life!! Yay!!  I am so grateful to have this opportunity and to have such a great teacher in Christina and in the horses.

I am now living on the same property as Christina’s family in the lower level of the house they rent out. It’s very nice and quiet, and much easier on my stress/anxiety than it was at the orphanage.  I lived at the orphanage for three weeks before moving back here for various reasons.  What it boiled down to was that I was providing the kids with a parental/ therapist type of support that was not what the “Father” wanted… he wanted me to be more like another orphan and just play and follow his orders and not give them advice on how live in harmony and properly take care of the babies and deal with their emotional issues.  His loss.  Well, I was actually really sad to leave those kids because just when I thought I was actually getting somewhere and getting through to them I found out that the father thought I was doing nothing and being lazy (i.e. I wasn’t out buying him his morning breakfast at 5 am like the previous volunteer…).  Not in my job description. Luckily Christina and Tomas were very supportive and let me know that I was being the professional one and handling the situation the best that I could. It just sucks to find out the hard way that not everyone has the same view on how to psychologically and emotionally support mostly-orphaned children who are HIV positive. Not that I’m an expert by any means, but the little help I had to offer was not appreciated and that bummed me out. Oh well, It was a powerful learning opportunity and a lesson in how to deal with (or let go of relationships with) people who are used to being in unequivocally charge and unwilling to change or alter their opinion.

Here are some pictures of those adorable kids who I really miss a lot:

Well, since then I have been doing more work training a young horse and working on my horse-human connection with Christina’s horses.  I would like to do some more therapy sessions with kids, but we will have to see what comes our way. The father said since the kids are studying for exams right now it's best to postpone any sessions until summer vacation (mid-July).  In the meantime there is still plenty to do here and I still have some time to relax and soak in all that I have been learning. 

I have a big weekend coming up as it is San Juan festival in Zuleta so I will be back there for the weekend. Then the first week of July there is a big retreat happening here at 4 Volcanoes that I will help with… then it’s just a few days to travel and I will be on my way home!  I am getting really excited!  Lots of love to everyone, xoxox

Maia

San Pablo del Lago--more horses and kids!

It has been yet again quite a while since I have written anything… and a lot has changed since the last time I wrote!  My time at Zuleta was really wonderful. Quite relaxing but a lot of time with the horses and the tourists, lots of translating practice, and a lot of delicious rich food! I really should have taken some pictures of the food… I’ll try to remember that if I go back in the next couple of weeks.

      So, I left Zuleta about a week and a half ago to come to San Pablo, which is really only on the other side of the hill but it takes about 2 and a half hours to get here from Zuleta. I decided to come here because I heard about an opportunity to become a working student for a lady named Christina. She runs a program called Horse Guided Empowerment, which provides therapy to children and adults in need.  She has five horses on her property, two of which are rescued, traumatized, and one of which is a filly in training.  She and her have lived here in Ecuador for ten years though they are originally from Germany, and they have three young boys that speak an awesome combination of German and Spanish. They are a very nice family, and I am very pleased to be working with them.

      Anyway, I found out that Christina was looking for an intern while I was at Zuleta. She used to work for Zuleta several years ago until they found their own place and created their own lodge and Christina set up this program.  I knew vaguely that Christina worked with horses, but when I found out that she had a therapy program as well, I asked into it more and Carolina found out for me that they needed a new intern here. I came right away! Ever since I have been working with horses again I realized that I couldn’t give up either my love of horses or my love of children, so I need to find a career that works with both. And here it is! I know that since I have been so positive, at peace with myself and open to new things that this opportunity has been presented to me.  I am very happy here so far, still getting used to a different living situation and being in a “city” several times the size of Zuleta! It’s weird hearing the busses pass by and seeing new people every day on the streets… little by little I’ll get used to city life again, haha!

      So far, my tasks include training the horses, assisting with therapy sessions, playing with the kids and horses (together), planning art lessons, organizing therapy evaluations and caring for the horses at Christina’s and at the orphanage. It is rather busy and hectic at the orphanage, there is always someone that needs a diaper changed, or a bath, or just a hand to hold. The kids are age 1 to 19, most between 5 and 12.  They are very sweet kids, not all orphans, but I believe all are HIV positive. I haven’t gotten much information on this yet, as the father (he’s a monk, I guess, it’s a Franciscan Monastery) isn’t particularly open about this stuff. I would like to know exactly how much the children know, and the workers as well because I have noticed a few sanitation issues, and the oldest girl has a boyfriend so I think this is something I will need to step into with a public health frame of mind.

      Okay, well, I will TRY to write more often and definitely put up some pictures soon. I think I will post a few on Facebook right now :)  I hope all is well with everyone, please keep in touch, I’m sending lots of love and hugs and kisses!! Xoxoxo

Maia