Beginnings...

It has only been 4 days, and Alec and I have been overwhelmed with the most positive people and experiences. People who we have met for only a matter of moments have befriended us, invited us to stay in their homes, walked us completely out of their way to bus stops, given us keys to their apartments, shared their bombilla (straw for mate), spoken for hours on topics of poitics and life.
Alec and I strive to be concious. We are awake and prepared to learn and open our eyes and ears to everyone and everything around us. We have been and plan to speak our truths, listen to others, and most importantly, educate ourselves.


Movement...to dance, drum, paint, move through the earth open-heartedly, honestly, and to use our voice, mind, and body.


On our 10 hour layover in mexico city, Alec and I went out and about. We saw farmers protesting for their land which had been "reclaimed" by the government,


we met a young artist named Gabriel who educated us on the immigrants movement and gave us an art sketchbook to pass along on our travels,


and we listened and watched a group of people in the streets performing a traditinal Aztec dance (the exact one I saw with amalia in the u.s. only a few days before our departure-foreshadowing?)


So through these experiences, I have been reminded that there is love and community in this world. But i have also been reminded that their is injustice. I see it in the 3, 4, and 5 year old children that run on and off of the trains begging for money. I saw it when an 80 year old woman got onto a packed train and not one person stood up to give her a seat. I turned to Alec and asked him "is it our responsibility to speak for those who do not speak for themselves?" We never did speak. She stood there swaying back and for as the subway stopped and started. A man stood up by me and exited the train, i shifted my body in front of the seat and asked Alec to get the woman's attention. He did. Gratefully, she extended her hand to him as he helped her along. Another man, not even 20, entered the train and tried to squeeze by me to sit in the empty seat. "no no no" I said. I gestured to the elderly woman. The man glared at Alec and I, Alec stating "una problema?" We were both astonished. It was at that moment we realized that it is our responsibility to speak for those who do not and cannot speak for themselves.
This trip is a time for Alec and I to be concious outside our daily routine. But our ultimate goal is to learn to open our eyes and use our words always. To be aware through constant listening, learning, writing, reading, dancing, drumming, educating, loving, and living.
Amani y Alec


-- Expanding Experience through every Step...