voice of a mountain...

As we drove onto the grounds of the coffee cooperative, the entrance sign said: "together we'll create a true democracy." I was glad to be back and excited for the students to get to hear about this community of Santa Anita. In the 24 hours that we were there we kept busy: a hike down a ravine to a waterfall (and back up it), a talk with a community member about the history and their current business of producing and selling fair trade, organic coffee, a check-in with the students, and meeting with a community member that has lived in the states and worked as a community organizer of immigrants. That was all the first day!

We woke up on Sunday morning and the only thing scheduled was a documentary called "Voice of a Mountain". It was created by a couple of young foreigners and honestly I wasn't sure how much to expect. But it's beautifully filmed and it tells a big part of Guatemala's story in such a succinct, powerful way. I suppose, for me, it was also moving to see a voice given to these powerful people that we've met and these places that we've seen.

I know your are all busy - but the documentary is only 80 minutes long and it does an exponentially better job of explaining Guatemala than I possibly could. Guatemala may not be your passion, but this history is so recent and is so pertinent for us as we think about international policy and look at our role in future post-war/conflict countries. And you'll get to see a little bit of the countryside where I've been hanging out while I've been without communication.
The website for the documentary is: www.voiceofamountain.com. It's worth your time! :)