RHYTHMS

We’ve been here 5 months now and our lives have finally begun to take on a rhythm of repeated patterns. A lot of it has been unsettling and difficult – the financial stuff, changing addresses for important information, figuring out where to shop for what, finding the missing items we needed to set up house, etc. For awhile we both really struggled…what have we done to ourselves? We didn’t expect it to be so hard in the beginning. We moved seeking a simpler life. There is a rhythm when you live somewhere as long as we lived in North Carolina. In the US. Switching countries was crazy-brave and we knew there’d be issues. But I don’t think we realized how much we took for granted in terms of managing day to day life. Some things are harder here. But mostly they’re just different and you have to find your way around for awhile.

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We’ve both been sick or injured several times since we got here. The food didn’t set right. The broken sidewalks took a toll. But it seems to be settling now. Hopefully. Ben hikes twice a week and sometimes joins me on my walks through the nearby neighborhoods. Spanish class happens twice a week for me. I love it and enjoy my classmates. Painting and drawing classes 2 days a week are a new pleasure for Ben. It’s fun to see him so excited about a new venture. For once he’s shopping more than me!

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On Tuesday mornings I go to the organic market while Ben hikes then wait for him to pick me up on the way home. It’s too hot now to carry a heavy load on foot and there are always friends to talk with while I wait. Wednesday morning after my class we meet up and walk to the town market (tianguis), visit our gringo friend Dick who’s a jewelry vendor there, pick up any fruits and veggies we missed on Tuesday, then head to lunch at one of our nearby haunts. CHOPSTICKS is run by an Asian couple who’ve been here for 18 years. Their 2 teenage sons were born and raised here. Or we might head to the secondhand stores before eating at CAFE NEGRO (best veggie burrito!) or TACO FRIDA (best vegetarian tacos!). Thursday mornings our wonderful housekeeper Chayo comes so we head out for a walk and breakfast at the nearby PATISSERIE FRANCAIS (best croissants and Americano coffee!). We have our favorite ATM now (remember, it’s a cash economy), our favorite fruit vendor, our favorite health food store. We check in with David for a fresh pressed juice and a quick Spanish lesson on the corner near our pharmacy. If we’re in town at lunch time we’ll often stop at MACHI MA or CHILI VERDE, then hit the “dollar store” for any small household items needed. (We tend to avoid Walmart – I’m not driving that far yet and don’t know when I will. Even Ben admits driving is crazy around here.)

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I’ve come to love going to El Centro – “downtown” – for special events. Palm Sunday, Good Friday, the indigenous fair. Or just to mill around and be part of the community. I try to do this once or twice a week to continue to feel the rhythm of the village. Taking the bus at least one way. It keeps me connected.

There is finally a rhythm to our comings and goings now. There’s a rhythm to buying and disinfecting the produce, paying the bills, doing the laundry, things that were commonplace back “home” but initially seemed daunting here. Even the thumping of the tires on the cobblestones has its rhythm, though that may take a little longer to get used to.

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Before we moved I began reading about shamanism and curanderos (healers in Latin America) which brought my attention to drums. At the indigenous festival I was repeatedly drawn to the table of handmade drums and rattles but kept stepping back. This week I opened up a local Facebook page to find a hand drum being sold by a friend. Fortuitous I decided. It is now in my care and reminds me daily of the rhythms of my heart, the rhythms of my life here in Mexico as we move forward, grateful to all those who have helped us along the way.