Lamps

Snapshot of a pair of wall lamps given to us by a dear friend from Colombia. Been with us for the last 33 years. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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Biblioburro – A Donkey Library

In certain rural areas of Colombia, children say that milk comes from cows and knowledge comes from donkeys.  It sound strange, but it’s true.  Thanks to an ingenious teacher who decided to change his country through grass-roots education, war-torn children are learning how to read and write.

Since he was a kid, he was attracted to books and libraries.  When he wanted to get away from the perennial commands from  his mother Carmenza; “It’s time to pray”, It’s time to study”, “It’s time to go to church”, “It’s time to do your homework”, “There is no food today”, he sought refuge in the village’s library.  In the company of books he felt safe.  It was always him, the library and books.

When he grew up he decided to become a teacher.  He wanted to teach children who had never seen a book, deep in the rural areas of Colombia in the Department of Nueva Granada.  These areas were torn apart from the violence brought by drug-related guerillas.  They had seen men hanging from trees, they had seen their parents being shot or taken prisoners to serve as soldiers, they had seen their friends taken to guerrilla camps to be trained as boy-soldiers.  They were children marked by war.  Every time they saw a stranger coming, they hid away in freight.  A stranger was a potential enemy.

In order to teach these humble children to read and write, he came up with an original idea.  He purchased two donkeys—or burros–and named them Alpha and Beto.  Together, both burros read,  Alfabeto (alphabet).  The message was clear.  He called his education project Biblioburro because he carried a load of approximately 120 children’s books on these two donkeys for his rural classes.

Biblioburro literally means “Donkey Library”.  It was a simple way to help children do their homework, since they had no books at home and no library in sight.

He daily travels with his burros between five and eleven kilometers to desolated villages to bring knowledge to illiterate children.  These journeys are often more than eight hours long.  The children play games, color simple drawings, or read and write under the cool shade of tropical trees.  With color crayons the children “color the world.”

The Biblioburro Project has been taken to other geographical areas of Colombia, like the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta where they have accumulated more than 400 books and distributed to 32 schools by volunteer work  provided by the children’s parents.

This one-of-a-kind teacher was interviewed by Larry King in the widely viewed television program, “Heroes”.  He told Larry King that children need to understand vital concepts such as rights, duties and commitments.  These  core values will make better educated citizens who will stand up and say “No” to war.

For over ten years, Luis Humberto Soriano Bohórquez has been transforming Colombia with his original project.  It’s not a matter of financial resources, it’s a matter of attitude.  I tip my hat to this humble teacher who, together with his wife Diana,  is making the difference in the rural villages of Colombia in South America.   Good Day.

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Writing Down a Dream

Photograph of Faisuris writing down the dream in her personal agenda. Notice the ruggedness of her hands, a sign of hard physical work. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

“Whatever your mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” – Napoleon Hill

Who is Faisuris?  Faisuris is the name of a 23-year-old young woman from Sincelejo, the capital of the Department of Sucre in Colombia.   After graduating as a Criminalist Technician, she sent out thousands of résumés in an effort to obtain a job to sustain herself and her mother.  No joy.  Pressed by economic restraints, she had to accept a job as a clerk in a bingo company in her home town.  Her monthly salary of approximately $200 barely covered their basic needs.  Things were getting rough, and there wasn’t better job in sight.

After enduring many hardships, she decided to travel to Panama attracted by the American dollar and the stories of riches and good fortune in a land of milk and honey.  Some of her friends had made the journey and were doing well.  On January of 2010 she came to Panama City and started looking for a job.  Her tourist card prohibits her to work, but you know how it is, a woman’s got to do what a woman’s got to do.

A guardian angel hired her to sell sandwiches and homemade beverages from a small pickup.  The pickup would follow the flow of customers around the city during strategic hours of the day.

Photograph of Faisuris sitting on the back of the pickup which accommodates the mobile business of sandwiches and "chichas". Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Things are getting better.  She’s now sending $200 per month to her mother back home and saving to legalize her stay in Panama.  She starts her day at 5:00 a.m. and knocks it off at 2:00 p.m.  That’s the time when customer buy her sandwiches and “chichas” (home-made beverages). Back home she starts preparing the sandwiches and “chichas” for the next business day, and her cycles starts all over again.

She dreams of becoming an owner of a similar business.  As we talked, I could feel the burning desire inside her to fulfill her dream.  It’s that fire in the belly which make dreams come true.  Nelson Mandela comes to my mind.

Before leaving the scene, I asked her if I could take her picture. She nodded in acceptance.  Then I asked if she would like to send a message to the world, since I planned to write about her on the Internet.  She smiled and explained her message the best way she could.  She had problems getting the words out.  This is more or less what she said:

“It doesn’t matter what you do to make your dreams come true, as long as it’s honest.  Don’t feel embarrassed if you have to sell sandwiches and “chichas” on the street, as long as it’s legal and morally right. Hard work doesn’t denigrate people, in fact it gives people a certain air of dignity.”

Her words reminded me of Napoleon Hill, the author of the famous book “Think and Grow Rich”. My day was made and I returned home.  I’m sure Faisuris will make it big.  Good Day.

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