Greg has written about it before. There are women that accept our invitation to come to Project Somos and there are others who don’t. It is impossible for us to truly understand how their decision is made. We never evangelize or push. The women always have an opportunity to talk in private with the women already living here. They can ask as many questions as they like.
Two weeks ago we welcomed two more families to Project Somos. The families brought us to capacity. For the time being. Remember-we still have five more homes to build, and will then have more spaces to fill with time.
Camila and Fernanda arrived just before lunch. They were accompanied by Lucy. Lucy is the wife of the mayor of Santa Cruz de Balanya. Lucy has been working with us and identifying families living in dire situations. Our four mamas and children warmly greeted the families when they arrived.
The mamas had already made lunch; organic black beans grown right here on the finca. It’s always good to start with something familiar as there is nothing more likely to turn the families off than an extreme change to their usual food.
These two mamas had already been on a tour of the Project just a few weeks earlier. During that time we confirmed they were eligible and we gathered financial support from two “teams” of sponsoring groups. [MANY thanks to those who have stepped up to help support our families!]
After lunch the children played in the playground. We gathered under our new shade structure on the edge of the playground. We all visited and got to know each other. It was a sweet and beautiful afternoon.
The next morning I went down to the Village to introduce the mamas and kids to our preschool teacher, Ali. The kids nervously entered the preschool to attend their first day of “school”. I took some time to talk to both mamas. Fernanda said she hadn’t adapted and wanted to leave. I listened and talked to her. And then Ali did. We both explained that to adapt, it usually takes more than one night. Marelyne (our therapist) arrived a couple of hours later and met with Fernanda right away. A short time later I received a call saying that Fernanda definitely wanted to leave.
She was gone by lunch time. She didn’t even say a word to the other mamas, who were left feeling a little perplexed.
Camila has now been here for nearly two weeks. She’s still finding her way. Her little family is used to living on their own. It’s much busier and louder here. Her daughter is not settling in quickly and Camila is worried. We have explained that this is normal and that we’ve already witnessed it with the other children. At this point, I am not sure she will stay but our hope is that she will. She is our eldest mama (42) and has a peaceful maturity to her that we think will be a great asset to the other mamas.
I can tell you something I do know…there is rarely a dull moment around here!
Stay tuned as things unfold…
-Heather Alicia
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