A basic description of the Andean term ayni, is sacred reciprocity. It is the common practice of giving and receiving, and then giving more again. In the case of our travel to Peru this summer, one of the ways we practiced ayni was in the donations and service we provided to the people we met. Our group brought about as many donations on the trip as we brought luggage of our own. We began our ayni practice on the first day, when we shared donations of warm clothes with about five Q'ero families who shared their cosmological worldview and spiritual practices with us during the course of our visit.
An unexpected pleasure of the trip was the many interactions that we had with the local children. One day we visited a one room school house in the town of Raqchi. The room an extremely strong volatile organic compound odor upon entering, most likely coming from paint on the walls or perhaps varnish on the school furniture. It was concerning that the kids are expected to remain in this toxic smelling room all day since children's bodies have been found to be more sensitive to environmental toxins than adults. After adjusting to the smell, the group proceeded with the delivery of our donations. Three boys in the class were selected to preform for the group and sing us a song as thanks for the clothes, toys and school supplies that we brought. We had a great time with the kids blowing bubbles and jumping to pop them in the air.
The children we visited at a school house in Urabamba were just as cute as the first group. It was a great feeling to help paint the outside of the school house for them and assist the teacher in purchasing much needed school supplies. The girl in the pink dress immediately stood out to us. Upon our arrival, she greated one of our classmates with a big hug. The boy with the hat on the right side of the photo became my buddy. He leaned on my knees and was hugging me during some of the group photos we took with the kids. The excitement and enthusiasm coming from the children when they looked at the photos we took on our digital cameras was almost overwhelming. It became a mob scene of kids swarming around us to look at each photo we took, followed my many giggles and requests to take more pictures.
While in Cusco, I visited some friends who were staying at the Los Ninos Hotel. After meeting the local children at the schools, I was particularly interested in the story behind the hotel. The founder, a native of the Netherlands, was inspired to move to Cusco after visiting and seeing many of the street children there. She learned that many of them were essentially homeless or had very little parental care and supervision. Thus, she was inspired to establish a foundation for the children. The income generated from two hotels funded the formal adoption and ongoing care for 34 children. Additionally, the foundation provides meals. medical care, warm showers and homework assistance to 500 of Cusco's most in need children. If you are planning a visit to Cusco, I would highly recommend staying at one of these hotels. It supports a good cause.
See the complete Children of Peru photo album.
