Noted With Translation - Purposeful Self Improvement

In Fight Club, Tyler Durden claims that "self improvement is just masturbation." That may be the case if you work out just to admire your muscles in the mirror. But if you live by the motto of Colegio San José (the Jesuit run high school in Arequipa) self improvement is all about service.

"Be more, to serve better"

Fe y Alegría

"Our teachers come to work full of faith (fe), and they leave, tired yes, but also full of joy (alegría).”* 

-Pd. José María Vélas, founder of the Fe y Alegría movement. 

I came to Andahuaylillas just under 25 months ago, and started work at FyA 44 in March 2015. I came here with no previous experience as a classroom teacher (or as a pastoral coordinator for that matter). I had a big red book called The Skillful Teacher that my mother gave me. And of course, I came to work full of faith – faith that God wanted me be here, faith that with time I could do well at this work, faith that I wasn't on my own, that I would be taught what to saw.

School ended yesterday. I've finished my two years of work at FyA 44. I am the first JV to fill the roles I filled (teaching religion in Primaria and coordinating the school's pastoral office). I have taught around 800 students. I've worked on numerous retreats for my high schoolers, and chaperoned students across the country. I helped to meet a clear need for accompaniment by spending time one-on-one listening to and counseling high schoolers' difficulties with schoolwork, friendships, love, parents, and the future. I also helped to found FyA 44's youth group and had the honor of sharing sacred space with 5 young people every Friday afternoon. I've done a good enough job that the students who know me will miss me next year when I'm not there.

2 years away from home is a long time. I am tired. But I'm the right kind of tired. I'm the tired after a long, wonderful day, when the planet is turning towards tomorrow and you lie down sure in the knowledge that you lived this day, you carped the heck out of this diem.

I came to this school with faith. 

I leave with joy. 

I move forward with both, with fe y alegría.

*This is not the exact quote, because I can't remember the exact quote. But it's close enough for our purposes.

Noted With(out) Translation: Magae* Edition

*Yes, I do remember SOME Latin

An Advent Devotional

Christians across the world are in Advent. We're waiting expectantly for the hope of the incarnation, for God to come and walk with us. But that doesn't mean we're all sitting around praying quietly using nice friendly and neutral words. As the people at Medium say “to convey a visceral gospel, we must sometimes use visceral language.”

So I present to you the link to #FuckThisShit – An Advent Devotional. If you're fed up with all of the usual bullshit that our society creates and maintains, then this is the series of reflections for you.

https://medium.com/fuckthisshit

To anyone who feels like this may be going too far and that foul language crosses a line, let me remind you that Jesus literally whipped people into shape. Sometimes the faithful get furious. And when they do they are well with in their rights to say “Fuck this shit.”

H/T NMH

My only post on the election results

Well, I was right last week when I told you voting changes things. A lot is going to change. And, if President Trump is anything like Candidate Trump, those changes are going to be overwhelmingly for the worse. After talking with my family, here are the two Harry Potter quotes that frame my thoughts on where we go from here.

Noted With Translation – Solidarios en Acción

Dear Father or Mother of the Education Institution Fe y Alegría 44 – Andahuaylillas, PREVIO a cordial greeting, the following is in order to invoke the spirit of solidarity and benefit a student from the Preschool Level who urgently needs an operation and whose mother does not have the necessary economic resources, please send a colaboration of 2.00 nuevos soles* tomorrow we thank you in advance for your support.
Attentively,
The Administration

Usually, Noted With Translation posts are short and sweet. I keep my commentary brief. My intention is to let the message itself shine. Today, I'm going to be a bit wordier than usual.

A comunicado is a message sent out to all parents. The administration sends out comunicados about school cancelations, important school events, and reminders to pay fees. Think of it as the Peruvian equivalent of a robo-call.

This comunicado is an example of solidarity at its finest. Most people here don't have enough money for major operations, and the national health insurance doesn't cover very much besides basic doctor's visits. There is no rich part of town in Andahuaylillas where this mother could ask for money to help her child. To be clear, it's not that everyone's poor, it's just that no one is rich.

So the school (which, as I learned recently LINK, also doesn't have extra money lying around) decided to step up and call upon the wider school community. Part of Fe y Alegría's identity is that parents are considered a vital part of the school community, and are expected to play an active roll. I'm sure that most, if not all, parents stepped up and sent 2 soles with their child the next day. I don't know if they raised enough money for the operation, but I do know that this is what it large scale community looks like.

The title of this post is, ironically, difficult to translate. Translating the phrase “Solidarios en Acción” requires an explanation of the word solidario. It's the adjective form of solidaridad, which directly translates to “solidarity.” Here I bump up against the bilingual problem in that there is no English word to fully connotes solidario. It's the reality of being “in solidarity with someone.” You can complement a person by saying they are “very solidario” meaning that they are dependable and empathetic and come aware of other people's pains and willing to share that pain and help end it. So I don't have a translation for my title. But I think you get the idea. If you can think of a translation for solidario, leave it in the comments.

*Peru's money is offically Nuevos Soles, though it is generally just referred to as soles. Nuevo Sol translates to “New Sun.” Interestingly, the last 3 iterations of government issued money in Peru are named for the sun. The Sol de Oro (Spanish for  GoldenSun) was the currency from 1922-1985. It was followed by the Inti (Quechua for sun) 1985-1991. Since 1991, Peru has been using the Nuevo Sol (New Sun). The principal deity of the Incas was the sun. Hmm...I wonder if there is a connection.

Noted With(out) Translation - Quechua Safety Message

Cromotex, the bus company we took to Arequipa and back, played its safety instructions once in Spanish and again in Quechua. You can tell it's aimed at a different clientele than Cruz del Sur, which plays the safety message in Spanish and English. 

I can't translate the text above for you because I don't speak Qeuchua, but based on the images I think it's advising passengers about the regulations that limit how long a single driver can be behind the wheel before switching off with a second driver.

Coloquio Sur 2016 - Part 2

The Coloquio itself was a wonderful event. We arrived to the Arequipa bus station at 5:30AM and squeezed into taxis to go downtown. After a tour of the Jesuit church, everyone had 4 hours to explore the city and get lunch. I'd told the students to bring money, but also gave each 10 soles to help cover the costs of food. In the afternoon we headed over to Colegio San José, a private Jesuit school that is right across the street from Manresa, where I stayed before ReO/DisO. My students were very impressed with the facilities, which looked like a lot of well-off suburban high schools in the US. Students and young adults from Tacna, Arequipa, and Arica, Chile arrived soon after us.

The theme for the Coloquio was “Misericordiosos en Acción.” It's a play on the Jesuit slogan “comtemplatives in action” that I would translate as “Merciful (people) in action” that ties in with Pope Francis's Year of Mercy. The idea is that mercy requires concrete action and not just a general attitude of friendliness.

One of the strongest aspects of the Coloquio was the “experience.” They divided all the participants into groups of 10 and sent each group out to do different acts of mercy. My group was sent to work with children who come from extreme poverty and rough home lives. Other “experiences” involved visiting a children's cancer ward, talking with street vendors,* and talking with people at a retirement home. This practical component really drove home the message of the Coloquio.

Plenty of fun was had throughout, but the most fun was the Cultural night on Saturday. Each region presented a cultural performance. There was traditional dancing (from Cusco), modern dance (from Arequipa) and sketch comedy (Tacna). The rest of the night was dedicated to a dance.

Our bus left Arequipa Sunday night at 7:30 and arrived Monday morning at 4:30. I don't know if the 6 students went to school because I was away doing a special task assigned by Pd. Eddy,** but I left a note in the staff room asking teachers to excuse absence and homework.

I felt a little bit old among most of the participants but still managed to enjoy getting to know people from other parts of the country. The students had a great time and got to reflect and live a formational experience. It reminded me a lot of Kujenga, the Black-Catholic youth retreat in which I participated during high school. That was an experience that taught me a lot about how to reflect on and live out the faith. My prayer is that my students were similarly touched during the Coloquio.

*Very poor people in Peru often sell cheap candies to scrape money together for food.

 **More on that next week.

Coloquio Sur 2016 - Part 1

I mentioned the Coloquio (Colloquium) in Busy, one of my first posts this month. Well, the Coloquio is over, and it was a success. But there was plenty of trouble along the way to that success.

Our first issue to handle was money. The pastoral office of FyA 44 has none, which makes it difficult to pay for 5 people (4 students, 1 teacher) to travel across the country and participate in an event that has a registration fee. I talked with Pd. Eddy about money and he informed me that the school has no extra money lying around. So we turned to the biggest source of income for Jesuit projects in the Cusco region: tourism.

Thousands of tourists come to Andahuaylillas every year just to see the Sistine Chapel of the Americas. The Peruvian tourists pay 10 soles, and the foreign tourists pay 15. That money adds up to a lot of resources for local projects. Much of that goes to fund the parish social programs that Erin and Lauren work at, but Pd. Calilo is a savvy enough businessman to know to have funds on reserve. Hna. Rosario and I talked with him and he told us that he could cover the costs as long as the students put in some effort to raise money.

We decided to do a raffle. Every student in the high school bought a ticket for 1 sol. Three prizes were given out: a jacket, a new leather soccer ball, and 100 soles. The jacket and soccer ball were both claimed, but the winner of the 100 soles must have lost their ticket because they never showed up.

Who I Vote For

I voted this week. Being out of the country means I have to email my ballot in, so I figured I wouldn't procrastinate on it.

In the spirit of my post on voting from earlier this year, let me tell you who I was thinking of when I filled out my ballot and voted for Hillary Clinton. Maybe my thoughts will inform yours when you fill out your ballot a month from today.

Strike

It's been a frustrating day at FyA 44. The teachers didn't come. They decided to participate in a regional teacher's strike because they want a pay raise. That's not frustrating, I'm the son of a teacher and a community organizer, I was taught that people have the right to strike. What's frustrating is that the administration didn't cancel classes. So I came to work today to find that all the support staff subbing, and nothing getting done. It was an authoritarian move to insist on classes without teachers,  and it shows a basic lack of respect for the support staff (half of whom are unpaid volunteers). 

Had I known all of this would happen, I would have stayed home in solidarity with the strikers.

Helping Students Succeed

Last week in Quarterly Review 7, I talked about flourishing in my clearly defined role at FyA 44. O I feel I'm doing at teaching my elementary school students. What follows is just an example of what it means to be a better teacher.

Most classes here are done in a class-specific notebook. All the assignments are pasted in there, grades are based on notebooks. Last year, I collected notebooks once per term. I spent a week grading all the notebooks and use those grades to determine students' grades for the trimester. If a student didn't hand in their notebook, they were so out of luck and failed for the term.

This year, I knew I could do better. So with the end of the trimester in sight, here's what I did. At the end of August I collected notebooks and graded all the work. The first week of September I returned students their notebooks and brought extra copies of all the handouts from the term. That week the lesson plan was simple: go through your notebook and improve your work.

Last week, I collected notebooks once again. Most students had improved their work. They had put in the effort needed to pull their grades up at least a letter. So when they get report cards in a few weeks, no one will fail because I didn't give them multiple chances to succeed. Students will have earned better grades. It took a little more effort on my part, but I believe that effort was worth it.

Musical Mass in Urcos

As regular readers may know, we celebrate a small house mass almost every Monday evening with the religious and volunteers of the area. Participants include Pd. Calilo, Hna, Rosario, the 6 practicantes (student teachers), María (the Spaniard who works at the parish play room), and the JVs. Hosting duties are shared on a basic rotation, and the host always prepares a dinner to follow mass. It's a good tradition celebrating spirituality and social justice in a simple way and in a communal context.*

But sometimes, there are special guests. And if you have special guests, you have to throw a party. And if you have to throw a party, there should be bountiful libations. And if you need bountiful libations, you should go to the Jesuit Residence (because Jesuits have a very liberal interpretation of poverty). So last week, when we had the four members of Siembra and Juan José Chukisengo in town, Monday night mass was held on Wednesday night at the JesRes in Urcos.

Having musical guests at mass at the JesRes means special music provided for mass. Siembra and Chukisengo took turns singing/playing. Pd. Antonio said the mass, which is a treat because he obviously enjoys doing it. After mass ended, Pd. Calilo put everyone to work. Soon plates of food were being passed around, empty glasses were handed out, and enough different alcohols to suit everyone's preferences were pulled out of the chest in the corner. After almost an hour of eating and talking, the plates were cleared and the music began.

This wasn't a sit down and listen type of concert. It was a sing along, request songs, and get up and dance kind of concert. Really, concert isn't the right word for it, though I don't actually know what word I would use instead. What do you call it when there's no audience because everyone is doing music together, though the most talented musicians are obviously doing the most music? If you have an answer, leave it in the comments.

Pd. Calilo loves music, loves dancing, and loves being the center of attention. So of course he danced. He waltzed with Hna. Rosario, he danced marinero (a coastal dance) with one of the women from Siembra, and waltzed again with one of the practicantes. Chukisengo, who comes from the classical world, jumped right in with Siembra. It was a simple matter of asking for the key of the song, and off they all went. María, who sings with a band at bars in Cusco sometimes, sang some American music (she mostly sings American rock). Pd. Calilo and Chukisengo wanted to play some music for the three Americans in the room, only to be stymied by the age gap between them and us. But there was also singing in French and Italian, as well as beloved songs from Spain. The list on my iPod called “Songs to Look Up” grew substantially.

It was almost midnight when the party finally ended. The wise move was to go to bed as soon as you got home, because the next day was the anniversary of FyA 44. But the energy brought by a good time takes awhile to dissipate, so I didn't fall asleep for awhile. These kinds of nights are some of my favorite memories from being part of the extended Jesuit community in Quispicanchi.

*See what I did there?

Piano in the Andes

Last May, Peruvian Pianist Juan José Chukisengo, came to Quispicanchi to do lend his services to the service of the Jesuit projects. Among everything else that happened last week, Chukisengo's visit didn't take the spotlight, but it was still a big part of the week.

Once again he gave a benefit concert at the Compañía in Cusco and then a series of free concerts at towns and communities up and down the province of Quispicanchi. I got to listen to him three different times: at his concert in the church in Andahuaylillas, and performances for the high school and elementary school students of FyA 44.

The three concerts were very different. The concert for the people of Andahuaylillas was a fairly straightforward concert. He introduced each piece and then played it. The concerts at school were different. Mr. Chukisengo approached it as a sort of musical lecture. He highlighted music as order from chaos; from so many keys comes the sounds of a symphony. He made much of the comparisons between the visual art of the church (the locale for the high school concert) and the auditory art of music.

The elementary school students were probably the best audience. They were delighted with a change in the routine, and Chukisengo's manner of presenting to children is great for that age group. The concert for Primaria was very similar to last year's – including many of the same numbers and the same participatory bit with 6 students playing on his piano with him.

I've been here for 20 months, and Chukisengo is the only artist I've seen come through and give concerts like this. Far too often, the “fine”* arts are reserved for the rich. It seems to me that Chukisengo doesn't see it that way. In all his concerts he presents music as something accessible to all, giving students the chance to play on his piano, speaking to the transcendence of music, of it's ability to reach people of all cultures. I don't know how Mr. Chukisengo got connected to the Cusco area Jesuits, but I'm glad he did. Once a year, he leaves the concert halls of Europe (he lives in Germany) and lends his services to the Andean people. The work Chukisengo does includes two aspects of service that rarely interact. His benefit concert raises money, and his community concerts serve the community directly. Anyone interested in serving the poor could do worse than following this pianist's example.

*The word “fine” in fine arts itself carries a tone of superiority that's never sat well with me. What makes Beethoven better and Tupac?

A Progressive Bathroom in Peru

As an animal, I am used to excreting waste on a daily basis. As a traveler, I know just how different the experience can be based on where you are (see one of my earliest posts, “Pooping in Peru” for more details. As a man who often used public bathrooms, I've made an interesting observation: most of the stalls in the men's bathroom are empty most of the time. I've also observed that a line for the men's bathroom is practically a freak occurrence, while a line for the women's bathroom, while not quotidian, is hardly a surprise. At some point back in high school it occurred to me that it would be much more efficient if women waiting in line could enter the men's bathroom and take care their of their business in the unused stalls. It was just a passing idea.

When I first read about the drama in North Carolin about the nature of people's genitalia when they are peeing and/or pooping in the same locale, I remembered my idea of women using the empty stalls in the men's room. What if, instead of separate bathrooms based on the business between our legs, there was just one giant bathroom? There could be urinals for men who only need to urinate, and plenty of stalls for women and men who have to take care of some more serious matters. Having bounced the idea off some friends, I've learned that some women are weirded out by the idea of men standing at urinals. This could be easily solved by having a separate urinal area of the bathroom, hidden by a wall. This is already how some men's bathrooms are divided up (right for pee, left for poop, wash your hands on the way out).

There is something that repulses us culturally about sharing bathrooms. It just seems...icky. It brings out the old "girls have cooties" public health campaigns from elementary school. But I've shared bathrooms with plenty of women (mother, sister, community mates, etc). It could be argued that those are single occupant bathrooms that I don't use at the same time. But I also can remember going out with a group one night and everyone needing a bathroom break. The women's bathroom was out of order, so all of us rushed into the men's bathrooms. The girls took stalls, the boys took urinals, and everyone used sinks afterwards. Waste excretion handled, we continued about our group outing.

But it wasn't until recently, at a Chinese restaurant in Cusco, that I came across a public bathroom that was actually designed for multiple occupants of different sexes.

Look at the sign above the door.

There was a shared sink area. Two stalls were designated for women, and two for men. One of the two men's stalls had two urinals instead of a toilet.

The idea was that each person could enter and handle their business, and then wash hands next to each other without catching cooties.

There're plenty of opinions and ideas about how to deal with the reality that everyone pees, but that some people do it standing up and others do it sitting down. I'm not proposing that every mall in the US change over to gender neutral bathrooms,* but gender neutral bathrooms are worth considering. If it can happen in Peru, it can happen in the States.

*except the ones in N. Carolina, because that would probably be illegal.

Visiting Groups: University of Omaha

Before the two Texas high schools came, a group of students came from the University of Omaha. I barely interacted with them, so I don't have any thoughts on them as visitors. But the final product of their visit is this video promoting the Andean Baroque Route. 

The production quality could be higher, but it's the best English language promotion video I've seen. I hope you enjoy this glimpse into the work the Jesuit-run parishes do here. 

By the way, this is an example of a useful and important service that a group can provide in a short term visit.

A Call to Prayer and Action

The following is a statement from the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus which I received through my parish's listserv. Please consider the message carefully and prayerfully. 

Statement from the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus

July 11, 2016 Feast Day of St. Benedict

Brothers and Sisters to Us,

May the grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ find you blessed and lifted in the Holy Spirit.

We, the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, USA, write to you with burdened hearts in the hope that we find people of good will to be an encouragement for the work that the people of God must undertake. We are living in troubled times. The racial turmoil all around us, no matter what region of the country we live in is the legacy of our country’s original sin, that of racism within our minds and hearts, which is an inner emotional dysfunction that produces dysfunctional behavior between all the races. We are a country which is thinking, feeling and acting under the influence of the stinking thinking of racism.

The recent events that have taken place in Baton Rouge, Minneapolis and Dallas show that we still have a long way to go to free ourselves from racism’s chains. As Black Catholic priests, deacons and religious brothers in the United States we appeal to our Catholic Church and our American society to witness to our Christian creed and civic belief that every person is created equal before God. End the silence of where you stand on this basic tenet of religious faith and civic covenant. Stand in the breach and be counted. In the words of the first epistle of the Church written by St. James: “Be doers of the word, not hearers only.”

The National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus is committed to be witnesses to the truth of being Black in America and in the Catholic Church. We pray and will work to encourage men, women, boys and girls of good will to stand in solidarity with us. Together may we be a light of hope that chases the darkness of racisms from our hearts of our Church and our American society.  We also pray for all the victims of these most recent acts of violence. May God welcome them into the eternal Kingdom and bring comfort and consolation to their families and loved ones.

The Rev. Kenneth Taylor, President, National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, USA

The Rev. Clarence Williams, CPPS, PhD, Vice-President

STATEMENT BY THE NATIONAL BLACK CATHOLIC CONGRESS

A Call to Prayer and Action

Baltimore, 13 July 2016: The National Black Catholic Congress (NBCC) joins the nation in mourning over the tragedies in Baton Rouge, the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area, and Dallas last week. As we commend to the Lord those who have died, we pray for the consolation of all who are grieving. It is important for Black Catholics to contribute to the ongoing national conversation about the underlying issues which have existed for too long. These issues include racism, inequality, poverty, and violence. During this Jubilee Year of Mercy, we must be signs of God’s love which promotes justice. Justice promotes right relationships, which includes upholding the dignity of human life. The NBCC invites Black Catholics and all people of good will to join in a time of prayer and action. We believe in the power of prayer. We also believe that we must cooperate with how God will answer our prayers.

HENCE, THE NBCC ASKS YOU TO JOIN US IN OFFERING THIS PRAYER FROM MONDAY, JULY 18TH TO MONDAY, THROUGH AUGUST 15TH:

 

O God, who gave one origin to all peoples and willed to gather from them one family for yourself, fill all hearts, we pray, with the fire of your love and kindle in them a desire for the just advancement of their neighbor, that, through the good things which you richly bestow upon all, each human person may be brought to perfection, every division may be removed, and equity and justice may be established in human society.  Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. 

(Collect, Votive Mass for the Progress of Peoples, The Roman Missal)

In addition, Friday is a day of penance for Catholics throughout the year. During this same period, we invite Black Catholics to make a sacrifice of your choosing on Fridays to accompany our prayers for justice with acts of reparation.

National Black Catholic Congress, Inc. July 13, 2016

 

Visiting Groups: Dallas Jesuit

It summer vacation in the United States, which means the parish is hosting lots of different groups. Last week, one of our favorite groups came. It's an all boys high school from Texas called Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas. We refer to them as Dallas Jesuit.

Dallas Jesuit is such a great group because they come prepared. The chaperones meet with the students multiple times during the school year. This year they also had readings they had to do before the trip. The idea behind the Dallas Jesuit trip to Andahuaylillas isn't direct service (like building homes, painting walls, etc.) or language acquisition (I'm actually surprised at the fact that there's no groups that come purely to improve their Spanish). Instead, the boys come to connect with local people, to learn about a different reality. It's about the students' growth as individuals, as boys becoming men.

Here's an overview of their visit:

Apostolic Availability at FyA 44

Remember our discussion of apostolic availability from last year? It's what I reflected on when I was first assigned to teach Religion in Primaria. Well apostolic availability is calling me back to my old students.

I haven't talked about this before, but it's time to bring it up. Rachel had to go home for awhile. She flew home to recover from an illness and then had to extend her stay for some family reasons. She's scheduled to fly back to Peru in August.

I'm telling you this now because it means some changes at work. I volunteered to pick up her classes while she's gone. I'm going to teach 6 sections a week in Primaria, which means every class gets religion once every other week. Hermana Vilma is teaching all the classes in Secundaria herself. I'm still very present in Secundaria working as a student counselor and the youth group coordinator.

I'm not all that excited about this – it means a lot more work for me, and elementary school really isn't my preferred workplace. But there is plenty of good. I'll be getting lots more hugs, because high schoolers aren't nearly as affectionate as 1^st graders. I'll also have my own classroom again. One of the difficulties of co-teaching with Hermana Vilma is that I don't have full ownership of the class, which means I don't get to implement certain norms/habits/etc. I get to do that in Primaria because I'm the only religion teacher. On a personal pride level, the big benefit is bragging rights; I am the only person on staff who works with students in 11 different grade levels. Other perks include having 2 offices (because Primaria and Secundaria are in separate locations), and regular access to Primaria's superior wifi (which is faster because less people use it). 

But none of that is why I offered to long term sub. I made the offer because I could see that it was a need that I could fill without overtaxing myself. 

That's what I came here to do.

Photography Week - Tourists and Locals

I walk past a lot of photographers almost every day. The steps in front of the church are the quickest route from my house to the parish center; they're also a popular place for tourists to take pictures in front of the Sistine Chapel of the Americas. With time, pretty much anything can become normal. Lots of what the tourists are looking at through their lenses doesn't even call my attention. Things like the facade of the church, the mountains in the background, the big stone steps made of Incan rocks, and the little old lady who sits on them with her dog.

Every time I see someone taking a picture of that old woman I feel angry. Most people know that it's rude to take pictures of strangers. Imagine what your grandmother would say if someone walked up to her in the park and took a picture of her without so much as saying “hello.”

Just last week, I attended the funeral of a 3 year old boy. As we left the church to process to the cemetery, we drew the attention of a group of tourists disembarking from their bus. I saw a man raise his camera as the pallbearers passed him. I sped over to the tourist. “Sir, this is a funeral for a little boy. It's not for photos.” He lowered his camera. I hope he deleted the photos he had already taken.

Taking pictures of people is a complicated thing. As a stranger in a foreign land, curiousity and excitement come easily. It's natural to want to take pictures of everything to remember, to show to your people back home. And in that excitement it's easy to forget that the people you are photographing, despite being poorer than you, despite not having a fancy camera, are individuals with their own will.

Rule of thumb for your next trip: If you would feel weird taking a picture of a similar situation at home, don't take a picture here.