By Daniel Kaplow ‘06

When I was told I was going to Mexico, I was unsure of what to expect.  I knew that Mexico would be hot, exotic and fun; that this would be a welcome break from the cold and frozen, wet and mundane Baltimore winter was no question.  At the same time, though I was traveling with the American Jewish World Service and Hopkins Hillel, I also knew that I was going to be leaving my comfortable, home environment.  My social consciousness would be challenged as I flew away from the developed United States to the developing world.  My orthodox, Jewish religious customs would require planning and creative solutions to continue practicing them in unfamiliar surroundings. 

Arriving in Merida airport the first day, I was struck by its modernity and cleanliness.  It seemed no different from the Houston airport through which the group had just flown.  The next few hours, however, drew us deeper into the poor, undeveloped countryside.  As our bus winded along a narrow road surrounded by dense brush on both sides, I looked out the window and up to the sky.  The stars shone brilliantly, brighter than I had ever seen before.  It was at this moment that I realized we had departed our familiar surroundings.  Pointing this out to the others nearby, I understood that some were already experiencing this same sense of wonderment; this amazement continued with us the rest of the trip as we took time to stare at the sky on several clear nights.
   
We reached the village of Yaxunah in the early predawn hours.  Awaking the next morning deep in Mayan country in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, a few of us found a location to hold the Jewish traditional morning prayers.  After a quick breakfast, the group toured the town that was to host us for the week.  We passed numerous homes made of wood or cement; most covered with palm-leaf thatched roofs, with only a few hammocks a refrigerator and, perhaps, a television inside.  Chickens, turkeys and dogs, darting in and out between fruit trees, populated medium-sized yards along with shirtless men sitting outside whittling crafts.  Women attended to household activities while the children were away at school.  Receiving smiles along the way, we walked to the government building at the town center.  Observing a group of volunteer dentists who had set up a makeshift clinic inside, we went next door to the town library.  Noticing one computer we took in a room with two book-filled shelves hugging three of the room’s walls.  While this village was relatively well-developed, with paved roads, a library and stores, we worked in the next village of Popolla.
   
Every morning, driving down an unpaved path on the back of a pick-up truck, the group made the journey to our work site, the school in Popolla.  Always greeted by throngs of children, who seemed seldom to be in class, over the week, we collected garbage, dug out and planted a vegetable bed from the rocky soil and made holes in which we later planted trees; we also cleaned up a burned down home in our host village of Yaxunah.  At the end of each day, we were thoroughly exhausted, dirty and sweaty.  While we all felt good performing useful labor, a fundamental question remained with us: would it not be more beneficial and certainly more cost-effective were we to remain in the United States and donate to these projects even a small fraction of the cost of flying to Mexico?  Struggling with this question over the next few days, I comprehended that we were not there primarily to plant gardens and trees.  As representatives of a wealthy country, we were there to show we cared; in this way, we could provide motivation while facilitating the emplacement of non-dependency forming sustainable development ventures. 

Though my religious observance was more difficult on the trip, it was made easier by the accommodating atmosphere provided by the others.  A sense of common purpose was generated and enhanced by the reception we received every day.  Returning to the United States, I felt I had accomplished something both tangible and intangible; I had not only helped build physical and motivational infrastructure for the villagers, but I had successfully incorporated my religious practice in a challenging environment, in the meantime making friends with some great people.  Š

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