Bienvenida

Yesterday was my first day of work at the CBC office. The staff gave me a wonderful bienvenida (welcome). We sat on cushions in a circle around a big candle placed in the center of an embroidered burlap mat. After a round of introductions, Walberto passed around a gourd filled with stones and asked that each of us move the stones around and listen to what they have to say. At the end, everyone shared what the stones had said to them. Larry told us that the stones came from the Rio Lempa in Arcatao, where the organization works on their Mental Health and Living Memory project. He said each stone has a story, and that during my time here I´ll hear these stories and add new ones to the gourd, as it isn't full yet.

I'm adding here a few pictures of the CBC office, which used to be a school run by Dominican nuns and is attached to the Rosario church in the center of the city. The first photo shows Monseñor Oscar Romero (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%93scar_Romero) and the gourd of stones. The second photo is a view of the metropolitan cathedral from the second floor of the office.