Cantaloupe and things

Cantaloupe season is here! Mandarine season is at it's end, and now cantaloupes are everywhere. I'm not even the biggest fan of melons, but these are SO juicy and tasty. I've really come to understand and enjoy seasonal eating…you eat SO much of one thing for a few months, then by the time the cosecha (harvest) is over, you're okay with not having it until next year. I've definitely eaten enough mandarines in the past 2 months to tide me over until next October. And I'm sure in these next few weeks I'll eat enough cantaloupe to tide me over as well. It's more exciting this way…instead of having such a wide variety of food available on a day-to-day basis like in a U.S. supermarket, you enjoy a higher quality and cheaper variety month-by-month, season-by-season. The climate here of course helps…I don't think cantaloupe would grow in a Chicago winter.

Today was my last day of a three-day girl's camp I led at the local school. I was a bit hesitant to do a camp at all since I was warned that nobody would show up (during school vacation they all go to work in the fields). But I figured I'd give it a shot and offer a day camp to the girls at my biggest school. They seemed interested, so I jumped at the chance. I did everything I could…sent an authorized letter home to their parents, had an official sign-up sheet the last week of classes, talked to their teachers, the director, paid for all the materials myself…and the night before I called and text-messaged about 30 girls reminding them to show up. So there I was Monday at 2pm, waiting outside the school gates with one girl (the camp was supposed to start at 1pm). Eventually they started trickling in, and I've had a solid show of 14 girls (I ended up working out a small bribe that would earn them extra points on their social science exam for attending my camp all three days). It was fun…we did some leadership workshops, watched Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland (I picked it for Alice's strong female character), baked banana bread, and played a LOT of fútbol. I'm happy with it. It would be nice next year to get some of the local teachers involved. But that's next year. Small victories.