Weekend in the Mountains July 6, 2010
Accompanied by a Nicaraguan origami artist and orchid specialist, Molly and I made out way into the valley of a campesino artisian, a man who spent 33 years of his life tucked away into the rocks of Esteli on a journey to transform the face of a mountain that overlooked a war. With nothing but a few simple tools, this self’taught sculpture carved religious and symbolic images into pure rock, with nothing but his own spiritual growth as incentive. A man with such humility and a forceful gentleness I have never seen. We stopped repeatedly as he stopped to explain images and examine the beauty in every leaf. Mire! Que bonita esta! We heard probably 1,200 times. And each time with the same sincerity I thought for sure I couldn´t be in the same place as so much suffering. If all it took is a green leaf to make each of us feel so full… I guess its this green leaf we´re all looking for. The other photo is Aldo holding a Mr. Guayaba head, in honor of dad, and me on the top of La Mirador. On a clear day, you can see the 4 volcanoes lining the horizon to Leon.