On a Typical Day in the Paraguayan Campo...

On a typical day in the Paraguayan campo, you might find yourself buying a few supplies at a corner tienda. We stopped in to buy a bottle of sugar cane alcohol, to prepare for Primer de Agosto. On the first of August it is tradition to drink a cup of cane alcohol mixed with stinging nettle, or ruda, to purify the blood. It’s actually a pretty nasty tasting concoction, but we will continue the tradition with our friends and neighbors.

On a typical day in the Paraguayan campo, you will probably find toads in your house. When I got up at 2:00am to use the restroom, this one was doing a handstand in our shower.

On a typical day in the Paraguayan campo, you will see cows, horses, chickens, and dogs on the roads. This cow, still in her pasture, is wearing a yoke to prevent her from slipping her head between the wires and pushing herself through. She watches wistfully as her pasture mate strolls down the road.

On a typical day in the Paraguayan campo, you may see kids playing in water. This year, the river near Puerto Garata flooded the surrounding areas. Daisy and Guido were playing in a boat that was tethered to fence post located a good 50 meters inland from the original shore line.

On a typical day in the Paraguayan campo, on the way to Arazape from the ruta, you will pass only two street signs, one reads, “It is unlawful to throw trash”; the other, “To destroy signs is illegal.”

On a typical day in the Paraguayan campo, you will hear people greeting each other…. Every person you meet on the road. Whether the customary, “Adios!”  “Que Tal?” Hearing your name yelled from a farmed field or wooded forest, or a quick, “OOOP!”

On a typical day in the Paraguayan campo, you will see people sitting, sharing time and terrere. This sitting can last for hours with extended periods of silence. In the beginning, it was difficult for me, to say the least, it still is at times… Andres Fuglesang has this to say about the Psychology of Sitting: …. people in Western civilization no longer have time for each other, they have no time together, they do not share the experience of time. This explains why Westerners are incapable of understanding the psychology of sitting. In villages all over the world, sitting is an important social activity. Sitting is not a ‘waste of time’ nor is it a manifestation of laziness. Sitting is having time together, time to cultivate relationships.     

What do you think?