El Ojo del Lago - November 2019 by El Ojo del Lago

Saw you in the Ojo

 DIRE C TOR Y  PUBLISHER Richard Tingen

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Alejandro Grattan-Domínguez Tel: (01376) 765 3676, 765 2877 Fax: (01376) 765 3528 Associate Publisher David Tingen Graphic Design Roberto C. Rojas Reyes Diana Parra Morales

Index...

FEATURE ARTICLES

COVER STORY

Prof. Michael Hogan writes about a Republican President who loved Mexico, and a Mexican president who revered that same American Head of State.

10 HISTORY Elissa Hutner writes about a new Torah, a scroll that is the most revered part of any synagogue, having come to Lakeside.

Associate Editor Victoria Schmidt Art Critic / Contributing Editor Rob Mohr

36 RELATIONSHIPS

Theater Critic Michael Warren

Roving Correspondent Dr. Lorin Swinehart Sales Manager Bruce Fraser Carmene Berner Office Secretary Rocio Madrigal ADVERTISING OFFICE Av. Hidalgo # 223, Chapala Mon. thru Fri. 9 am - 5 pm Sat. 9 am - 1 pm Tel. 01 (376) 765 2877, 765 3676 Fax 01 (376) 765 3528

Pag. 38 LAKESIDE LIVING

6 Editor’s Page

50 LEADERSHIP

14 Bridge by Lake

Rob Mohr spent much of his life working as a change agent in various communities in South America, and believes that one of the elements always working against success was “single male leadership.”

Sandy Olson, the longtime former editor of our Lakeside Living column writes about something that would ordinarily greatly depress anyone: having just been diagnosed as having Alzheimer’s Disease. (But relax, this is a comedic piece.)

66 BEHAVIOR Judy Dykstra-Brown examines the not-so-subtle behavior espoused by one of TV’s most enduring series, The Honeymooners.

PRINTING: El Debate El Ojo del Lago aparece los primeros cinco días de cada mes. (Distributed over the first five days of each month) Certificado de Licitud de Título 3693 Certificado de Licitud de Contenido 3117. Reserva al Título de Derechos de Autor 04-2011-103110024300-102 Control 14301. Permisos otorgados por la Secretaría de Gobernación (EXP. 1/432 “88”/5651 de 2 de junio de 1993) y SEP (Reserva 171.94 control 14301) del 15 de enero de 1994. Distribución: Hidalgo 223 Chapala, Jalisco, México. All contents are fully protected by copyright and may not be reproduced without the written consent of El Ojo del Lago. Opinions expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the views of the Publisher or the Editor, nor are we responsible for the claims made by our advertisers. We welcome letters, which should include name, address and telephone number.

El Ojo del Lago / November 2019

COLUMNS THIS MONTH

Barbara Hildt defines the essential elements of what makes for a true and lasting friendship.

54 COMEDY

Send all correspondence, subscriptions or advertising to: El Ojo del Lago http://www.chapala.com ojodellago@prodigy.net.mx Ave. Hidalgo 223 (or Apartado 279), 45900 Chapala, Jalisco Tels.: (376) 765 3676, Fax 765 3528

8 Cover by David Winston

Special Events Editor Sandy Olson

Book Review Panel Margaret Van Every Margaret Porter Clare Gearhart

COVER STORY

VOLUME 36 NUMBER 3

18 Ramblings from Ranch 22 Profiling Tepehua 26 Front Row Center 28 Welcome to Mexico 38 Lakeside Living

Saw you in the Ojo

COLUMNIST

Editor’s Page By Alejandro Grattan-Dominguez FRANCES PERKINS —Champion of the American Working Class—

he was surely one of the most intriguing people in a century crammed with monumental personages, from Einstein to Ghandi, but her beginnings gave no hint of what was to come. From a lower middle-class family, her father owned and managed a very small book and stationary store in Boston, but was still able to send young Frances to college, where she earned a degree in Chemistry and Physics, two fields which would have little if anything to do with the national fame she would later win. What might have helped her in that regard, however, was her father’s love of Greek Literature and Philosophy, which he had passed on to young Frances. Eventually settling in NYC, Frances would soon achieve statewide prominence as head of the New York Consumers League in 1910, fighting with vigor for better working hours and conditions. Earlier, she had witnessed a tragic factory fire, a pivotal event in her life. The factory employed hundreds of young women, but it lacked fire escapes. When the building caught fire, 146 women burned to death. Just a year before, many of these same women had fought for and won a 54-hour work week and other benefits that Perkins herself had championed. In 1933, President Roosevelt nominated Perkins as Secretary of Labor, a nomination that the American Federation of Labor criticized because of her perceived lack of ties to Labor. But as Secretary, Perkins went on to hold the position for twelve years, longer than any other person. She was the first woman to hold that post in the United States and thus became the first female to ever be part of the presidential line of succession. More importantly, with few exceptions, President Roosevelt consistently supported her goals and programs. As Secretary of Labor, Perkins played a key role in the Cabinet by writing New Deal legislation, including the minimum-wage laws. Her most important contribution, however, came in 1934 when as Chairwoman of the President’s Committee on Economic Security she personally drafted the Social Security Act of 1935. In 1945, following her tenure as Sec-

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Mrs. Perkins and FDR retary of Labor, Perkins was asked by President Truman to serve on the Civil Service Commission. In that post, she rather humorously spoke out against government officials requiring secretaries and stenographers to be “easy on the eyes,” blaming the practice for the shortage of secretaries and stenographers in the government. Perkins would have been famous simply for being the first woman cabinet member, but her legacy also stems from her being largely responsible for the U.S. adoption of Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, federal laws regulating child labor, and the adoption of the Federal Minimum Wage. In 1982, Perkins was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. Her reputation still lives on, as just this year, presidential contender Elizabeth Warren gave a speech using a podium, (as she pointed out) which had been built with wood once salvaged from the home of the “great and unforgettable Frances Perkins.” Postscript: In those dark and deeply troubled early years of the Great Depression, FDR had formed a Cabinet that many historians today regard as one of the finest ever assembled. But they were, by all accounts, a dour lot. The only one (so the story goes) who could always humorously lift FDR’s spirits (a much needed service back then) was his Secretary of Labor . . . Frances Perkins! Alejandro GrattanDominguez

Saw you in the Ojo

A Republican President Who Loved Mexico By Prof. Michael Hogan (First Published by The Dallas Morning News)

Abraham Lincoln

Benito Juárez

t a time when much of border politics revolves around inflammatory rhetoric and divisive arguments, including talk of a “Hispanic invasion,” it would be useful to reflect on an earlier period of US-Mexico relations and a Republican president who had a quite different view of that country and its people than today’s incumbent. Few American students know that the 1846 invasion of Mexico by the US deprived Mexico of almost half of its territory and resulted in the formation of several US states, including California, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Nevada, as well as parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Wyoming and Colorado. Few know that the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which officially ended the war in 1848, offered automatic citizenship to the Mexicans in that captured territory but the US reneged on that provision. When Abraham Lincoln was a firstterm congressman from Illinois, he risked his political career by standing up in the House of Representatives and accusing President Polk of invading Mexican territory without provocation and then misleading Congress to declare war on that country by claim-

ing that “American blood was shed on American soil.” In his remarks, Lincoln presented several “spot resolutions” asserting that any blood shed was on Mexican soil, and that the US was the aggressor. It did not go down well with Polk and his supporters. Lincoln was accused of giving aid and support to the enemy. Newspapers referred to him as “spotty Lincoln.” Lincoln’s Whig party would lose its majority in the House in 1848, and he would be defeated for the Senate race a few years later. Lincoln was not the only prominent person who objected to the US invasion. General U.S. Grant, who was an Army captain and participated in the invasion, called it the “most unjust war ever waged by a stronger nation against a weaker” and considered resigning his commission. Henry David Thoreau wrote his famous essay “On Civil Disobedience” and went to jail in Concord, Massachusetts for refusing to pay taxes that he felt would go to support the war in Mexico. Former President John Quincy Adams was also strongly opposed. But Lincoln risked the most, and persisted well after the rest fell silent, despite warnings from his law partner and members of his own party. Fourteen years later, in 1861, shortly after his surprise election to the presidency as a compromise Republican candidate, Lincoln welcomed Matías Romero, the Mexican ambassador, to his home in Springfield, Illinois. The 24-year-old Romero was the first foreign ambassador that Lincoln met and entertained before his inauguration on March 4. The personal note Lincoln gave to Romero offered “sincere wishes for the happiness, prosperity and liberty of yourself, your government and its people.” Dated Jan. 21, 1861, it is now on display in the Chicago History Museum.

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In Washington, DC, the president and Mrs. Lincoln became friends with Romero. After France invaded Mexico in 1863 and imposed the Archduke Maximilian on the throne, Lincoln covertly provided assistance to the exiled republican government of Benito Juárez. It was done secretly because Lincoln was afraid that if the French found out they might join forces with the Confederacy to defeat the Union. He and Mrs. Lincoln introduced the young Romero (now an asylum seeker with no official status) to prominent bankers and investors so that he was able to raise over $14 million to arm and supply the Mexican Republican Army and defeat the French. President Lincoln and Juárez could not have been more different physically. Lincoln was six-foot-four; Juarez four-foot-six. One of Anglo-Scot stock, the other a Zapotec Indian. Yet they were both successful lawyers, both confirmed republicans, both committed to human rights, and both struggling to unite opposing forces within their countries. It is thanks to Lincoln that the US is not a divided federation, and thanks to Juárez that Mexico is not a repressive monarchy. There are statues of Lincoln in El Paso and Mexico City today, and he is the second most beloved US president in Mexico. It is based on his legacy that so many years of the “Good Neighbor Policy” pledged by Harry Truman during his 1948 visit to Mexico, were based. During that visit to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of the war with Mexico, Truman laid a wreath on the tomb of the Niños Heroes, the young cadets who gave their lives to protect that Mexican flag against the Yankee invaders. Their deaths marked a shameful episode which Lincoln acknowledged and sought to remedy, and one which Truman confirmed in his reconciliatory gesture. A failure to teach the full and complex 19th century history of the US and Mexico in US classrooms has resulted in ignorance which helps feed anti-Mexico prejudice. Today’s textbooks use terms such as “Westward Expansion” and “Manifest Destiny” to obscure how and why the US used its military superiority to acquire nearly half of Mexico as a result of the war. Most historians also gloss over Polk’s actions and how he misled the Congress. The truth is in the Congressional Record and in battlefield journals, some of them stored in archives in both the USA and Mexico. To help educators and students learn from archival documents, the Lincoln and Mexico Project offers supplemental classroom materials including free lesson plans to interested teachers. In Texas, educators in 43 schools have received the materi-

als for the coming academic year. According to the College Board, each year about 500,000 students take the Advanced Placement US History course. Recently, the Board has approved teaching Lincoln “spot resolutions” as part of the course. Another 4 million 11th graders are required to take some other form of US history class each year. Imagine the impact this next generation could have on the country if these students were to share this actual history, and what a fine model they would have of a Republican president who stood up for his neighbors in Mexico instead of castigating them, and who made amends for the expansionist exploits of the past. In the final analysis, it is not facts that cause violence, but rhetoric based on ignorance. Much of the polarizing political words the president and others often use can be traced to a factually-muddled 2012 blog post about the so-called Mexican invasion promoted by political commentator Pat Buchanan, who failed three times to win the Republican presidential nomination. The fact is that the bulk of migration to our southern border today is people from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras fleeing gang violence, loss of land to global warming and agribusiness, and exploitation by US supported corporations dating back centuries. But it was inflammatory rhetoric and ignorance that inspired the Dallas area shooter to target Mexican-Americans and Mexican citizens during back-toschool shopping in El Paso. Hopefully, we can stop incidents like that from re-occurring by taking steps today to see that our children know the facts of history. Finally, the recent recognition by the Texas Board of Education that contributions of Mexican-Americans to the culture and the history of Texas need to be included in the curriculum is another important step which is long overdue. Children need to see their Latino neighbors as significant contributors to the culture and economy of this state and the nation. It is a modest beginning but an essential one which will change mere tolerance to abiding respect. Prof. MICHAEL HOGAN is a former professor of International Relations at the Universidad Autonoma de Guadalajara, and Emeritus Humanities Chair at the American School Foundation. He is the author of 24 books including Abraham Lincoln and Mexico. http://www. drmichaelhogan. com Michael Hogan

Saw you in the Ojo

Scrolling Through History By Elissa Hutner

ou’ve got to love it when a plan comes together – especially when the coming together bonds our small Mexican town with a tiny Maryland town, drawing on celebratory customs spanning centuries, if not millennia. And it happened right here in October. This remarkable story started with the Lake Chapala Jewish Congregation’s (LCJC) need for a new Torah, the single scroll that is the most revered element of a synagogue. The Torah comprises the first five books of the Old Testament, sacred to Jews and Christians alike. The Torah is even mentioned several times in the Quran. Jewish doctrine says God gave the Torah to Moses who wrote it

down. Recent scholars dispute this and suggest that it was written by a number of men, but all agree the words go back so far, that even King David read some version of the Torah daily. In synagogues worldwide, Jews read identical Torah passages on the same day, until the end is reached – and then they start over. Torahs must be written by hand with a quill on parchment, so it’s not surprising that LCJC’s current Torah, a genuine Holocaust survivor, is worn and faded, making it difficult to read. Enter Jan with a Plan – that is LCJC member Jan Marx Braverman who realized that she knew where another Torah might be had. Jan’s hometown is Cumberland, Maryland, (Pop. 20,000) where

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the Marx family settled over 100 years ago. Her family was a member of Congregation Beth Jacob one of two temples in Cumberland. In 1963, Jan’s parents donated a breastplate for the Torah to commemorate Jan’s grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary. A breastplate is a decorative metal shield hung by a chain on the Torah’s cover or mantle -something like a statement necklace. Breastplates go back to at least the 1100’s and are fashioned in all sorts of decorative designs. Jan reached out to the President of Congregation B’erChayim of Cumberland, one of the oldest synagogues in Maryland, which, in 1998, absorbed the congregation of Beth Jacob together with the Torah and donated breastplate. This meant that B’erChayim might have a Torah to spare, and indeed they did. The synagogue’s board, led by President Doug Schwab, was all too happy to donate to LCJC the very Torah the Marx family enhanced with its commemorative breastplate. B’erChayim sought, not only to bestow the Torah, but also to represent the town of Cumberland as a sort of sister town to the Lakeside community. In fact, there are unexpected similarities between the two towns: both nestled between mountains; both on important bodies of water; both originally populated by indigenous people. Chapala might even adopt Cumberland’s town motto which rings true for many of our North American transplants: “Come for a visit – stay for life.” And so, on October 22, eight dignitaries of Congregation B’erChayim, including the Rabbi and President Doug Scwab, escorted the Torah to Mexico. They joined LCJC, which sponsored rituals and festivities to perform the rite of what’s known as inaugurating the Torah. Like so much of Jewish tradition, there are age-old practices surrounding a Torah Inauguration, and that’s where the festivities begin. The transplanting of a Torah is a joyous occasion filled with honor and fun. Jewish tradition says that welcoming a new Torah has its source in

the ancient times when King David led the procession of Israelites to bring the Ark of the Covenant (holding the Ten Commandments) to Jerusalem, after which he sang and danced before it. Welcoming a new Torah into the community is like welcoming a bride and groom, signifying the marriage of the community with God, and so, the Torah is carried under a chuppah (marriage canopy) in a festive parade through the streets, sometimes accompanied by hundreds or thousands of people engaging in whatever festive local customs usually attend joyous occasions. Which brings us to October 22, 2019, and the inauguration of LCJC’s new Torah. October 22 was the second day of the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah. The first day marks the day when Jews have read through the entire Torah and have reached the last word: the second day is when Jews worldwide start reading the Torah from the beginning. Starting at 11:00 a.m., LCJC hosted members of the community regardless of religious persuasion, to a light lunch at Pancho’s Deli, followed by an inauguration parade, with our Torah carried under a chuppah to the Samuel L. Shibko Sanctuary on Santa Margarita in Riberas de Pilar, a walk of about two blocks. Following local Lake Chapala parade customs, this procession featured four Mexican dancing horses and all who wanted to join in. Once at the sanctuary, there was singing and dancing around the Torah as it was lifted high, a call back over 4,000 years to King David and repeated countless times through the centuries. This was followed by a repast of sweets. Between the dancing and eating, was a short service to mark the holiday, thus starting, for the first time in its new home, the first reading of the first Hebrew words of the Torah: In the beginning. . . In today’s climate, this is an especially meaningful story which demonstrates the respect between an American community and a Mexican one. It’s a story to last through the ages, from the ages and for all ages.

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Blood, Sweat and Bunions By Michael G. McLaughlin

uestion: What has 34 fleet feet and dances November 20th and 21st at the Riberas Auditorio? Answer: The Ajijic Dance Community in a benefit performance. The picture of the dancer’s feet is not pretty and meant to be that way. It is testimony to their hard work and dedication. In the entertainment world dancers are the hardest working and have the shortest careers— much like the athletes they are. Most comedians, actors, singers and musicians, can perform into their 70s, (Can you say Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones?) Professional dancers are ancient by the time they reach forty years old. There are no old principal dancers with any dance company in the world. Dancers use their entire body and especially their feet in their art form and as we all know, for most of us, our bodies are

the first to tell us we grow old. All active dancers fight the ravages of old age with blood, sweat and bunions. Former dancers become choreographers, teachers or open ballet studios. Occasionally you will see a unicorn on Youtube— an 85 year old dancer who can still move with grace and beauty—and the reaction of all not-so-old dancers is “Wish I can dance like that at her age.” Back to the show. We Will Floor You - Cabaret Extravaganza! Produced and directed by Kristine Moily,

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features virtually all the active dancers in the expat community, some local Mexican students and the professional Hernandez Dance Company from Guadalajara—Graduates of the school have gone on to professional careers around the world, to include the London and San Francisco Ballet company. The show’s line-up includes not only a healthy dose of dance, but song and comedy: “Wilkommen” from Cabaret by Kristine Moily as Joel Grey. “Love, You Didn’t do Right by Me” by Patteye Simpson. The song written by Irving Berlin is from the Movie White Christmas. “All I Care About is Love” from the Broadway spectacular Chicago featuring the Heart-Stopper Showgirls: Val, D’Le, Martiza, Joanne, Pamela, Concha, Graciella, Allyson. The notorious Barbara Clippinger is coming out of retirement (again) to choreograph this hot number. The Mexican classic, “Sabor a Mi” by Maria Camarena with Ricardo Gomez and Angela Ceja dancing. The Hernandez Dancers from Guadalajara will reprise their hilarious and oh-so-true “Selfie Ballet.” This was a showstopper at the lip sync show earlier this year. For those sitting up

front and daring there is the Lady Liberty Majorette baton routine by D’Le Beatty-Tobias. No, the batons are not set on fire, (The fire department frowns on it,) but the batons spin so fast air friction causes them to heat up. There is also comedy, “Larry King Live!” an interview with God, with Michael Barry Neal and Don Chaloner. The finale of the performance is a rousing rendition of several songs and dances from the Broadway musical hit “Hair,” “Good Morning Starshine” and “Age of Aquarius.” The Master of Ceremony is the dapper and incomparable John Ward. Music by Tim Tillman and the Dangerous Ukulele Orchestra. The performance November 20th and 21st helps several causes that includes the newly formed Lakeside Youth Dance Program, the Los Ninos de Chapala y Ajijic. The NCA is a non-profit, charitable organization, incorporated and registered in 1977 in Mexico. NCA assists children and young adults in the Lake Chapala area to achieve their maximum educational potential. The organization also supports the cost of their school fees, books, supplies, uniforms, and assistance with medical needs. Finally, the benefit performance will help refurbish the dance rehearsal floor at the Auditorio. The dance practice floor is in such bad shape there could be 33 dancing feet at the benefit show if the dancers are not careful. Performance dates: Wednesday and Thursday, November 20th & 21st 3:00 p.m. Bar, 4:00 p.m. show time. 300 peso tickets are available at Mia’s, Diane Pearl’s Boutique and at the Auditorio. Also tickets can be reserved via email at: ticketsajijic@ Michael G. gmail.com. McLaughlin

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COLUMNIST

BRIDGE BY THE LAKE By Ken Masson

dvancing players are always seeking fresh ways of improving their bridge knowledge. One of the newest and best sources is the Internet where countless bridge sites offer everything from every convention ever invented to realtime coverage of tournaments from around the world. Among the best of these sites is Bridge Base Online. Watching tournament play on BBO is an enjoyable and educational experience as famous players show their stuff, often for the benefit of thousands of spectators at a time, and with expert commentators to explain bids and plays that might be unfamiliar to the viewers. While most of the time we are treated to clever bidding, great declarer play and excellent defense, occasionally a hand will emerge that befuddles even the best of players, much to the delight of their cyber-audience. Such was the deal in this month’s diagram played at a tournament in England. East dealt and began proceedings with a bid of 1 diamond, intending to show his 5 spades by bidding that suit twice later on. Little did he know what was to transpire as the bidding progressed. South decided to mix things up a bit by making a preemptive jump overcall, despite the adverse vulnerability and West showed at least a five-card heart suit and good values. North now raised the ante a tad by supporting his partner’s suit at the 4 level and East was faced with his first dilemma. He realized that the contract could possibly be played in any of 3 suits (spades, hearts or diamonds) with the level to be determined by his partner’s exact holding. He wanted to bid 4 spades but was afraid that that

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might not be considered forcing by West. After considerable thought he emerged with a bid of 5 no trump which the analysts concluded meant: “pick a slam”. When the bidding returned to West, he must have sensed that his partner had fairly even distribution (outside the club suit) and as he, West, had substantial extra values not yet shown, a Grand Slam must be in the offing so he bid 7 clubs, returning the decision to East. Now all would have been well if East had simply chosen either of his long suits but for some reason he got it into his head that West held a very good heart suit and believed his jack and nine holding would complement it nicely. After two passes, the auction returned to North who was staring at an almost certain heart winner and couldn’t resist the temptation of doubling. East now felt that he hadn’t picked the best suit for his side and introduced spades for the first time at the seven level, which would have produced a wonderful result for his side! However, understandably, West couldn’t visualize East’s actual hand and believed that surely his partner held the ace of clubs for this bidding and so bid 7 no trump! South was very happy to double, lead the club ace and continue the suit producing the first seven tricks for his side for 1,700 points! I’m sure that East and West have had a number of heated conversations on this hand in the intervening months! Questions or comments: email: masson.ken@ gmail.com Ken Masson

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SAWSHANK REMEMBERED: My Life Behind Bars By Dr. Lorin Swinehart PART II

he voice behind me ordered, “Would you please step aside, Sir?” It was a sunny June evening, and I had been standing at the counter, following standard protocol, emptying my briefcase and my pockets, removing my belt because the buckle frequently triggered the alarm on the metal detector as I passed through it. Entering a prison every week for years on end is not an experience that everyone has had. I turned to see a young black man attired in a prison orange jump suit, handcuffs and leg irons, accompanied by four sheriff’s deputies, three of them brandishing 12 gauge shotguns, the muzzles aimed at the inmate who was about to be admitted into the facility where I taught university English courses two evenings a week. The procedures were in place for the protection of the deputies, the prison staff, teachers like me, and, ironic as it may sound, even the new inmate. Still, I felt somehow demeaned, as though I had witnessed some shameful scene that I should not have. The thought ran through my mind, “Is this the best that we humans can do?” Sad to say, it probably is. I am no apologist for bad behavior. Still, while there may be no excuses for bad behavior, there are oftentimes reasons:

Poverty, lack of wholesome role models, downtrodden neighborhoods, broken homes, immaturity, insufficient impulse control, bad companions, bad choices, all the old chestnuts. Prison is not a happy place, and those on both sides of the law live and work under dangerous conditions. I used to speculate that in a room of up to 25 or 26 men, I might be the only person present who had never killed anyone. That probably overstates the situation. I generally did not know what offense had caused my students to be incarcerated. Sometimes, they wrote about it. For eleven years, I graded their essays, correcting grammar, punctuation and sentence structure, penning copious notes in margins, and reading journals. I was aware that among my classes were bank robbers, drug dealers, murderers, rapists, child molesters, those convicted of felonious assault, domestic violence, vehicular homicide, one for killing two men with his speed boat while he was operating it under the influence, one even for impersonating a police officer. They came from all backgrounds, all ethnicities. I had Christians, Muslims, atheists, existentialists, even a self styled Wiccan priest who wrote extensively about the historic persecution of witches. One man, a convicted murderer who happened to have been a former

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police officer, wrote great fishing essays. A Vietnam vet wrote about his wartime experiences. A child molester wrote about his own victimization as a boy. Another described a bar fight in which he had stabbed an attacker to death. Most of the time, my classes consisted of either University Writing Improvement or Freshman English, but on occasion I taught British and American Literature and Great Books. Almost without exception, the students were conscientious, intelligent, respectful, courteous. While we were discussing John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath in an American Literature class one evening, a young Hispanic man whose family had been migrant farm workers for generations explained to the class that such a life was exactly as difficult, as cruel and unjust, as that experienced by the Okies fleeing to California from the Dust Bowl of the 1930’s. As a group, they did not care for Faulkner, praised Hawthorne, Mark Twain, Hemingway, Steinbeck, seemed to comprehend the hypocrisy of “Willy Loman” in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman, loved some more recent selections by Pat Conroy and Chaim Potok. I generally assigned up to eight books in a semester, in addition to the text. Generally, when it came time for finals, most would write nonstop for up to three full hours. Education was a passion for them. One would not suspect that a group of up to 25 convicted felons would become so immersed in the works of Homer, Sophocles, Euripides, Shakespeare that they would come to class arguing about plots and characters instead of the best way to knock off a convenience store or pull off a drug deal. I can say that they were among the very best students I had in a 36-year teaching career. In eleven years, I never experienced so much as a discourtesy. It was explained to me by a guard on one occasion that the inmates protect outsiders from one another, that no one wants to return to the days when no outsider was admitted for any reason. Our class discussions were unique. As is so often the case, teacher and students live in vastly different worlds. Lines from their journals remain with me yet. “When I came to prison, I had to say goodbye forever to my best friend,” the dog he had raised from a puppy. “I never realized how cruel people could be until I came to this place.” I read this, a letter to his teenage self, in the journal of a young man named John, “Dear Little John. You thought you knew it all. You wouldn’t listen to your parents or your teach-

ers. Now, look at where I am because of you.” Another wrote, “My eleven-yearold son came to visit today. Everyone says he reminds them of me at his age. I don’t want him to be like me. Look at where I am.” One young man, doing 5 to 25 for armed robbery, provided some insights into prison life when he penned an essay entitled “Penitentiary Rat,” describing his daily routine as resembling that of a rodent among rodents. With his permission, I submitted it to an Ohio State University literary journal, and they published it. I sent him a carton of a dozen or so copies by way of the college office once the semester had ended. One summer evening, I was approached after class by a student with a most unusual request. He was about to be paroled. Would I request that the warden allow him to remain inside for three more weeks so that he could compete his British Literature course. He was an “A” student. As a teacher, I was not allowed to interfere in such matters, but I did write to the warden informing him that the young man’s grade would suffer if he could not take the final exam. My request was granted. When I entered college for the first time at the age of 20, I thirsted for education like a man dying in the desert might thirst for water. However, can anyone imagine a person’s passion for education being so fervent as to cause him to ask for three more weeks in prison in order to complete an English Class. What a statement for the value of education. What a statement for the young man’s system of values and for the role of education in genuine rehabilitation. A few winters before I witnessed the young man being ushered into his new life in prison, I happened to be on a retreat at the Abbey of Our Lady of the Genesee, a Cistercian monastery in rural New York. One dark, freezing evening, I watched as a novice arrived at the door, carrying all his worldly possessions in a cardboard box. At the entrance, the porter took the box from him, and the young man entered the monastery, in all probability, forever. The stark contrast between those two realities has remained with me ever since. Two young men of much the same age, entering total institutions, one voluntarily and one under duress, one for a life of prayer and service, one for long years of marking time. Lorin Swinehart

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RAMBLINGS FROM THE RANCH By Christina Bennett

hat are your thoughts on pit bulls? Do you have some preconceived notions that they are gang members’ dogs, maltreated and mean, not fit for family life? Are you scared when you see one headed your way? Perhaps this little story about Princessa will challenge some of this pit bull lore. Princessa was owned by a young man in Chapala, a young man who sold drugs, who you might cross the street to avoid, and who ended up in prison. Sounding like the stereotype: gangbanger with a pit bull? Well, this fellow loved his dog and took good care of her until he was incarcerated to pay his debt to society. At that point, the lovely Princessa pit bull found herself on the streets, finding food where she could, confused and missing her owner. Luckily, a wonderful young neighbor, who just happened to work at The

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Ranch, started to feed Princessa every day. A smart cookie, the pit bull was always on time for feeding! The Ranch employee made a pitch for The Ranch to take Princessa and try to re-home her. She was housed with a pack of unruly puppies and she was a perfectly patient surrogate mother to them. Volunteers fell in love with her; her big white head, her patience, her kisses, her strong body, the way she’d pull them along on walks (well, maybe no one loved that part!). This girl was a lover.

Finally, a rescue group in Seattle said they would take Princessa and find her a forever home. The lucky girl was loaded into a dog crate and brought to the ticket counter where the desk clerk was mighty suspicious and said the airline didn’t fly pit bulls. But Princessa won the day again, her sweet demeanor earning her a seat on the plane! Princessa took her flight and is now living the dream in Seattle. According to her new family, her “...full name is Princessa Jolene Fancy-pants Blanche.” Her new family consists of two humans and a cat (with whom she shares her bed!). They say “she has three great loves. 1. naps, 2. snuggles and 3.naps while snuggling. And when she’s not napping or snuggling, she’s exploring the parks of Seattle, hanging out with us on the patios of local coffee shops and restaurants, or waiting patiently at the bottom of a tree for a squirrel. She charms everyone she meets with her big eyes and sweet smile.” Wish you could help The Ranch re-home wonderful dogs like Princessa, the stereotype-breaking pit bull? If you are interested in escorting dogs to North of the Border shelters or volunteering please contact The Ranch: www.lakesidespayandneutercenter.com/ or 331.270.4447.

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Find Feathered Friends By Allen C. Turner and Judy Boyd —Field Ornithologists

Mockingbirds: Pirates of the High Cs

“Tra la la, tweedle dee dee dee It gives me a thrill To wake up in the morning To the mockingbird’s trill … On Mockingbird Hill” —Vaughn Horton Gray with two white wingbars, the Northern Mockingbird is among the least spectacular birds, visually. The most distinctive feature is its expansive repertoire— especially for those, as yet, unmated males. Play list matters: the bigger the better. Studies indicate that the greater the variety, the more females are attracted. And, with this selective mating, ever expanding repertories has been the evolutionary consequence. This is not truly mimicry or imitation— terms suggesting deception —but “vocal appropriation.” Now I can appreciate the attractiveness of melodic variation but tell me what Ms. MB gets from hearing the guy bark like a dog. Last year I tracked down a daily car alarm to a tree top in Chula Vista. A California college campus had memorized a series of cell phone ring-tones. Farther south past the Isthmus (check your map; it is the narrow neck just west of Chiapas) is a similar species, the Tropical Mockingbird, which lacks the white wing patches having white wingbars instead. And its playlist is less diverse than its northern compatriot. The Northern Mockingbird range includes all of Mexico and north to the mid-latitudes of the United States. Look for them leaping into the air and singing from the top of the tallest trees as they defend their territory and attract mates. Another similar sounding local bird is the Curve-billed Thrasher which is also a member of the family Mimidae. Now the Blue Mockingbird is a bird of a different color. Dark bluegray with a darker eye-patch the Blue does not make use of other

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bird’s calls but has a fine song book nonetheless. They are also much more reclusive, hiding in the darker shadows of bushes. Their range extends from northern Mexico to south to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. In the Chiapas and “thumb” of Mexico, you will find the Blue and White Mockingbird who is blueblack with a white underbelly. Next time you hear a melodic bird song, look up for the Northern Mockingbird and into the shadows for the Blue Mockingbird. You may want to join with other birders, known locally as Los Audubonistas, as we explore the birdlife of Lake Chapala. You can also join with us on our “bird walks” by entering your email address on our website. We will send you newsletters announcing upcoming events and reports of bird sightings around Lakeside. Photos by Vince Gravel.

Allen C. Turner and Judy Boyd

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COLUMNIST

PROFILING TEPEHUA By Moonyeen King

President of the Board for Tepehua

moonie1935@yahoo.com

linician’s view PASSIVE SUICIDAL IDEATION as a wish to die but not by ones own hand. Preferably an accident, terminal illness, dying in sleep, heart attack, but still opening a window at the same time for intervention. Similar to a disturbed youth getting into a police fight “death by Cop”, as it is called. PSI can also be an unfortunate part of aging when the Golden Years aren’t so Golden. Excessive behavior is also PSI, or a long list of addictions from food, alcohol, smoking, vaping, hard drugs. The list is endless. We know excessive use of anything will kill us, but continue on the road to passive suicide, with the exception that it is our own hand, but we are

giving ourselves that window of time for intervention, “I can stop anytime”. In this enlightened era, we view addictions, depressions, as illness, rather than morally failing, or mentally deficient, with emphasis on prevention and treatment. Discoveries regarding the brain revolutionized our understanding of dependency or compulsive behavior. Opposite to PSI is the fear of dying, which turns many into hypochondriacs, and with the complicity of the Doctors and pharmaceuticals who become enablers and get the patient dependent on medical drugs such as opioids, sleeping pills and a trillion other prescriptions. This maybe the fault of the patient

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who feels cheated if they come away from the Doctors without a prescription. Drugs come onto the market like a change of fashion. The talking heads tell us this one is to dangerous then suggest another, if all else fails there are clinics and facilities that can help you handle all the addictions you have, they can help you break the cycle for a fee. There is help at the end of the dark tunnel. Here at Lakeside it is the same problem with one difference, the majority of addicts, PSI victims, people deeply in need of help are in the barrios, held in the hard grip of poverty. Seldom can that window of time for intervention be utilized, except for the few. A good example is: If a derelict male is picked up by the police, depending on his misdemeanor, the arresting officer can take him to jail or to the Rehabilitation Center Lakeside, where he serves time and dries out, sometimes it can take as long as two years, and he is allowed visitation by family. If a woman is picked up for a drug violation she goes straight to jail as there are no facilities for women, the nearest is Guadalajara. They cannot have visitation rights to their children. There are also women in jail for having an abortion, and those who treated her. Over crowding in jails, abuse and easy access to drugs exacerbate the situation that women face when jailed, especially

when they cannot afford representation. Majority of over dosing is not intentional...it is a matter of ‘pushing the envelope’. It may look as though we have a handle on things like PSI and the multiple addictions, there are solutions for the few who can afford special care, but not for the multitude, and shouldn’t we ask why this generation is intent on self destruction? Even those with the silver spoons? It is no longer an adult ‘thing’, our children are coming along for the ride. There is still to much interference by the Church into what should be State matters. There are law makers with one foot still in the dark ages and it is time the people were listened to. Speaking for the barrio of Tepehua, where cheap drugs and Meth factories are easy to find, violence still rules the mean streets and kids join gangs as a support, the basic need is to fill that void. Empty hands need to be given something to achieve and basic education is needed. Instead of further education there should be more vocation schools. In an ideal world. There is so much retired talent here in the retired community, if local Government had the money to invest in them for vocational schools...now that’s an ideal world!

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Veteran’s Day By Robert Drynan

Korean War Memorial, Washington D.C.

patrol moves silently through the perimeter. The darkness shrouds their movement and the cascading rain muffles their progress. It’s a large patrol, a dozen men, led by a sergeant who has been in the line for eight months. Occasionally lightning in the distance glints off the shinny surfaces of their rain gear. They still move single file, led by the point man that has been on patrols for the past year, and knows his way through the mine field by rote. Back in the file, a man shifts his weapon to the opposite hand and takes the arm of the soldier in front of him, a newcomer to the unit, and guides him through the process of avoiding the deadly defensive weapons. They emerge from the mine field and enter a new danger zone. The sergeant taps the man in front, signals him to stop and pass the word on, puts a hand on his radioman to halt him and moves back through the patrol gesturing to them to spread out. He reaches the newbie and notes the hand of the veteran on his arm, nods and moves on. The sergeant returns to the middle of the formation and whispers loudly, “Move out.” Each man has

assumed his rehearsed position, knows his areas of responsibility in the tactical sweep. Knows where the next man is located, the location of the men who will cover his back, and that of the men whose backs he will cover. They all rely on the point man’s ability to spot trouble and on the rear most to cover their back trail. This is an infantry patrol. It could be Virginia in 1863, Mindanao in 1901, the Argonne in 1918, Guadalcanal in 1942, Korea in 1950, Vietnam in 1968 or Afghanistan in 2013. Small unit tactics change, adapt to technology, geography, and idiosyncrasies of the adversary. But one thing has never changed. The members of the patrol develop a deep sense of cohesion; each member relies on the others, as the others rely on him. The story could be of a fighter pilot and wingman. It could be AA gunners on warships. It could be a radar technician, or an electronics specialist in a CIC. It could be a supply sergeant or an armor man in a support role. It could be a nurse in a field hospital. Wherever, whenever, they were rigorously trained and perhaps at some time subjected to the stresses of the real thing, the varmint. But most important each received a responsibility the failure of which could have catastrophic consequences for those depending upon him; and consequences for him, if others upon whom he depended failed in their responsibilities to him. That experience changed all of them forever. Salute our veterans on November 11th. Their freedoms are not just a birthright; they have earned them. Robert Drynan

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FRONT ROW CENTER By Michael Warren

Lakeside Little Theatre —Breaking News—

he first play of the season, “Lunenburg” by Norm Foster, due to open on November 8, has been cancelled. Evidently, a cast member had a job opportunity in Mexico City and decided to leave the show. Subsequently, another cast member stood down for personal reasons. Thus, two of the three actors were unavailable, only three weeks before opening. LLT found replacements who were prepared to do a staged reading of the play with props, set, lights and sound. However, the director was uncomfortable with continuing in this mode and so the LLT Board reluctantly decided to cancel the show. There will be some benefit or future discount for season ticket holders. This is unprecedented in the entire history of Lakeside Little Theatre. There have been crises in the past, but somehow a show has been put on. A few years ago, a planned show could not be presented because another theater in Mexico had purchased the copyright, and would not allow our performance. With only three weeks to go, Norm Foster’s “Bedtime Stories” was learned, rehearsed and successfully performed. I remember it well - I was in the cast! On another occasion, I recall the director (Peggy Lord Chilton) having to perform an important role because a cast member was unavoidably absent. Peggy carried the script on stage, but hardly seemed to need it. This is sad and unexpected news. Now there will only be three plays and

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a musical in a shortened season. Opening on December 6, we’ll get to see a couple of hilarious one-act plays The Real Inspector Hound and After Magritte by Tom Stoppard. The first play is a crazy parody of a typical whodunit murder mystery, set in a weird country house Muldoon Manor. It also takes a dig at the pomposity of theater critics, as “Moon” and “Birdboot” arrive to critique a performance and somehow get involved in the action. The second play involves an eccentric family who are placed under arrest for illegal parking and other strange offences. Confusion and misunderstandings abound – if you enjoy absurd British farces, you will have a great time watching these two plays. On a personal note, I had underwritten “Lunenburg” in memory of my late wife Joan who passed away almost a year ago in November 2018. Collette Clavadetscher (President of LLT) has kindly arranged for me to underwrite the Stoppard plays, and has deferred her own memorial for Mark Boyer to the following 2020/1 season. Thank you, Collette - much appreciated. Michael Warren

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COLUMNIST

By Victoria Schmidt

Customer Service in Mexico

ne of the things I’ve always tried to avoid is dealing with customer service in any country. Yesterday, it took two telephones, a computer, and four transfers and over one hour to achieve a deposit into my checking account. This was using their “easy mobile banking app.” No matter how helpful they try to be, there is always some sort of snag. But yesterday, I was only dealing with people who spoke English. The day before I was working on settling a housing issue for my upcoming trip, a sorely needed vacation. My Spanish should certainly be proficient enough to accomplish a small task. But my Spanish requires a lot of hand gestures, faces, and anything else short of standing on my head in order to make myself understood. But over a telephone, I don’t have those visual aids. Luckily I was able to undergo only two transfers before I found someone who understood my Spanish. She spoke English. But some customer service in Mexico is a little different. My friend recently had her electric cut off. Her business, like so many includes more than one address. Her total bill surpassed $63,000 pesos. She paid the bill on time, as she has paid all her past bills. But CFE did not record the payment properly. So they cut off the service. No notice. Just like there was no notice when they were shutting down our

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service when they replaced some lines recently. Now for most people a day without electricity wouldn’t be much of a problem, but my husband has to be on oxygen the greater part of a day. No electric, no oxygen. Also, no electric, meant no water. With a little notice, and we could have made alternate arrangements. But it has been my experience that CFE finds notifying its customers of their actions is an unnecessary step. Meanwhile, my friend has now spent her second day at CFE, because even though she is holding both bills and both receipts, CFE needs to find out where they made their error, and she wasn’t getting electricity, no matter what. That was now the third day without electricity, because she had to hire an electrician to find out why there was power outage on the first day. Two days at CFE and the problem is finally solved. She was put on a list, and they promised to try to get the electric on. But it didn’t happen. Day four. And finally, on day five, there was light. Did I mention that this was all over $400 pesos on the separate bill? This doesn’t take into account the money she lost by not being able to run her business, and the time she lost trying to resolve an issue she had nothing to do with. And this is a Mexican woman running a Mexican business, and CFE makes oodles of money on her. I think she’s considering solar now. But with no alternatives, CFE just decides and we all have to put up with their ways of doing things. In one house we lived in, I happened to run across a Supervisor from CFE looking at our lines. We had problems with power outages and blinking lights. He told me we needed new wires leading to the house. Since he was the supervisor, he was going to put in the request himself, that afternoon. Oh I was so excited, and so naive. I drove by that house last Tuesday. (We moved eight years ago.) The same old lines were still there and it looked like the power was off. Victoria Schmidt

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Be Yourself—Everyone Else Is Taken By Michael McManmon

he optimist says the glass is half full, the pessimist says the glass is half-empty, and the person with Asperger’s or autism says the glass is made of silicon melted and formed into a shape to hold liquids for humans to drink. The analytical brain of someone on the autism spectrum often has a very black-and-white way of seeing things. They tend to see only what is in front of them and take things literally. They lack the experience of living through the “ups and downs” that their neurotypical peers have had. Many young people with Asperger’s and autism are overwhelmed with thoughts and feelings that they are not able to express. The inability to express feelings can lead to isolation, depression and anger. Because of this isolation, young adults on the spectrum can be judgmental, analytical, disapproving and rigid in their thinking. This lack of tolerance toward others can be exacerbated by their own depression or lack of self-esteem and can lead to negative behaviors. Creating emotional outlets through open dialogue, honesty, and learning from experiences (both positive and negative), will help a young adult on the spectrum find his/her identity. Laying this groundwork is vital preparation for teenagers as they

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prepare to leave home for college, find a job, or learn to live independently. Learning self-acceptance and tolerance releases individuals with Asperger’s from a lifetime of rigidity and pain. Learning to be open to others with what may seem like insurmountable differences sets the stage for selfacceptance and harmonious relationships with others. When I was in my teens I was frustrated in my dealings with others; I could not agree with my peers or accept their points of view. I felt isolated and clung stubbornly to my beliefs. I would outwardly respect others in public, but secretly not accept them as having a “valid existence” in private. Consequently, as an adult with Asperger’s Syndrome, I had to learn to suspend judgment of others. I learned the hard way that I do not have to agree with everyone and they do not have to agree with me. I can still be friendly with people of all different religions and political, racial, and national origins, and still be me. Young adults on the spectrum need to be taught how to build partnerships, how to manage their emotions and ask for help. Competency with these skills leads to selfacceptance and can help these bright young people achieve success with their goals and dreams.

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The Coon Hunt At Maple Grove By Linda Hunt

“

t’s an awful night out tonight! Fog, drizzle, just awful!” my wife, Lyddie sighed. “The sap will be runnin’. Our buckets will be full come morning. Coons will be running tonight.” “Don’t go out hunting in this. You’ll catch your death of cold. You won’t be able to see your hand in front of your face. Promise you won’t go.” I wanted to go, but I didn’t want to argue, and I didn’t want to lie to her. If I didn’t keep the coon population down, my corn crop next summer would be destroyed by legions of raccoons with big appetites. “Let’s just go to bed then,” I answered. “You’ll leave as soon as I fall asleep.” “I’ll be asleep too,” I grinned. “We worked too hard today to be able to stay awake for long.” Before much time had passed, I could hear my wife’s heavy, relaxed breathing and I knew she was fast asleep. I also knew she didn’t trust me to stay in bed when I found a safety pin connecting my shirt to her nightie! I couldn’t help grinning at the thought of my sweet little wife being so devious. I suppose I was a little devious too when I unpinned it and pinned her to the sheets. Ha! Outside, the air was crisp and thick with fog. Hunters were required to carry a kerosene lantern and the minute my coon dog, Mitty, saw it she began to bark wildly and dance all around me. Behind the house was a heavily wooded swamp that belonged to my neighbor, the perfect place to begin the hunt. Old Bill Switzer often ran cattle in there, but I thought I had seen them grazing in the pasture near his house that day. It didn’t matter. I wouldn’t mistake a coon for a cow! Mitty slid through the fence and ran out ahead of me. All was quiet except for drops of water dripping from the resting trees and the quiet crunch of my footsteps on twigs and leaves that had fallen to the ground, until I heard Mitty baying on the trail! I ran toward the sound. Strangely, as I ran, I could hear the thunder of hooves, the bellow of cattle, and Mitty’s barks that had turned to desperate yips! Next thing I saw was a herd of very angry Black Angus cattle coming towards me with Mitty in the lead! They

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were heading right at me! I quickly climbed a nearby tree! Mitty kept on running, but the cattle stopped, investigated my lantern and my rifle that were laying at the trunk of the tree, and decided to remain while they continued to make their angry noises. It started to rain. Though I knew the temperature had not fallen to freezing, I was shivering. I noticed that several of the cattle had new calves. Now it all made sense. There’s nothing meaner than a cow with a new calf! The cattle remained under my tree all night, screaming and stomping. I heard gunshots off in the distance, probably incentive for them not to wander. I have never had such a miserable night! As the sky began to lighten, they finally wandered off. Once I was back on the ground, I could barely move. I was soaked to the skin and I was so stiff that my whole body seemed to be frozen! Mitty met me at the barn where she had spent a cozy night sleeping in a nice pile of warm hay. I looked at her and said, “traitor.” When I walked into the kitchen soaking wet and shaking from the cold, Lyddie was fixing breakfast. First she looked at me and then she took a deep breath. I could tell that she was relieved to see me all in one piece. Then she laughed! She laughed and laughed! I must have been a sight. “Besides pneumonia, did you catch anything else?” she gulped as she tried to control her mirth. “Ha ha! I went down to the barn looking for you and I saw Mitty was doing well. I figured you were probably dead somewhere. Dare I ask what happened?” “I would rather not talk about it,” I mumbled as I left to search for some dry clothes. Lyddie grinned and snickered throughout the day as we worked in the sugar camp emptying buckets of sap into the large trough we used to boil the watery liquid from the sugar maple trees into maple syrup over an open fire. It was hard work, but the syrup was a precious commodity to a small Ohio farmer.

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“TO THE MOON, ALICE!” By Judy Dykstra-Brown

n The Honeymooners, “Ralph Kramden” (played by Jackie Gleason) had a phrase that those of us of a certain age can’t help but remember. “To the moon, Alice, to the moon!” he would rasp at his wife (played by the inimitable Audrey Meadows) whenever he had no less predictable comeback to her never predictable jibes. Of course, the idea was that this was how far he would knock her. An upraised fist often accompanied his threat. The audience, of course, would roar. So hilarious this empty threat, for America knew that Ralph would never make good on the threat. Even Alice never flinched–supposedly because she, too, knew those words signaled an empty threat. But underneath those words and the fact that viewers found them to be so hilarious, was the idea that such threatened violence was funny–and, somehow, that such treatment of his wife was a man’s right. Alice’s only defense was her wicked wit, and unlike many abused wives then and now, she was never really punished for it. Somehow America knew that if he ever made good on the threat, that Alice would be out the door and probably within a manner of days, on the arm of a man who didn’t weigh 300 pounds plus–a man who made more than the $65 a week Ralph made as a bus driver. All-in-all, the situation was not very believable–that trim beautiful (sharp-tongued) Alice would ever be wooed and won by fat, acerbic, not-too-clever Ralph required a suspension of disbelief we were wellaccustomed to in the early years of TV, not to mention the movies. From “The Honeymooners” to “Doctor Who,” we were willing to believe anything to be entertained, but the element of violence toward women found so howlingly funny in the Jackie Gleason show was at least not

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echoed in the wildly implausible “Dr. Who” plots. There it was highly likely that one would in fact (or in this case, fiction) be flown to the moon–something that never quite happened on “The Honeymooners.” How far would I go for someone I loved? Certainly not as far as Alice went. For although it is true that in my lifetime at least a dozen men have “sent me to the moon,” that is beyond the limits of where I’d allow anyone to knock me to! Yes, I would and have done many things for those I’ve loved. I have faced up to a gunman, done nursing tasks I never thought I would have done in a million years, faced up to a police captain to release a man from jail (and succeeded) in a situation I should have had the good sense to know was impossible, and stayed in a country torn by revolution until I knew the man I loved would live, but one thing I would not do is allow myself to be knocked to the ground, let alone to the moon. Abuse is something I would not take–by a husband, a lover, a parent or a friend. It was inevitable that one clever cartoonist would come up with this answer to the question, “What did the astronauts find when they landed on the moon?” Of course, Alice Kramden! But let me tell you, one person she would never have as a companion there is me! “I’d do anything for you, dear,” is a song those of us “of that certain age” will find familiar, but in my case it is not true. I will not take abuse–either orally or physically–from anyone, no matter how close the connection, and have absolutely no expectations that anyone would take it from me. Judy DykstraBrown posts poetry and essays daily on her blog at: https://judydykstrabrown. Judy Dykstracom/ Brown

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Creating True Friendships By Barbara Hildt

e all need and want true friends. A few good friends are more valuable to us than having dozens or even hundreds of “friends” in Facebook. A true friend is someone you can count on being there for you when you’re in need or feeling down. The friend doesn’t always need to be there in person. Thanks to Skype and FaceTime we can be geographically far apart and still see each other’s faces and discern their feelings by listening and watching. True friends let their friends speak to them about their concerns without interrupting. They can trust the friend they confide in will not break confi-

dence by telling others about what the friend has shared. To develop a friendship based on more than just things in common, two people need to show that they are truly interested in what the other is experiencing, knows, believes and feels about things. If a friend is a great talker but not such a great listener, the friendship is not balanced. As a result, the friend who mostly listens without being listened to tends to feel cheated and possibly resentful. If one person talks most of the time, sharing his or her experiences and thinking without giving the other person a chance to speak about his or her experiences and views, then some-

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thing important is missing in their relationship. The person who talks most of the time without showing interest in the other person sends an unspoken message of not caring, even if they have physically embraced that person. In respectful, caring relationships, whether a friendship or a partnership, people show interest in what the other person is thinking and feeling. Disregard is a form of disrespect. Studies of social and emotional competency show that individuals with the ability to empathize with others have much better relationships, both personal and professional. Those who habitually fail to ask others how they are feeling send an unspoken message that how others feel does not matter to them. We need to show that we care by inquiring how others are and carefully listening to their responses. Healthcare providers such as physicians, nurses and therapists have been trained to ask, “How are you feeling today?” All people who want to be caring friends should learn to ask others, “How are you doing?” Empathy is an essential element of any true friendship. To feel empathy for another person, one must refrain from making assumptions based on knowledge and experiences stored in their dominant, analytical left-brain.

Empathy comes when the heart and open mind, freeing the imagination and intuition, which reside in the right hemisphere of the brain. Individuals who haven’t yet learned to feel and express empathy for others lack the ability to create caring, healthy social connections and relationships. Some adults lack social competency skills because they were not taught these skills when they were developing socially. Some lack the incentive to risk showing they care for others because they have experienced hurt from people they once trusted. People with Aspergers Syndrome tend to have difficulties empathizing, expressing feelings and relating socially. But they still need to know others care about them. The good news is that most people can learn to create more caring friendships by talking less, listening more with empathy and withholding judgement. In other words, by learning to accept and love others as they are. It takes awareness of our old habits, determination and practice to create better interpersonal relationships. The rewards can be enormous. Barbara Hildt

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Carol D. Bradley

Email: cdbradleymex@gmail.com Phone: 33-2506-7525 LITTLE LAKESIDE THEATRE —Breaking News— The first play of the season, “Lunenburg” by Norm Foster, due to open on November 8, has been CANCELLED. Please go to page 26 for more info. WHAT’S COMING UP NEXT AT LLT Here is the lineup, and starting dates for the rest of the Lakeside Little Theatre 2019-2020 season: The Real Inspector Hound and After Magritte, two one act comedies by Tom Stoppard. December 6-15 20th Century Blues, comedy/drama by Susan Miller. January 17-26 My Fair Lady, musical by Lerner & Loewe. February 21-March 3 The Actress, romantic comedy by Peter Quilter. March 27-April 5 The December Lakeside Little Theatre production is a combination of two one-act comedies; The Real Inspector Hound & After Magritte, by Tom Stoppard, directed by Randy Warren. Show dates are December 6-15. The first play, The Real Inspector Hound, is a play within a play merging two second rate critics, and a cliché’-ridden whodunit filled with multiple surprises, murderous lunatics, and melodramatic lechery.

Cast: Brian Fuqua, Louise Ritchie, Frank Lynch, Fred Koesling, Roger Larson, JeanMarie Harmon, Stan Rawson. Allyson DeJong is missing from photo.

The second play, After Magritte, is an absurdist, surrealist and comic one act play with a kooky trio: Scotland Yard, a minstrel show and a tuba! Cast: Stan Rawson, Beede Satterthwaite, Brian Fuqua, Jill Flyer. The performances are at 7:30pm and 4pm. First Saturday and both Sundays are matinees. Tickets are 300 pesos and are available at LLT’s Box Office: 10-noon every Wednesday and Thursday, 10 – noon every day of Mainstage show except Sunday, also one hour before curtain. Email: tickets@ lakesidelittletheatre.com or call (376) 766 0954. www.lakesidelittletheatre.com. For season tickets, check tickets@ lakesidelittletheatre.com and www.lakesideCast: Stan Rawson, Beede Satterth- littletheatre.com for information. DON’T FORGET: Dr. Tony Pinto will crewaite, Brian Fuqua, Jill Flyer ate his famous seafood paella at the November 13, 6 to 9 pm, Starlit Paella dinner, a multi course Mediterranean delight. This event hasn’t happened since 2016 so it’s something to look forward to. The venue is the Hotel Montecarlo in Chapala. Be there for dancing, table meal service and “fun under the stars.” The charity event is sponsored by Lakeside Charities Grant Program AC, which has funded more than 25 projects since 2016; Awards have totaled 600,000+ pesos in support of Lakeside community development. Tickets are $500 if purchased by October 31 and $600 thereafter. Reserve a table of 8+ (or for individual tickets) online at LakesideCharities@gmail.com. A gift bottle of wine will be sent to the reserved tables of 8. No tickets are sold at the door.

You can also purchase tickets at Hotel Montecarlo’s reception desk on Mondays thru Thursdays, Oct 7-31, from 10 am to 2 pm. OPEN CIRCLE Sunday morning finds Lakeside residents at the Lake Chapala Society and Open Circle, a forum on a variety of stimulating topics. A social hour with coffee and snacks at 10 am is followed by an interesting lecture and discussion at 10:30. November 3 How and Why We Left to right: Staff Captain Oscar CerRemember vantes, Paella Chef Dr. Tony Pinto, Hotel Presented by Sandy Britton Chef Rogelio Negrete, Hotel Sales Director Ceci Pulido. We humans define ourselves in large part through our memories, to the point where loss of memory feels like loss of self. Recent research has added even more insight into how memory works—and how it can work against us. Come take a journey with us and learn the latest findings on how to improve your ability to remember. Sandy Britton is from northern California. Her background is in software development but she’s always been fascinated by the computer between our ears. She combines her love of brain science and public speaking to bring you this talk. November 10 Lest We Forget Presented by John Stokdijk On the day before Remembrance Day, John Stokdijk will explore the many surprising ways that wars have touched his life and will explain how war has impacted the life of everyone living in Lakeside. He will consider the idea that there is a relationship between our own internal conflicts, our interpersonal friction, and clashes between nations. John will also discuss a book published in 1944, How to Think About War and Peace by American philosopher Mortimer J. Adler. Lastly, John will share his speculation about future wars. John and his wife Pat moved to Lakeside 7 years ago. Locally John is best known for launching the Ajijic Book Club and has written about three dozen book reviews available on the ABC website. These include One Step Ahead, the story of Jack Prins during WWII, No Ordinary Time, the story of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt during WWII, and Nothing to Envy, stories from North Korea in the wake of WWI, WWII and the Korean war. But John is no expert on war and John Stokdijk peace and has slowly gained the insights he will share today. For today’s Centering Moment, John will read a poem followed by the traditional minute of silence at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month in remembrance of all who died fighting for freedom and democracy. November 17 What is going on with sex and gender these days? Presented by Sara Keenan Terms like Queer (as a good thing!), intersex, non-binary, cisgendered, gender binary and the pronouns they/them/their seem confusing to many. Are society’s traditional gender and sex “social constructs” under attack, as many Christian and conservative groups believe? Or is society expanding its awareness and becoming more accepting of non-heteronormative people? From the perspective of her/their own experience, Sara Kelly Keenan will discuss these issues. Sara Kelly Keenan is intersex, with XY chromosomes but mostly female-associated anatomy. Sara learned at age 50 that doctors and parents had concocted a lie five decades earlier about Sara’s sex and gender, a discovery still not uncommon today. Sara became the first Californian to go to court and successfully challenge the Gender Binary, creating a third legal gender that is now available in all California identity documents. Sara also made international news in early 2017 as the first person in American history to have her/their birth certificate corrected to Intersex to reflect biological reality. Sara has degrees in Communication Arts and Paralegal Studies and is retired as a paralegal from the California State Court system. She/they moved to Ajijic two years ago with husband of 30 years, Dave. November 24 A Mini Workshop in Effective Communication Presented by Daniel Acuff What would it take for you to be an even more effective communicator than you currently are—with friends, family, associates, and even with yourself? In this interac-

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tive presentation you will explore and practice a variety of communication techniques designed to take you to a deeper level of intimacy and successful communication. Dr. Acuff’s Ph.D. is in Social and Philosophical Foundations of Education with a specialization in International Education. He has been a seminar and communication workshop leader to more than 3,000 participants and is author of 15 books including three philosophical/spiritual works of fiction: God Lied–What’s Really Going on Here, The Mysteries of Quan, and Golf and the Zen Master. December 1 Past, Present, and Future Presented by Rachel McMillen Understanding the history of our interactions with the people who were the original inhabitants of our countries, can only take us so far on the path of reconciliation. Knowing what is happening in the present can give us tools to help, but to gain knowledge that can help us weather the economic and climate storms of the future, we need to learn from the traditional beliefs of our indigenous neighbors. Rachel McMillen is an adult educator with an Honors Arts degree (English language and literature) and the author of the Dan Connor Mystery series, described by one reviewer as “mysteries with a conscience.” She and her husband spent thirty years sailing the west coast, meeting and working with the indigenous people who live there. THE NOVEMBER “REST YOUR MIND” WORKSHOP IS FULL! THANK YOU. Cruz Roja Medical Information Kit Workshops will be held the Lake Chapala Society on November 12. To register for a workshop, or to schedule a special workshop for your group, email Colleen at BePreparedLakeside@gmail.com. The Lake Chapala Community Orchestra has its next concert(s) on Sunday December 1 and Monday December 2. The orchestra has grown from just 13 players last October to nearly 40 members in just 1 year. We have sold out every concert and now we are presenting 2 performances to accommodate the growing demand for tickets! MUSIC FOR ART The Lake Chapala Community Orchestra and the Ajijic Society of Arts have created an event that combines the talents of local musicians and artists. During the summer many artists submitted examples of their work to the orchestra. Conductor Michael Reason then had the task of selecting music that contained the emotional content of the paintings or photographs. The result is that the selected music forms the concert and the artists form the art show.

“We had a large number of artist’s submissions and we chose 9 of those to pair music with.” says Reason. The orchestra will perform works by Beethoven, Borodin and Tchaikovsky and local vocalist Abby Rivera will perform much loved songs including “Memory” and “The Look of Love”. In addition, the concert will feature the talented students of “Violines de Casa” coached by LCCO violinist Christopher Martin. Before and after the concert audience members will be able to view the Ajijic Society of Artists art show. “I can’t think of a better way to spend an afternoon where you experience a combined orchestral concert and an exhibition of local artists” commented Reason. Following 3 previous sold out concerts the orchestra is now moving to 2 performances on consecutive days. The Music for Art concert will take place on Sunday December 1 and Monday December 2 both at 3pm at the Lakeside Presbyterian Church located at 250 San Jorge, Riberas, Chapala. Don’t wait. Seating is limited. The last two LCCO’s concerts sold out early. Tickets are $250 ($150 Students) and can be reserved/purchased by emailing LCCOtickets@gmail.com or purchased from orchestra members. For more info contact: Michael Reason (Conductor), Lake Chapala Community Or-

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chestra, mjrmusic01@gmail.com, 33 1089 8338 The Bare Stage presents: The Lion in Winter, By James Goldman A tale of palace intrigue, razor sharp comedy and high drama Historically accurate, The Lion in Winter combines razor-sharp comedy, drama and tragedy with some of the best dialogue that has ever been spoken. It is a perfect portrayal of some of the most fascinating and complex personalities in recorded history. Henry ll, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard the Lion Heart, King John of Magna Carta fame and their brothers and sisters, make today’s political and royal figures seem like lowrent bumbling hucksters. November 22nd, 23rd & 24th Directed by Rosann Balbontin Cast: L to R front, Roseann Wilshere, Johanna Labadie, back, Greg Custer, John Ward, Andrew McFarlane (Peter James not pictured) Tickets $150, Reservations: barestagetheatre2018@gmail.com, Showtime 4 p.m. Box office & bar open at 3 p.m. Seats are held till 3:50 p.m. Located at #261 on the mountain side of the carretera in Riberas del Pilar across from the Catholic Church. Please, no parking inside Baptist Church lot. Please Like, Follow & Share our Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/barestagetheatre2018/ Look for Bare Stage Theatre 2018 for breaking news and updates. FERIA MAESTRO DEL ARTE The 18th Annual Feria Maestro del Arte held on November 8-10 at the Chapala Yacht Club. Returning and new artists from all over Mexico will demonstrate and sell their works. Buyers also travel from all over Mexico; we are lucky to have such an important event here at Lakeside. Don’t miss this event! Questions? Email LakesideCharities@gmail.com November 20th and 21st. That is the date of the Ajijic dance community benefit show at the Auditorio. Titled: We Will Floor You - Cabaret Extravaganza! The show benefits the Los Ninos de Chapala y Ajijic and the refurbishing of the dance rehearsal floor at the Auditorio. The event, produced by the triple threat of talent Kristine Moily’s and her Fishnet production includes the international Hernandez ballet academy from Guadalajara. If you enjoy dance and want to support a vital part of the arts community this is a must see event. Tickets are available at Mia’s, Diane Pearl’s and the Auditorio. Ole! NEWS FOR BALLET LOVERS We hear from Suzanne Salimbene, who tells us that if we want to be informed about ticket sales or the Ballet de Jalisco schedule, or Lakeside sponsorship of a dancer, to send her your email and specify your interest: salimbene.s@gmail. com. Here is the Jalisco Ballet schedule for the remainder of 2019 (all performances are at the Degollado): Nutcracker December 12, 13, 18, 19, 20 (8:30) December 14, 21 (7:30) December 15, 22 (12:30) Swan Lake will be scheduled before the Nutcracker at the Parque Metropolitan. Ninos Incapacitados is gearing up for high season. Dates for their upcoming events: Trivia Night - January 14 Burns Supper - January 24 Masquerade - Masked Gala - March 19

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A Surprising Tenderness By Sydney Gay

here were two interesting men in my neighborhood: Will was addicted to alcohol, he sneered when spoken to, argued over small things, his children were unhappy and his wife look worried. The other neighbor, Sam, remains more deeply in my mind. A good-humored man with seven children, his legs had been crushed in WWII. Both his feet were missing, he lived in his wheelchair, but was the happiest, most friendly person. His wife adored him. One day I asked, “Sam, how do you do it? Your kids love you, and your wife loves you. How come you are doing so well?” And he replied “I’ve seen the worst of wars.” “What kind of wars?” “Terrible ones, there’s always a war somewhere.” “What happened? What did you see?” “I don’t want to offend you.” “Please Sam, I need to know.” “Soldiers told two hundred of us to dig a grave. When we finished they told us to stand at the edge, they laughed, sliced off a few heads with machetes, shot us down with guns, a fiery death for all, then God, and this is not easy to understand, God lifted us up, we felt no

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pain, all of us were raised up out of that grave, we were embraced by love so full of love, all I know is we were hugging, kissing, dancing in Heaven and God was there. No one was left

behind.” “How can that be?” Sam went silent, he closed his eyes for a minute of silence when he spoke again his eyes were filled with a diamond-like brilliance. “God separated us from the enemy in a way the enemy could not see. I witnessed this, but I don’t have words to explain it, a moment came when I returned to Earth, only me, the others remained. I was sent back to bring the message.” “You came back like Jesus Christ?” “It felt more like Spiderman. Remember Spiderman? Peter Parker and Connor? Connor was the enemy, but who won the battle? A little ole’ spider. Remember David and Goliath? Who won?” I tell you God is not what you might think, there is more to this than meets the eye.” “But your feet...they ’re gone.” “I walk in a different way now.” Sydney Gay

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PERILOUS JOURNEY— Humanity’s Struggle Against Single Male Leadership By Rob Mohr

n my work with communities throughout Latin America, the primary challenge I faced was the male leader of each community. They coveted the resources of the community for their own use as a God-given right. My work enabled members of communities, who were marginalized by their national governments, to identify challenges, collective resources and changes that would change the quality of their individual and collective lives. The resources I used included non-formal education, all of the arts, and my understanding of culture and language. A primary rule of engagement was, I never told

a community what they should do. All decisions rested with them. My role was to wake participants up to their personal and communal fiscal and human resource base, and how their collective use of these resources would enable them to see and understand their chosen way into a healthier, more productive future. Basically, I taught them how to examine their lives and then make decisions based on what they saw as a challenge. When a community indicated they wanted to participate in a two week long workshop, we would set a date; define the communities’ responsibilities, and what I would pro-

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vide. Most often the initial group of participants was all women who represented different family groups within the larger community. Usually the groups included twenty participants and two women we would collectively pay to cook lunch each day for the group. I would pay for the meat and drinks used during the meals. The community would furnish the other needed ingredients, and a suitable meeting place. Usually a home with a covered dirt-floored veranda normally used for weaving and pottery. The structure included having the community identify challenges in a meeting of the whole body, then dividing into four groups of five. These groups would change members each day so that over the workshop everyone would be in a small group together. The small groups would use a drama they created, for example, that would make the challenge and solution visibly and emotionally manifest. Each time they went into a small group, a different art form would be used. Examples included story telling, songs, poems, dance, dramas, and paintings. From each group, I would identify at least three people that I would later train as non-formal educators. Resistance initially came from the male leader of the community. But by the end of the two week all day sessions some of the men, and the leader, would participate as observers of the process. Later I would do workshops that included men and women. Over thirty years of work as a change agent and non-formal educator, I developed an in-depth understanding of the damage done by individual male leadership. Male leaders usually harvested the wealth of the community for their and their families’ benefit. They made decisions concerning the community that benefited them and not the community. Analysis indicated that this takes

place at the community level, regional level national level and international level. History, also, reveals an almost unending stream of failures by individual male leaders. My conclusion formed by a lifetime of work was, individual male leadership is the most destructive force in the world, and works against human health, the health of the environment, and restricts creative, and progressive, understanding of life. The United States, Great Britain and Russia, which are today few among many, provide clear examples of the danger of individual male leaders at the national level. An example of a new way to lead has occurred in Bolivia, when a Quechua llama herder was elected president in 2006, he put in place many progressive changes. One of the most effective changes involved leadership. Prior to his election each national agency was organized in the usual top (male leader) down order. He changed the structure. Today personnel in the various Ministries like Heath, Education, Rural Development, Labor, Economic Development and a new Anti-Corruption Ministry work together horizontally. Individuals at each level within the ministries formed working groups which in turn worked with the groups formed above and below their level. This unique structure is an effective way to solve the country’s problem. Life in Bolivia was significantly changed for the betterment of all citizens. Inclusive, collective planning provided leadership which minimized ego-centric interest and personal gain. World wide, women and men working together provided the unique democratic way into a sustainable future for Humanity. Rob Mohr

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Graduation Highlights On August 16th, 2019, after intense study and practice in the Hotel & Hospitality Management Academic program our proud graduates will look forward to a life that has benefited from the experience of Jaltepec, the support of parents and for some, special sponsors. On Graduation Day, in addition to family members, it was wonderful to see 20 sponsors present to express their pride in their student’s accomplishments. Sisters Marta and Aida Santos Jacinto were each presented with Acknowledgement Certificates as laboratory supervisors and achieving superior grades. Their sponsors, Bill & Judy Laing and the Rotary Club of Mississauga’s Bernie & Penny St. Louis were delighted!

Sponsors from left to Right, Judy & Bill Laing, Graduates Marta & Aida and Bernie & Penny St. Louis. In addition, Julissa Quezada Donato whose sponsors Becky & Lach McGuigan and Joe & Karen Schmitz were also present was awarded an Acknowledgement Certificate. Newly qualified Aida, Marta, & Julissa are now employed in the Jaltepec Administrative Office. Christmas FOR Jaltepec Due to the extensive demolition and reconstruction at Jaltepec, Christmas FOR Jaltepec will once again take place at La Bodega in Ajijic. This event is to benefit the disadvantaged students who are in need of help and support to continue to attend Jaltepec. The Dinner Event at 6:00 PM on Thursday December 5th, - Donation of $650 pp. The Luncheon Event at 12:00 noon on Friday December 6th– Donation of $550 pp. Hors d’oeuvres will be served by the students with a three course Turkey Dinner plus all the trimmings, including Linda’s magic Sausage Stuffing. DJ Walt will provide complimentary music throughout the evening, with dancing to follow. DJ Walt is well known for reading his audience well and providing the right music choices. Please contact Linda Buckthorp for more information or reservations at 376 766 1631. Or email buckthorplm@gmail.com.

From left to right the names are: Naomi Montserrat Polino Hermosillo, Exela Trujillo Esquivel, Cinthia Guadalupe Díaz Arciga

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The Day I Got The Alzheimer’s Diagnosis By Sandy Olson

CHARLIE KLESTADT —Rest in Peace—

With the passing of this wonderful gentleman, all of Lakeside, Mexican and Ex-Pat alike, have lost a great friend. Few knew him personally, but hundreds and indeed over time thousands of us knew of his indefatigable efforts to raise money for the local Red Cross. We saw him at special events and popular gathering places, always with a smile and wearing a colorfully weird hat, gently coaxing us to donate a little something that meant a great deal to all of us. Later, Charlie would also become involved in the Lakeside Charities Grant Program. (766-4337) From his taking on a task that obviously meant so much to him, (this even after suffering through a horrific accident) one would have thought that he came to such a noble mission after a life as a Social Worker or

professional Fund Raiser back in the States. But no, instead Charlie had been a longtime executive with one of the largest corporations in the world, the Mobil-Exxon Company. Charlie leaves behind his wife, Ann, his son Marty, and an entire community that will always be in his debt. ******** agd

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y now Ed and I barely spoke but we still sat at the table in the patio in the mornings, drinking coffee. It had always been the best part of our day. The kitchen in this little house in Zihuatanejo was on the patio. In addition to the sink and stove an old metal hutch stood against one wall. The little kitchen table, covered in bright-flowered oil cloth, stood against another wall. Sometimes feral cats played underneath the ferns and other plants in the overgrown garden. After smoking a few cigarettes and drinking his coffee, Ed would get into his battered pickup truck and drive to the dive shop at the pier, where he spent long hours every day. I worked in the dive shop a couple of days a week. Mostly in the mornings I enjoyed spending time outside reading and lying in a hammock, until around 11 am, when the neighbor’s music drove me inside. On this day I walked across the street to the little store on the corner in the afternoon to buy a couple of pieces of barbecued chicken for our comida. I had learned not to wait for Ed by now, so I ate and got out a bowl and put Ed’s chicken in the hutch. He came home later. I told him where to find the chicken. He found the bowl but the chicken was missing. “Where is it?” he asked. “I don’t know.” “You ate my chicken and you’re lying about it.”   “I didn’t eat your chicken.”   “Then where is it?” with growing anger.   “I don’t know.” He slammed out of the house, walked to the store and came back with more chicken. He sat and started eating. “Sit down and talk to me,” he said, between bites. “I’m scared. I think you have Alzheimer’s.” I said, “Well, what if I do? You’re my husband. You’re supposed to take care of me.” I was feeling a little malicious. I knew how he hated be-

ing around people who needed help. He didn’t answer but kept on eating until he was finished, got up and left for the dive shop. A couple of hours later I heard a motorcycle pull up outside and answered the door to find Denny, a retired psychologist from San Diego, one of the gringos who helped out in the dive shop. “Kissing Ed’s butt,” is how I put it to myself. We weren’t friendly but here he was at my front door. I let him in and we sat down at the kitchen table. He slipped into therapist mode. “I came at Ed’s request,” he said, “just to help if I can.” “I don’t know why you’re here, Denny,” I said. “You don’t even like me.” “I will never lie to you, Sandy,” he answered. I didn’t see how that followed but let it pass. He started to look serious and objective. “What happened to the chicken?” he gently asked. “I. Don’t. Know.” By now I was fed up but we talked a bit more and eventually Denny left. I didn’t know what he was thinking about my mental state and didn’t ask. A day or two later when Ed and I were on the patio we heard a thumping noise and looked up to see a feral cat emerging from a hole in the back of the metal hutch, with something in its mouth. I don’t believe Ed ever cleared up the chicken mystery with Denny. A few weeks later, I packed a duffel bag and left on the night bus. Ed eventually had a falling out with his business partner Juan and went to jail, where he died of a heart attack. Juan couldn’t keep the dive shop going without Ed and eventually lost it. Denny and I became good friends a few years later when I came back to Zihuatanejo. As for me, I’m still waiting for further Alzheimer’s symptoms to show up. Sandy Olson

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PLAYING SOLITAIRE —A Metaphor for Life By Sydney Gay

hen I’m waiting a short time for someone or something to happen, I often find myself on my phone playing Solitaire. Sometimes I win. More often I lose. When I’m stuck and can go no further in a game, the game ends automatically. I no longer need to struggle or fret. I can then choose to play another game. Or I can put my phone away and get on with my real life. No regrets. I’ll play again another day. A game of Solitaire could be a metaphor for an entire lifetime. We are dealt a hand and we have to play those cards. We turn over one or two cards at a time and hope for the best. If we’re in too much of a hurry, not fully present, dis-

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tracted or unaware of all the choices we have, we are apt to overlook an opportunity to make a crucial move that we need to make in order to win. It’s easy to make a single move that causes a problem we may or may not be able to overcome. Just when it looks like there is no way to win and I’m about to give up, the way may suddenly open. Being able to uncover single card allows me to keep going, uncovering more and more cards. A game of Solitaire can be a challenge. But it’s nothing compared to some every- day challenges we face as we move in old age and lose some of our physical and mental agility. We have to keep telling ourselves not to give up. An attitude of hope and perseverance keeps us going when conditions and situations appear pretty discouraging. I just need to keep looking for new possibilities. When things work out, I’m glad. When they don’t, I try to remember that maybe I’ll have another opportunity. If the “hand we are dealt” in this lifetime is lousy, we do what we can with it. Perhaps we’ll get lucky in our next lifetime. So relax, forgive yourself for stupid mistakes. Better luck next time. Sydney Gay

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Waiting F o r The Mail By Myra Williams

k, just checked my email...again. Maybe I should check my text messenger and Whats App, it could be there. The new photo of Lawson standing in his crib. Nine months old and possibly the most adorable little boy on the planet, yes, pretty sure of that. His first name is my maiden name â&#x20AC;&#x201D;my father had six sisters and five daughters, no son to carry on his name. What a joy it was to tell my dad that his eldest daughterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only daughter, his eldest granddaughter and her husband were naming this precious child Lawson Michael Smith. When I told him, he wept with joy. Neither of us knew that in six weeks he would be gone. Where is that picture? Oh, I hope it is a video; well, at this point I will take whatever comes, wherever it comes. This is really starting to be a bit neurotic, which started when he was born. I have started using a ploy that has seemed to work with my daughter, who is very busy. Well...there is some truth in the ploy. The Lawson Fan Club who eagerly await pictures and videos. I have told her they hound me endlessly for new photos of Lawson, they need their Lawson fix. It is up to me to feed this hunger. I take this task very seriously. Wait, what was that... a ping, a pong, a ding or a chime. Darn it, which App did it come from? She said it would be coming. Oh, how I miss pictures. Remem-

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ber those old fashion things we held in our hands that captured a moment in time? How did I have the time to take the pictures, run the film to the drugstore, fill out the form, then wait and go back pick them up, sort them out for who gets what, put them in an envelope, mail them, call and let the grandparents and family know they were on their way... again I ask how did I have time? Well, as I think about it, the instant gratification is pretty good. Ohhhhh, there it is... prepare for cuteness. There he is, that beautiful boy of ours, the one that God has sent to bless our family and this world with all of his gifts and possibilities. My heart wrenches in all the good places when I gaze at his face and scan his little feet and hands. The way he lifts his right eyebrow like his mother, my darling girl and my father. A grandchild holds the heart strings that are far beyond the physical realm: they are our past, present and future. What a gift! Myra Williams â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Grandmother of Lawson Michael Smith Born January 6, 2018

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SOMETHING SOMEONE SAID... By Steve Griffen

t wasn’t anything he said. It could have been my particular mood, influenced by any number of seemingly insignificant happenings throughout the day. I only know I thoroughly disliked him, everything about him: his looks (too pretty), his movements (too apparently choreographed), his attire (too flamboyant), his voice (too smooth), his accent (phony English), but I especially disliked the way he looked at my date, a too familiar glance one gives one with whom there is a past. His smug, half smile lingered, his ensuing hug, too tight and too lengthy. His kiss touched the corner of her mouth. I am not the jealous type, and I hardly knew the woman who had accompanied me to the party, nor had I felt any attraction for her. I had no plans to ever see her again. We had only come to the party together for convenience. Nevertheless, I resented what I took on his part to be a deliberate slight. In a childish pique I resented the woman I’d come with. For what, I could not have articulated, would have been ashamed to try, perhaps for not pushing him away more forcefully, for smiling, as if she had enjoyed his touch. I knew my reaction was absurd, totally illogical, but I could not stop my resentment toward a man I’d never met,

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nor my jealousy for a woman I hardly knew and had no interest in. She of course could not help but notice. “Is it something I said?” she asked. “No, of course not,” I answered. “Something I did, or didn’t do?” she insisted. “I know something’s bothering you.” “Nothing’s bothering me. It’s just that everyone I’ve met at this party is trying too hard to be original, to be so profound in everything they say, it all seems contrived. Frankly, I’m bored stiff.” I hadn’t really thought that before I said it. I couldn’t tell her the truth that I was seething with jealousy. “I think I know what you’re saying,” she said. “I’m not really enjoying these people that much either, especially that pompous ass in that ridiculous purple jacket. Stanley, I think his name is. If you like, let’s go back to my place. I bought some of that wine you said you liked, the Chilean Carmenere.” She remembered my favorite wine! Suddenly, this woman appeared far more attractive than I had noticed before, far more interesting. “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do, or any place I’d rather be, or anyone I’d rather be with,” I said, and meant every word.

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To Be Or Not To Be... By Mark Sconce

s there one among us who hasn’t thought about, contemplated or even attempted suicide? The statistics tell us that more and more people worldwide are not just contemplating; they are committing suicide in growing numbers. But the reports, both official and anecdotal, reveal some surprising insights. For example, who would have guessed that Montana has more suicides annually than any other U.S. state, and Alaska comes in second. Gives new meaning to that project, Bridge to Nowhere… The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the CDC, publishes suicide statistics periodically some of which are eye-

opening. In 2013, there were 41,149 deaths by suicide in the U.S.; that’s 112 Americans every day or one every 13 minutes. Therefore, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death; homicide ranks 16th. Suicide is the second leading cause of death for 15-24 year olds. There is one suicide success for every estimated 25 suicide attempts, and women are three times more likely to attempt suicide than men, even though suicide among men is 4xs higher than women. Females are more likely than males to have suicidal thoughts perhaps because they experience depression at roughly two times the rate of men.

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Poisoning is the most common method of suicide for women. A firearm is the preferred method among men, another feather in the cap of the National Rifle Association. Suicide rates for males are highest among those aged 75+ while the rates among females are highest among those aged 45 to 54. A 2009 U.S. Army report indicates military veterans have double the suicide rate of non-veterans, and more active duty soldiers are dying from suicide than in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan even to this day. The World Health Organization and the National Institute of Mental Health tell us that over 800,000 people die by suicide every year, in most cases, succumbing to the “intolerable burden of existence” to use a phrase by Hans Küng, the controversial Catholic theologian. Depression and hopelessness are leading causes of suicide worldwide. Alexander Pushkin can take us there: “In bleak despair and isolation My days stretched on in quiet strife. No awe of God, no inspiration, No love, no tears, no sense of life.” There is one death by suicide in the world every 40 seconds. Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death in the world for those between 15 and 44 years of age. This is the case in a country I know something about, Nepal. Suicide is illegal in Nepal and is punishable by fines and imprisonment for survivors. The result is a “culture of silence” especially in cases involving domestic abuse. Families also avoid reporting suicides due to social stigma and discrimination against people with mental health problems. Social, religious, and legal pressures result in inaccurate reporting and record keeping. So take the following ranking with a grain of salt: It was prepared by the World Health Organization in 2012. Guyana was way ahead of number two, South Korea, with approximately 44 suicides per 100,000 people. South Korea, about 29 per 100,000 people. India ranks eleventh. India, where the Hindu custom of suttee was practiced for centuries. The suttee is Sanskrit for ‘good woman’ or ‘true wife’, namely, the Hindu widow who makes the supreme sacrifice by following her husband onto the funeral pyre. “A wife who dies in the company of her husband shall remain in heaven as many years as there are hairs on his person,” says one of the holy scriptures. Now if you find these Eastern revelations depressing, let’s change the venue to Paris, France, city of lights, city of romance. At its center, at its heart, stands the Eiffel Tower.

So many couples come here for their honeymoon. One day a woman tried to commit suicide from the Eiffel Tower. Wouldn’t you know she landed on a car and later married the person who owned the car. Viva La France! Unfortunately such a happy ending is a rare thing; the Eiffel Tower has one of the highest suicide rates – 17.5 per 1000 visitors. It’s an important issue for the French government along with recent suicide bombers. So, on to Moscow. Russia ranks 14th in the world with this footnote. As of October 2011 nearly one million Russians had committed suicide since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Japan comes in at number 18. This country of course pioneered harikari, a practice that claimed so many Allied naval vessels during WWII as kamikazi dive bombers slammed into the decks. Today’s kamikazis are the suicide bombers who claim so many lives in the cause of jihad. The United States is 50th, where more Americans now take their own lives than die in car crashes. Canada comes in 70th, Germany 77th, and China 94th, one of only two countries where more women than men commit suicide. The United Kingdom is in 105th place and Catholic Mexico 137th if you don’t count the ex-pat community. The winner is Saudi Arabia at 170th. If you try to commit suicide there you might even be stoned in public…not that we haven’t seen people stoned in public here. Ever since Socrates imbibed his hemlock, and Cleopatra clasped her asp, suicide has been a familiar feature, indeed a reality of the human condition. Famous suicides include Nero, Mark Antony, Hannibal, and Hitler. Peter Tchaikovsky, Meriwether Lewis of Lewis and Clark, Sigmund Freud, Ernest Hemingway, Marilyn Monroe, Charles Boyer, Virginia Woolf, Sylvia Plath, and Robin Williams—and Ajijic’s own “Pedro Loco” a few years ago. -------------------------------Of course suicide can take place on a much larger scale. Here’s Abraham Lincoln: “If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time, or die by suicide.” And who do you think said this? “I think a question that we are not asking ourselves is: isn’t humanity committing suicide with this indiscriminate, tyrannical use of nature? Safeguard creation because, if we destroy it, it will destroy us. Never forget this.” — Pope Francis, earMark Sconce lier this year…

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A Most Unusual Christmas Soirée By Katina Pontikes katcpon@yahoo.com

love murder! Not of actual people of course, but the stories of actual people offing one another fascinates the hell out of me. Obsessions such as this call in the powers of the universe. Do you want me to make a believer out of you? How many of you have attended a Homicide Detectives’ Christmas Party, as I did? The opportunity came almost randomly. I was seated at a birthday party, and the topics of conversation were pretty tame, sporting teams, children, etc. I asked the woman next to me what her line of work was, tired of hearing school tales from those around me. I was surprised when she said she was a prosecutor. I immediately lit up, and queried about various murder cases I was familiar with, and whether she had worked on any of them. To my delight, she had worked on several of the cases. We shared a common interest, and the evening turned into a trip down murder-memory lane. Time flew, and she seemed surprised at my enthusiasm for her line of work. Toward the end of the evening, I heard her remark to a companion that she far preferred discussing serial killers to school plays. We agreed to meet up again over a glass of wine later. It was on that occasion that she casually asked me if I’d have any interest

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in accompanying her to the Homicide Detective’s Christmas party. She explained that as a prosecutor she was invited, and her husband had no interest in going. I silently screamed “Hallelujah!” I would be able to meander among the heroes I had always read about. In my life, this ranked as life-affirming. I would not have been happier if I had won a small lotto. I realized that I was the ultimate Outsider. Fate gave me a gift. This was basically an office Christmas party, but it was the office of my dreams and fantasies. Never again would I have such an opportunity. I agonized about what to wear. Not too dressy. nor disrespectful. I settled on pants, not a dress, no jewelry. I wore a simple blazer. I truly admired the People of the Good Side. Sure, they weren’t saints. Who can use saints to bust evil? But these were the front line against murderers. How much more do you need? My hat was tipped. And I was going to celebrate with them. The party was huge, much larger than I’d expected. There weren’t any cheesy decorations. I was intrigued by the variety of individuals in attendance. Some had the look of detectives, groomed and conservatively attired. But there were others with shaggy long hair, beards and jeans

(undercover types?). I tried my best to be charming. I complimented the barbecue being served. I asked who the caterer was. The gentleman serving me looked surprised. He called over to his fellow server, “This lady wants to know who our caterer is.” His tone was droll. He looked me in the eye, recognizing I wasn’t one of them. “It’s us, we cooked the food.” I was blushing at my faux pas, I’m sure. Of course this wasn’t a society event. Cops have city budgets. What was I thinking? I complimented their exceptional grilling skills, saying I’d never had better meats, desperately trying to redeem myself. By this time, any doubts I had about my blending in the crowd were vanished. I was almost certain background checks had been performed in order for me to attend. I regretted my past speeding tickets. I tried to project a reformed image as I joined circles of mostly male cops with wives or girlfriends accompanying them. Occasionally I was asked how I’d come to attend, and I explained who I was with. The prosecutor was their ally, and she was my pass. One man tried to shock me. He said he loved hunting. I, asked, “Hunting what?” He responded, “People.” I didn’t react and tried my most jaded expression. He was on to my innocence and I knew it. Then I learned he was from my crazy home state of Louisiana, and I knew his type. I also had a good feeling he knew where I was from and that my dad had been a defense attorney. Cops have good databases and sources too. This year I will be celebrating Christmas the traditional way. It will be warm and fuzzy. I wonder what the Homicide Detectives will be doing at their party. Katina Pontikes

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TRICKS OF MEMORY By Judy Dykstra-Brown

remember Sanderson’s store, with most of the items behind the counter that ran from the front door way back to the back wall of the store and the “grabber” on a long handle that Jeff and Tet Sanderson used to remove things from tall shelves. I remember their big cardboard box of penny candies: Bit O’ Honey’s and Tootsie Rolls and Tootsie Roll Pops, jawbreakers and orange slices and those chalky disks of many colors that came in a roll and tasted like medicine. I remember the year the snow was so high that they had to dig a tunnel down the middle of main street and then tunnel into each store. I remember now days listening to the radio (before T.V.–imagine that!) and eating chili with crackers and opening the lid to the big coffin-like freezer down in the cellar to grab an

ice cream sandwich, then removing the box elder bugs we’d put in there last fall just to see them thaw out and crawl away. I remember Earl Wedean flying Santa Claus into town every Christmas and then his standing on the back of the fire truck and dispensing bags of candy to all the kids: peanut shells stuck to ribbon candy and peanut brittle and those little pillows of acid yellow and shocking pink that tasted too much like cloves. None of the candy except for the peanut brittle was edible, yet how we reached over each others’ shoulders for it, afraid he’d run out before he got to us. I remember “Back to the Bible Broadcast” and Lynnie Brost and I sitting in the bathtub “scrubbing our sins away.” (I probably only remember this because of a letter found written by my older sister where she describes it.) I remember my dad’s yodeling and

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how my oldest sister could move her head sideways–back and forth like an Egyptian dancer. I remember having my tonsils out–– the awful smell of ether and its taste in my throat when I came to, then the doctor saying, “Can you swallow?” and the searing pain and sense of betrayal. I remember my dark green velvet coat with a white bunny fur collar. Also, a mustard yellow woolen coat with two brown fur balls hanging down on long strings from the neck. I remember the seventh and eighth grade teacher threatening to hang a boy out a second story window, leaning him over backwards, gripping his collar with both hands. I remember chalk dust between my fingers and up my nose from beating blackboard erasers on the railing of the fire escape at school. I remember the smell of rubber erasers–the long-spiraled worms that grew out of especially long mistakes. Chocolate milk out of the white plastic udders of the stainless steel milk machine at school. The first polio vaccinations given to everyone at school. I don’t think the parents had the choice of refusing. Then, after a few years, the miracle of getting the vaccine on a sugar cube instead. The song, “If you turn me dooooowwnn, I’ll go off to Alaska, and I’ll buy me a mule. A mule with great big ears, to tell my troubles to-oo-oo-oo-oo. But I’ll come running on down down downdeeown down. Running on down down downdeeown down. Running on down down downdeeowndown to you!” And the song “This Old House.” I remember hot beef sandwiches at Fern’s cafe and the pie at Mrs. Dugan’s cafe–both located in filling stations in the little town I grew up in. I remember how when we ate out, my sister Betty’s food always looked better than mine and how she always gave it to me. “The Neighbor Lady” show on WNAX in Yankton, S.D. Playing under the bleachers at basketball games. Years later, selling hot dogs at the con-

cession stand during games. Earaches and stomachaches and felons on my cuticles and sunburn and grass stains and chigger bites. Smith Brothers Cherry Cough Drops and crates of apples from Oregon and 7Up in green bottles and cherry pop and Old El Paso Mexican frozen dinners. Summer camp in the Black Hills and the thrill of sleeping outside in canvas tents and venturing out in the dark to use the outhouses. Camp songs: “If you weren’t Dutch you couldn’t sing this: Sing-song-kitchee kitchee-kai-me-oh!” I remember water bags hanging from the front grills of cars in the summer. Exotic strangers in the cafes and the Super Value grocery store during the summer. Gypsies and traveling church play actors and cool kids from big towns traveling with their parents. Sunday school pins with a bar added each year for perfect attendance. Fake fingernails with glue so smelly you could get high on it, although we didn’t even know what getting high meant. Those red bubbles where you put a glob of stuff on the end of a little red soda straw and blew–– so toxic that they’d be banned now, but who was paying attention then? Furry bunnies and fuzzy yellow chicks that hopped when you wound them up with a key. Ten cent comic books: Little Lulu and Sluggo, Ritchie Rich and Mighty Mouse. Archie and Veronica and Jughead. Chocolate Sodas made with syrup and ice cream and fizzy water at the drugstore––stirred with a long silver spoon by Jack Mowell. And although I remember this and so much more, I have to ask. Why can’t I remember where I hid my sack of extra keys? Or my glasses? Or the charger for my camera battery? Most of all, I remember remembering! Judy DykstraBrown

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Ancient Warfare In Mexico By Ralph Graves

he ancient Aztecs made many enemies both during and after the long migration from their original homeland to the founding of the capital city, Mexico Tenochtitlan. They waged war to train warriors to defend the newly-won empire, to gain reputation and wealth, and to assure their slain warriors a place in paradise. As in all heroic societies it was the destiny of the warrior to die in battle. For the Aztec it could also mean death upon the stone of sacrifice. But the slain Warriors of the Sun became humming birds and lived in the house of the sun forever. About

1450 they developed a ceremonial military campaign called Xochivaovotl (“Flower War”), the sole purpose of which was to obtain captives for sacrificial victims to ensure the continued existence of the sun, giver of all life. A military society, the Aztecs molded their ideals of war and bravery after the semi-legendary Toltecs, an earlier, more highly-advanced society. At first the Aztecs went into battle behind their own leaders, later as part of a vast military organization. Discipline was severe. Attacking without orders or plundering the booty or prisoners of another warrior met with the death penalty.

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At one time Tenochtitlan could field 8,000 warriors in units of 300 to 400. Medical care and special hospitals were provided for wounded warriors. The Aztec (Nahuatl) metaphor for war was Atl, Tlachinolli (“water and fire”). Military training was part of daily life. Most noblemen were dedicated to war from birth. Like the Spartan mother who handed a shield to her son saying, “Return with this shield or on it,” Aztec boys were given toy shields and bows and arrows in their early infant ceremonies. The patron deity of young warriors was Tezcatlipoca (“Smoking Mirror”), also known as Yaotl (“enemy”), a universal and generally malevolent deity. Aztec (Mexica) warriors were members of military religious orders. The military headquarters of the “Order of Eagle and Jaguar Warriors,” also a religious center, was located at Malinalco, south of modern Toluca. There, carved out of the living rock, may still be seen representations of sacrifices, religious rituals, the capture of warriors and other symbols dating back to the earliest Mesoamerican times. Aztec weapons were primitive by European standards but more than adequate against similarly armed warriors. Fashioned of perishable material, most have disappeared, except for hard projectile points. In defensive actions the Aztecs used round or oval shields (chimalli) of bamboo, leather, and copper. Ornaments of gold, silver, and precious stones showed the rank of the bearer. Padded cotton shirts (ichcahuipilli) provided good protection against native weapons but were no defense against the advanced weapons of the Spaniards. Knee-length tunics, padded suits with feather decorations, and greaves of leather and gold to protect the lower legs completed their defensive equipment. Aztec warriors attacked with long wooden spears and a short spear with an atlatl, a spear throwing device. Both were tipped with stone, obsidian, or copper points. Bows and fire-hardened arrows were also used. Favorite weapons were the macana, a flat piece of wood with obsidian knives set in both edges, and the tematlatl, a sling. With these, warriors could fight at closer range and take more captives, which was the primary purpose of battle. Aztec battle insignia was among the most elaborate and magnificent ever devised for military purposes. Highly elaborate feather headdresses decorated with gold, silver, and shells were strapped to the warrior´s back. Helmets made of bamboo or

wooden frames and decked with many-colored feathers represented the heads of animals. Their fearsome aspect was intended to strike terror into the enemy, a basic battle technique of primitive warfare. Aztec warriors went into battle to the accompaniment of songs, loud war cries, the wail of conch shells, and the shrilling of clay whistles. Military standards of variously-colored feathers with gold and silver ornaments all swaying in the wind and glittering in the sun must have struck terror into the hearts of many foes (“In all history probably no more gorgeous army has ever gone to war,”) T. Sulliva. Enter Tlacaelel upon the scene (ca. A.D. 1475/ 80). This famous Aztec was the “power behind the throne.” As high priest, he was known as Cihuacoatl (Woman Snake”). As counselor to the Emperor Itzcoatl (1427), he was the initiator of a mysticalwarrior vision of Aztec destiny. During the reign of Montecuhzoma 1 (1440) - 68 ) Tlacaelel instituted the Xochivaovotl (“Flower War”) which set the future course of the Aztec empire. Almost imediately Tenochtitlan entered into the Triple Alliance with the city-state of Texcoco and Tlacopan against Tlaxcala, Cholula, and Huexotzinco. There after the Aztecs carried out these highly ritualized campaigns against their neighbors, especially the Tlaxcalans. Curiously, they refrained from conquering Tlaxcala because it provided a training ground for young Aztec warriors and a source of sacrificial victims. The Aztecs considered the flesh of other peoples, such as the Tarascans or Huastecs, as too hard and tasteless for their gods. Only the Tlaxcalans and their neighbors were fit to eat. Cortes and his Conquistadors are usually given great credit for their “conquest” of Mexico. How could a mere handful of men defeat such a mighty empire on its own ground? Simple. The Spaniards did not play fair. The Aztecs fought the “Flower Wars” not to kill but to take prisoners; the Spaniards, with their vastly superior weapons, fought to kill. They had other overwhelming advantages as well. The harassed Tlaxcalans were only too glad to join the Spaniards and defeat the traditional enemy. The outcome was inevitable. It is interesting to speculate what might have happened had Cortes and his men arrived during the time of Tlacaelel, some 40 years earlier. The face of the Americas might look much different today.

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Our Great Heart when we hear of those who do not recognize the face they hate as their own then we must hold them we must hold ourselves we must hold each other we must have a Great Heart a heart greater than the fear there are so many stories past telling so much pain, so much bravery the vivid colors of the now cannot retain them they fade some are near peace some are resigned some are afraid stories that have been told stored restored retold untold unclear unremembered I read of sailors awed by mushroom cloud in a test, which sent old ships to the bottom while new crew swabbed the decks of surviving ships still afloat the men chanting and cheerful, unaware of the awful poisons leaching into them who remembers these ships? these men?

who remembers the lives of japanese who burned or crumbled into dust are there stories in the ash? in the severed atoms? who remembers the stories of children who left early children never born only the Great Heart knows these stories. only ours, not yours or mine, but Ours. only ours is big enough for all these stories the stories of old loves how the self dissolved into the other separation went away who can remember now, clearly what that was. was it sharp, vivid, bright, ecstatic? or soft and subtle these colored stories fade, into pastels past telling like the colors of the sun shining through the mushroom cloud of stories ending can our heart hold all this? can our stories be given back to those who have left those we have killed those who left us those we have abandoned man, creature, flora planet, moon, star each with their own shadings each with their own shadows can we pass the stories on to those who come after us even if what we remember is but a wisp a whisper of what went before all these stories in our heart Our Great Heart or, if not, we have no heart Our Great Heart Our Great Heart or there is nothing anymore and never was

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;John Sacelliâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;

El Ojo del Lago / November 2019

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The Ojo Crossword

El Ojo del Lago / November 2019

ACROSS

DOWN

1 Non __ 6 Join together 10 Video 14 Water nymph 15 Fable 16 Brews 17 Unfastened 18 Cruel 19 Slant 20 Alter 21 Kind of fly 23 Brassiere 24 College Org. 26 Strangely 28 Climb a Rope 31 Remain 32 Scorching 33 Type of fur 36 __ mater 40 Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries 42 North American Indian 43 Approach 44 Less than usual in size, Power or character 45 Charge 48 Boxer Muhammad 49 Sailors “hey” 51 __out, had good fortune 53 Inside 56 Appeal 57 Thai 58 Comes on stage 61 Northwest by north 65 Always 67 American state 68 Adios 69 Nativity scene piece 70 Thick soup 71 Removed the bones 72 Pig 73 Unicorn part 74 Thin paper

1 African antelope 2 Smelly 3 military officer 4 Island 5 Sum 6 Word with home or in 7 Sea Defense 8 First letter of the Arabic alphabet 9 BB alternatives 10 Check 11 Excuse 12 Jewel 13 Writing 21 Yucatan civilization 22 Affirmative 25 Central nervous system 27 Baseball´s Nolan 28 Has shoes on 29 Expect 30 Detail 31 Appear 34 Keep afloat 35 Long-term memory 37 Where water seeps through 38 Not female 39 Dry 41 Hi! 45 From Cornwall, England 46 Evils 47 Second day of the wk. 50 Garden tool 52 Frankness 53 Objects 54 Having to do with the navy 55 San__ (CA city) 56 Shrimp 59 Dorothy´s dog 60 Pitcher 62 Alcoholic drink 63 Page 64 Naked 66 Bone 68 Alphabet

CHURCH DIRECTORY ALL SAINTS LUTHERAN Church Worship Service and Sunday School at 11:00 am 4600 Avenida Tepeyac, Guad. Tel. (01 333) 121-6741. ABUNDANT LIFE ASSEMBLY OF GOD Carr. 140 next to Mail Boxes etc, Tel: 766-5615. CENTER FOR SPIRITUAL LIVING CELEBRATION SERVICE 1st Sunday of each month, Nicolas Bravo #17 Ajijic. Tel: (376) 766-0920 or tim@revdoctim.com CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS Services in English and Spanish, 10 am, Riberas del Pilar Tel. (376) 7657067, President: Pedro Aguilera. Recidence (376) 762-0299. CHURCH OF THE HOLY SPIRIT Services Sun. 10 am, Alvaro Obregon 119, Chapala. Tel. (376) 765-4210. CHRIST CHURCH LAKESIDE Eucharist for each Sunday 11:00 am. La Huerta Eventos Center in West Ajijic. Rev. Danny Borkowski at (376) 766-2495 or Jim Powers (387) 761-0017. HOME CHURCH INT’L Locations by calling (332) 242-8648, or email yeshuapfa@gmail.com JEWISH CONGREGATION Santa Margarita 113, Riberas del Pilar, Tel: 766-2668. lcjcac@gmail.com for information and service times. Web site: www. lakechapalajewishcongregation.com. LAKE CHAPALA BAPTIST CHURCH Sunday Bible study at 9:45 a.m.; Sunday worship at 11 a.m. at Santa Margarita 147, Riberas del Pilar. Eddie Garnett, deacon. Tel. (331) 608-0856 LAKE CHAPALA UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST FELLOWSHIP

The Unitarians meet Sundays at 10:30 am. Hidalgo #261 Riberas del Pilar. Lew Crippen, 766-1119. LAKESIDE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH Worship-Sunday 10 am; Bible Study-Friday at 9:45 am; San Jorge 250; Riberas del Pilar Church Office at 376-106-0853. Website at www.lpcchapala.org LITTLE CHAPEL BY THE LAKE Sun. services 11:15 am, Chula Vista,. Jal, Tel. (376) 106-1199, 766-4409 SAN ANDRES CATHOLIC CHURCH Services 9 am on Sunday, Ajijic, Tel: 766-0922. SAINT ANDREW´S ANGLICAN CHURCH Calle San. Lucas 19, Riberas del Pilar, Worship begins at 10 a.m., “Coffee Hour,” a time of fellowship and welcome. Tel: 765-3926. www.standrewsriberas.com. ST. MARK’S ANGLICAN GUADALAJARA St. Mark’s is at Chichimecas 836 in Colonia Monraz.

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NON PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS

(NOTE: If there is any change, please advise us so that corrections may be made. Call Rosy: 765-3676) AJIJIC SOCIETY OF THE ARTS (ASA): AjijicSocietyOfTheArts.com Provides local artists an opportunity to meet, demonstrate techniques and organize art shows; and provides assistance to young Mexican artists to learn and show their work. Deena Hafker 376-766-2249 or oliodee@hotmail.com AA LAKESIDE: Alcoholic Anonymous group. Meets Monday & Thursday from 4:30-5:30 PM at the Lake Chapala Society. Ian Frasier 376-766-4990 iandavid81@gmail. AL-ANON: No website or face book. Monday 10AM at Club12- Men’s meeting. Monday 10:30AM at Little Chapel-Open meeting. Saturday 10 AM at Club 12-Open meeting. Information: Call 376-766-4409, Cell 333-480-7675 AL-ANON (IN SPANISH): Mondays 6-7:30 & Wednesdays 5:30-7:30. Meets at the Lake Chapala Society. Ericka Murillo 376-766-1788 erickamurillo2000@yahoo.com.mx AJIJIC QUILT GUILD - Meets second Tuesday monthly at 10 am. Guests & New Members Welcome. ajijicguild@gmail.com AJIJIC WRITERS’ GROUP- Meets 1st and 3rd Fridays at 10 am. Nueva Posada. Coffee. Meeting followed by lunch at the Nueva Posada. AMERICAN LEGION OF CHAPALA POST- #7: General Membership meetings are held on the second Wednesday of each month at 10:30 am. Tel: 765-2259. AMERICAN LEGION, FRANK M. VALENTINE POST 9: Meets at The Iron Horse Inn (across from the old Maskaras clinic) on the first Wednesday of every month at 1 pm. Call Perry King at 763-5126 or Al King at 737-1493 for more info. ANCIANITAS DE SANTA CLARA DE ASIS: Web site: https://rudiselj.wixsite.com/ancianitaslagochapal . Lisa Le :387 761 0002 - lisale888@gmail.com AXIXIC MASONIC LODGE #31- Meets 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month at Hotel Perrico at 3:00 pm. The address is Libramiento Chapala-Ajijic #2500. Contact Sheldon Stone at (376)765-3306 or stoneshel@gmail.com. BARE STAGE THEATRE: Hidalgo #261 in Riberas del Pilar, barestagetheatre2018@gmail. com. BRAVO! THEATRE: www.facebook.com/Bravotheatre (unofficial) Semi-professionsal theatre with live theatre and ongoing adult arts education in dance and theatre. Jayme Littlejohn 331-045-9627 mymytickets@gmail.com BRITISH SOCIETY: Assist the British Community facilitates the transmission of information with The British Embassy in Mexico. Meetings are the 1st Saturday of the month at Manix restaurant for lunch and speaker. Sue Morris 376-766-0847 /331-156-0346 ibbocat@gmail.com CARD & DOMINO CLUB- Wednesday, Friday & Saturday. Call for times. We will teach; make friends! Tel. 766-4253, Cell: (045) 33-1402-4223. CANADIAN CLUB OF LAKE CHAPALA: www.canadianclubmx.com Club Objectives are: 1. To promote fellowship among Canadians and friends within the Lake Chapala area. 2. To encourage a cultural exchange and foster friendly relations with all residents. 3. To be a centre for providing current Mexican and Canadian Information. 4. The Club shall be non-profit, non-political and non-sectarian CASAS CARIÑOSAS, A.C.: www.abbeyfield-ajijic.org As part of the world wide non-profit organization of Abbeyfield, help an increasing number of older people enjoy a high quality of independent living provided through a range of services, including housing, support or care, with local community involvement. 376-766-2045 info@abbeyfield-ajijic.org CASA DEL LAGO (CASA DE ANCIANOS) CHAPALA: Provides support for local area elderly citizens through a residential home in Chapala. Ana Luisa Maldonado 376-765-2497 adultosdellago@gmail.com CENTRO DE DESAROLLO JOCOTEPEC, A.C.: www.cedejo.org Improve the quality of life for Lake Chapala families with limited resources through promoting the health and well being of the family. Calle Ocampo # 45-A. 376-766-1679 CHAPALA SUNRISE ROTARY CLUB: www.chapalarotary.org Participate in activities that will support lakeside residents. Provide assistance to international projects and meet with other like -minded Rotarians to build friendships. Meetings: Thursdays 10AM Monte Carlo Hotel CREM: AJIJIC MUSIC SCHOOL: www.cremajijic.com For 24 years this school has provided music education to children at lakeside. Students are taught to play an instrument and participate in the orchestra or the choir. There are 43 students and 8 faculty, all university graduates. Scholarships are offered to students from low-income families. 333-496-8976 cremajijic@gmail.com CRUZ ROJA MEXICANA DELEGATION CHAPALA: www.cruzrojachapala.com Offers clinical, ambulance and other emergency medical services to all Lakeside residents and visitors. Yolanda [Yoly] Martinez Llamas Consejo President 766-2260 consejochapala@gmail.com CULINARY ARTS SOCIETY OF AJIJIC: www.ajijiccasa.org Provides CASA members, Associates and guests a monthly forum to share foods, learn new preparation techniques, stimulate culinary ideas, meet new people and enjoy the world of food: in a competitive atmosphere that encourages creativity and rewards excellence. CASAlakeside@yhoo.com DAR: (At Lakeside) - THOMAS PAINE CHAPTER meets every 3 Wednesday at 12:30 noon at the Janelle´s Restaurant in Ajijic. September thru June. Tel: 766-2981. DAYS FOR GIRLS: www.daysforgirlslakechapala.org A group of women working together giving days back to girls through access to lasting feminine hygiene solutions. This results in a more dignified and educated world, for the girls of the Lake Chapala area. We create hand made menstrual kits and distribute them along with education to empower, enlighten and strengthen the young women receiving them. All this because of access to these products and taking responsibility of ones menstrual situation, sexuality, pregnancy planning and hygiene. Darlene Macleod 387-761-0175 darmacleod@gmail.com DEMOCRATS ABROAD MEXICO/ LAKE CHAPALA CHAPTER: www.democratsabroad.org, www.facebook.com/DemocratsAbroadMexico Official arm of the Democratic Party of the

El Ojo del Lago / November 2019

United States, working as a state party for US citizens living abroad. The mission is to represent and serve American citizens living outside the United States who support the principles of the Democratic Party. Larry Pihl, Executive Chair 376-766-3274 larry.pihl@gmail.com, da_ mexico@democratsabroad.org ESCUELA PARA NINOS ESPECIALES (SCHOOL FOR SPECIAL CHILDREN) : www.schoolforspecialchildren.org The mission is to improve the educational opportunities for children with a wide variety of disabilities and in doing so, increase the probability that they might enjoy a brighter future. Mission is accomplished through provision of a clean, safe physical environment and improved nutrition during the school day. Working closely with the Mexican school board and teachers, we help support the educational programs for the children, young, adults and families. 387-763-0843 FERIA MAESTROS DEL ARTE: www.feriamaestros.com & www.mexicoartshow.com To preserve and promote Mexican indigenous and folk art. We help preserve these art forms and the culture that produces them by providing the artists a venue to sell their work to galleries, collectors, and museums. In collaboration with Mexican government agencies, we promote regional and international awareness to the plight of these endangered arts. Marianne Carlson, mariannecarlson@gmail.com or Rachel McMillen rjmcmillen@shaw.ca. FRENCH CLUB (LES AMITIES FRANCOPHONES). A social gathering for people who speak French fluently (and their spouses & guests). The group meets once a month (either a pot luck or at a restaurant) on the 3rd Saturday for a late lunch, good conversation, some drinks and more than a few laughs. For more information contact Jill Flyer, fotoflyer2003@yahoo. com. FOUNDATION FOR LAKE CHAPALA CHARITIES: www.lakechapalacharities.org The prime purpose is to attract money for the charities around Lake Chapala, Mexico and to allow those who donate to claim U.S. tax deductions for their gifts to those charities. The Foundation will also accept “endowments” and “memorial support” for any of the charities and will provide free Mexican legal assistance in setting up those endowments and memorials. 376-766-2606 or cell 331-260-7123 Admin@LakeChapalaCharities.org GARDEN CLUB- Meets the 3rd. Wednesday 12:00 noon at La Nueva Posada. GERMAN CLUB: Provides social opportunities for German-speaking residents. The group meets 2nd Thursday for lunch at 1PM. One does not have to be German but must speak German. Ing. Javier Aguilera 387-761-0777 javier.aguilera@mudanai.com HASH HOUSE HARRIERS: International running group with local chapter walks on Saturday morning, 8:30 AM, La Nueva Posada Hotel with goals of getting exercise, having fun, and enjoying breakfast. Denny Strole 376-766-0485 dstrole@gmail.com HOPE HOUSE: www.hopehousemx.org The Hope House is a safe shelter for boys ages 8 to 18. Our vision is to develop character, provide love and impart tools to be a successful part of society. Rodney Drutos 376-762-0032 oficina@casahogarmexico.org HAVE HAMMERS WILL TRAVEL A.C.: www.havehammer.com The mission is to provide learning and social experiences within a safe, supportive environment so that our students acquire: basic woodworking CAD skills for exploration of career pathways (Level 1: ages 1014) intermediate woodworking CAD skills for entry-level employment (Level 2: ages 15+) advanced woodworking CAD skills for professional employment, incl. coops (Level 3: ages 21+) skills to maintain a well equipped woodworking shop Tuition $400 pesos/month limited scholarships available Information: hhwtchapala@gmail.com. Office 376-766-4830. President Michel Ouimet or H Wayne Renz, bingolago@aol.com JALTEPEC CENTRO EDUCATIVO (FORMERLY CENTRO DE FORMACION JALTEPEC): www. jaltepec.edu.mx. A Tecnico Universitario en Hoteleria, providing education in hotel & hospitality management and an entrepreneurial program. 387-763-1781 info@jaltepec.edu.mx. LAKE ASSISTANCE: www.facebook.com/ LAG Importing equipment for firefighters and police and to distribute around the lakeside fire departments. John Kelly 331-758-0676 jkelly203@gmail.com LAKE CHAPALA BIRDERS: www.chapalabirders.org Encourages bird watching; organizes bird walks, bird trips and the Audubon Christmas Bird Count. John & Rosemary Keeling 376766-1801 chapalabirders@yahoo.com LAKE CHAPALA GARDEN CLUB: www.lakechapalagardenclub.org Promotes an interest, appreciation and better understanding of botanical subjects including but not limited to all plant materials, their care and use in the home and garden. Meetings explore the many garden species and practices unique to this area of Mexico. Open to all interested in gardens and their care. Supports lakeside organizations with beautification and educational projects. LAKE CHAPALA SHRINE CLUB: www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org & www.shrinersinternational.org www.facebook.com /pages/Lake-Chapala-Shrine-Club/757185090966972 Physical examination of lakeside children to determine if they qualify for treatment locally or by Family trips to the Mexico City Shrine Hospital the cost of which is financed by frequent Fundraisers such as Dine With the Shrine, Rib fest and tax deductible donations. David Eccles, President 331-017-1724 davideccles@hotmail.com Perry M. King 376-763-5126 pking1931@ gmail.com LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY A.C.: www.lakechapalasociety.com The mission is to promote the active participation of Lakesides’ inhabitants to improve their quality of life. By making this commitment we signal to the community that our focus is based not just on ex-patriots, but everyone living at lakeside. For the Mexican community, provides English as a second language, remedial tutoring, student financial aid, Wilkes Education Center and Biblioteca at Galeana #18 and free medical checks. Carole Wolff president@lakechapalasociety.com Steve Balfour 376-766-1140 executivedirector@lakechaplasociety.com LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY CHILDREN’S ART PROGRAM: www.lakechapalasociety.com “A visual arts program free for all lakeside community children aged 3 to 18 that provides them an opportunity to explore their creativity. A Neill James legacy program that began in 1954.”

Danielle Page childrensart@lakechapalasociety.com LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY STUDENT AID FUND: https://lakechapalasociety.com/public/ student-aid-program.php Provides financial support to qualified Lakeside area students to enroll in public university programs. directoreducacion@lakechapalasociety.com. Alfredo Perez 376-766-1140 apoyoeco@lakechapalasociety.com LAKE CHAPALA SOCIETY WILKES EDUCATION CENTER (BIBLIOTECA PUBLICA): www. lakechapalasociety.com Provides classes of Spanish and English languages and other topics for both Anglo and Mexican community. Alfredo Perez 376-766-1140 directoreducacion@lakechapalasociety.com LAKESIDE FRIENDS OF THE ANIMALS, A.C.: www.lakesidefriendsoftheanimals.org Pro vide funding for spay/neuters, puppy vaccinese and emergency care and operations for pets of Mexican nationals of limited means. We also spay/neuter feral cats through our 4 Vets WE fund humane education programs in the local schools. Operate the pet store/shelter in Riberas del Pilar. Sue Hillis, President 376-765-5544 hilliss@yahoo.com LAKESIDE GARDEN GUILD: www.gardenguild.weebly.com Limited membership gardening group promoting the interest in the development of local gardens with an accent on the exotic species available in central Mexico. Presents annual Floral Design Show, supports local projects for community improvement and beautification such as Wipe Out Graffiti project in Ajijic. LAKESIDE GENEALOGY FORUM: A group of family historians meeting once a month to share ideas, methodologies and topics of interest for genealogy enthusiasts. Meetings are at 1 PM the last Monday of the month at the LDS Church and Family Center in Riberas del Pilar. Marci Bowman marci452@yahoo.com LAKESIDE LITTLE THEATRE A.C.: www.lakesidelittletheatre.com To provide theatrical en tertainment to the residents and visitors of the Lakeside community: to nurture and develop existing and new talent in every aspect of the performing arts and technical support areas: and to maintain and preserve the theatre facility and properties. Tickets: tickets@lakeside littletheatre.com 376-766-0954 lakesidelittletheatre@gmail.com Collette Clavadetscher, collette618@icloud.com LAKESIDE PATHFINDERS: This group is for people who are spiritual but not religious. See www.facebook.com/groups/427377094450390/about/. For more information please contact lakeside.pathfinders2019@gmail.com LAKESIDE SPAY AND NEUTER RANCH & ADOPTIONS, A.C.: www.lakesidespayandneutercenter.com Provides shelter and helps curtail the over-population of animals. Syd Sullins 376-766-1411 or 331-270-4447 adoptaranchdog@outlook.com LAKESIDE WILDLIFE RESCUE & REHABILITATION: Promotes the rescue and rehabilitation of wild animals, trees and plants around Lake Chapala. 376-765-4916 LA OLA/CASA HOGAR, A.C.: www.laolacasahogar.org La Ola Casa Hogar is a children’s shelter. We are an interfaith children’s ministry. Our scope is more than that of an orphanage in that we care for abandoned and abused children as well as orphans. 376-688-1005 laola@ laolacasahogar.org Becky Plinke 332-312-7756 bgnickel@yahoo.com LCS EDUCATION CENTER- Provides classes in language and other topics for both Anglo and Mexican community. Calle 16 de Septiembre # 16-A Ajijic. 766-1140. LCS STUDENT AID FUND- Provides financial support to area students to enroll in university, vocational and high school program. Calle 16 de Septiembre # 16-A Ajijic. 766-1140. LOS CANTANTES DEL LAGO: www.loscantantesdellago.com A community choir striving that is for artistic excellence in choral singing. We encourage members to improve their vocal skills and to work continually toward greater skill through rhythmic and note training in order to become more literate musicians. Our principal objectives are the support of young musicians, the performance of works of Mexican composers, and sharing our music with the Mexican community. LOS NIÑOS DE CHAPALA & AJIJIC A.C. (NCA): www.lakesideninos.org Provides financial support for the educational, nutritional and social development of local area children. Office 376-765-7032, info@lakesideninos.org LOVE IN ACTION- Shelter for abused and abandoned children. For volunteers and donations. Anabel Frutos 765-7409, cell: 331-351 7826. LUCKY DOG: www.luckydoglakechapala.com www.facebook.com/LuckyDogLakeChapala/ To provide shelter to rescue dogs, socialize them and restore them to health, and adopt them out to good homes. To work with other animal organizations to promote spay and neuter. 331-300-7144 luckydogchapala@yahoo.com MARIPOSA PROJECT: BUTTERFLIES EN MEXICO: www.gomariposa.org Objectives: Provide options for how youth can make sustainable changes and provide opportunities for change. Mac Whyte 387-761-0360 macbwhyte@gmail.com MEXICAN ASSOCIATION TO EMPOWER WOMEN FOR FAMILY INTEGRATION, AMSIF: amsif.org.mx To work with the poor, mainly women, to transform the family values in the community. Educate women so they can have a critical mind and thus liberate themselves and become agents of change through a liberated and integral education. A method of education used where they can “see, judge, and act”. MEXICAN NATIONAL CHILI COOKOFF: www.mexicannationalchilicookoff.com The Mexican National Chili Cookoff is the largest fundraising organization Lakeside. For more than 41 years the event has raised funds to support local charities in their work. The 3 day event, always held in February, features hundreds of vendors of the finest Mexican handcrafts, ongoing hourly entertainment, and a variety of food and beverages. The event is held at Tobolandia Water Park in Ajijic. The organization currently funds 9 IJAS approved charities and in the latest year made donations of 60,000 pesos to each participating charity. Jacques Bouchard 376-766-4350 jacqueandcarol@hotmail.com MUJERES APOYANDO A MUJERES: Mezcala jewelry collective with the focus to create a cottage industry jewelry making project that will give the women of Mezcala and la Cuesta a means of economic independence. The jewelry is being sold at Cugini’s and Diane Pearl in Ajijic. Doris Wakeman. MUSICA PARA CRECER A.C. / OFIRC (ORQUESTA FILARMÓNICA INFANTIL DE LA RIBERA DE CHAPALA) Training disadvantaged kids between the ages of 8 and 18 years who want to learn a musical instrument with the possibility of becoming a member of the “Orquesta Filarmónica Infantil de la Ribera de Chapala”. San Juan Cosala, Porfirio Diaz Oriente 144. Coco Wonchee, 33-3117-2927 soco.wonchee@gmail.com

NIÑOS INCAPACITADOS DEL LAGO, A.C.: www.programaninos.com A non-profit, all-volunteer organization that helps low-income Mexican families pay medical expenses for their children with disabling or life-threatening illnesses. Email: ninosincapacitados@programaninos.com Dave Pike, President 376-765- 3137 dave.ppni@gmail.com Carol Antcliffe carol. ppni@gmail.com “NO GRAFFITI AJIJIC” GROUP: Group of residents, who remove and cover graffiti. Paint donations appreciated. Contact with details. Email Dan Houck with graffiti reports. Dan Houck 376-766-3225 houck1022@gmail.com NORTHERN LIGHTS MUSIC FESTIVAL: Provides young talented Canadian artists exposure and experience on the international concert stage and provides the community with a wide range of classical music venues including concerts and demonstrations to young Mexican students and musicians through an annual music festival. NSDAR CHAPALA THOMAS PAINE CHAPTER: www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mextpdar/ thomaspainedar/ Goal is to make education available to deserving students and to help the community. Contribute to scholarships for the Technical School and students in Ninos de Chapala. Contribute to Hammer Hammer Will Travel and to Needle Pushers and the Lake Chapala Society Wilkes Education Center. Lorene Fields 376-766-1658 ltfields@hotmail.com OPEN CIRCLE: www.opencircleajijic.org Provide a supportive environment for social interactions. Presentations span a wide range of intellectual, cultural, physical and spiritual topics. David Bryen 376-766-4755 opencircleideas@gmail.com, Margaret Van Every 376-766-2092 OPERACION AMOR: www.facebook.com/chapala.operacionamor Our mission is to provide free spay/neuter services for cats and dogs of persons of limited means in the greater Chapala area. 331-872-4440 cgcothran1@yahoo.com Amalia Garcia, Co-leader 376-763-5597 amgarciao10@gmail.com Cameron Peters Co-leader 376-766-4341 zo-onna@hotmail.com OPERATION FEED: www.operationfeed.weebly.com Our mission is to increase self-sufficiency by providing weekly despensas and supporting other educational and income opportunities for people of limited resources in San Juan Cosala. OVEREATERS ANONYMOUS: www.OA.org Monday 12PM and Thursday 10:15AM. Lakeside Little Chapel, Carretera Ajijic-Chapala (next to Chula Vista Country Club). Information: 376-766-4409, email Sugarfreeme@hotmail.com ROTARY CLUB OF AJIJIC: www.rotaryajijic.org Within the community and Rotary International, The Rotary Club of Ajijic serves as a model providing humanitarian serviced to others while maintaining high ethical standards. Rotarians develop community service projects that address many of today’s most critical issues, such as children at risk, poverty and hunger, the environment illiteracy, and violence. They also support programs for youth, and for educational opportunities. Meetings: Tuesday 1PM Hotel Real de Chapala ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION: https://www.rclchapala.com/ To provide assistance to veterans of the Canadian Armed Forces, including veterans of Commonwealth Forces and, in some instances, U.S. veterans and Mexican veterans living in the Lakeside area. Being a Legion member is not required for assistance to veterans who meet the criteria. This is done through our Poppy Fund Campaign. To support the local community by providing money and assistance to specific projects as designated by our members. John Kelly 331-758-0676 jkelly203@gmail.com SONS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, MEXICAN SOCIETY: Lineal descent from a Patriot of the American Revolution, not necessarily a soldier. Kenneth Loridans 376-766-2981 SoTouch@prodigy.net.mx ST. ANDREW’S OUTREACH PROGRAM: www.standrewsriberas.com St. Andrew’s Anglican Church provides financial grants to local non-profits and scholarships to public school students from funds donated by parishioners or generated at its Todo Bueno Resale Consignment Shop on the carreterra in Riberas, open M-Sat 10:00-3:00 pm. Outreach also hosts an annual “Spring Market Jamboree” the second Sunday in March in the church garden that includes live music, a car wash and unique products for sale by Outreach grant recipients. For more info: staoutreach.lakeside@gmail.com TAILS OF MEXICO: www.spayneuterlakechapala.weebly.com Tails of Mexico’s mission is to provide free spay/neuter clinics in the municipality of Jocopetec, Jalisco Mexico to poor Mexican families, street dogs, and others of limited means in order to reduce animal suffering and help the communities in which we work. Another program is to relocate dogs to specific rescue organizations and shelters North of the Mexican border. Dee Mistrik 01-387-761-0041 deemistrik@gmail.com Linda Rudisell-Hines, Communication Lead 01-387-761-0688 rudiselj@yahoo.com TEPEHUA CENTRO COMUNITARIO, A.C.: www.facebook.com/tepehuacommunitycenter. org A center helping a village through education, counseling and social functions. President: Moonyeen King 376-763-5126 moonie1935@yahoo.com TOASTMASTERS: Weekly meeting of bilingual Lake Chapala Toastmasters. Open to all interested in learning public speaking. Tim Schubert 376-766-0920 revdoctimothy@gmail.com U.S.A. THINKING TEAM: www.usathinkingteam.com Office is in Ajijic for 12 years. Supported by Grandparents for a Better World. Support programs for charitable organizations in Ajijic and includes concerts with That’s Entertainment, speakers and radio shows. Contact: mexicosydneygay@yahoo.com UVA [UNIVERSITY & VOCATIONAL ASSISTANCE] SCHOLARSHIP FUND, A.C.: www.uvalakeside.org Founded in 1976, provide university/technical scholarship assistance to qualified Lakeside students. Monitor and verify the recipients’ qualifications for scholarship assistance (maintain a GPA of 8.5 or better each semester). Assure that 100% of donations for students are distributed to students. Operate as an independent charity and cease to exist if and when support of the charity no longer exists. Sue Torres 376-766-2932 mst0414@hotmail.com VILLA INFANTIL ORPHANAGE: www.villainfantil.com.mx Facebook: Villa Infantil Guadalupe y San Jose Provides care and financial support for 30 children under the care of the Catholic Sisters of the Congregation of Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Joseph. info.villainfantil@gmail.com VEGGIE GROWERS CLUB: Meetings are held at Huerta Organic Café, Hidalgo #212 in Riberas del Pilar on the second Monday at 10 AM. Discussions on problems with growing vegetables at lakeside, local pests and how to treat them, composting and all matters related to growing vegetables. John McWilliams 376-766-0620

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El Ojo del Lago / November 2019

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Service - EL OJO DEL LAGO Tel. 765-3676

* ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS Pag: 70

* ANIMAL CLINICS/PET SHOP - CLINICA VETERINARIA SAN ANTONIO Pag: 58 Tel: 766-0808 - LAKESIDE FRIENDS OF THE ANIMALS AC Pag: 23 Tel: 765-5544 - MASKOTA’S LAKE Pag: 66 Tel: 766-0287 - PET PLACE Pag: 08 Cell: 333-1964-150 - PET FOOD AND GROOMING Pag: 64 Tel: 766-3062

* ART GALLERIES/HANDCRAFTS - ALFREDO’S GALERIA Tel: 766-2980 - ART21STUDIO Tel: 33-3170-6135, 33-3677-3482 - DIANE PEARL COLECCIONES Tel: 766-5683 - LA BELLA VIDA Tel: 766-5131 - PENTHOUSE GALLERY - ONE OF A KIND Tel: 766-5680

Pag: 66 Pag: 47 Pag: 12 Pag: 10 Pag: 63 Pag: 69

* AUTOMOTIVE - FRATS Tel: 331-139-8539 Pag: 24 - MULTISERVICIO AUTOMOTRIZ ESCALERA Tel: 765-4424 Pag: 64

* BAKERY - COLIBRI GARDEN Tel: 765-4412, Cell: 33-156-9382 - ROCHATAS Tel: 387-763-0295

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DENTISTS

- BETO’S WINE & LIQUOR Cell: (045) 333-507-3024

Pag: 64

- AJIJIC DENTAL CLINIC Tel. 766-3682 - DRA. ANGELICA ALDANA LEMA DDS Tel. 765-5364, Cell: 33-1351-7797 - C.D. SANDRA ANAYA MORA Cell: (045) 331-218-6241

Pag: 15 Pag: 28 Pag: 11

* ELECTRONICS/ TECHNOLOGY

* BOUTIQUE / CUSTOM SEWING - STEREN Tels. 766-0599, 766-0630

- CUGINIS BOUTIQUE Tel/Fax: 766-1790 - MI MEXICO Tel: 766-0133 - SO CHIC BOUTIQUE Tel: 331-762-7838

Pag: 03

* FISH MARKET - COSTALEGRE Tel: 108-1087

Pag: 69

* FUMIGATION

* CANOPIES - LONAS MEXICO Tel: 766-0045, Cell: 33-3956-4852

Pag: 34

* CHIROPRACTIC - LOWELL BIRCH, DC Tel: 766-3000

Pag: 61

Pag: 06 Pag: 67

- FUMIGA Tel: 688-2826, Cell: 331-464-6705 - MOSQUITO CONTROL Cell: (045) 331-498-7699

Pag: 57 Pag: 63

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* CLEANING SERVICES - AXIXIC SPRING CLEANING Tel: 766-5140- Cell: 33-1075-7768 - STEAM CLEAN Tel: 33-2385-0410

Pag: 67 Pag: 28

* COMMUNICATIONS - EXTENDED ROADS DELIVERY - ISHOPNMAIL

- BENNO CUMPUTER SOLUTIONS Tel: 33-2340-7501, 766-5933

Pag: 49 Pag: 03

Pag: 52

* CONSIGNMENT SHOP

- CALLI Tel: 766-5922 - NOMAD Tel: 765-6602 - UOU Tel: 106-1618, 333-149-4536

Pag: 67 Pag: 36 Pag: 55

* INSURANCE - HEALTH INSURANCE Tel: 766-0395, 1-888-449-7799 Pag: 27 - LAKESIDE INSURANCE - EDGAR CEDEÑO Cell: (045) 33-3106-6982 Pag: 24 - PARKER INSURANCE SERVICES Tel: 765-5287, 765-4070 Pag: 52 - PROTEXPLAN U.S. Toll Free 1-800-608-5743 Mexico Toll Free 01-800-681-6730 Pag: 20 - TIOCORP Tel: 766-4828 Pag: 30

* LEGAL SERVICES

Pag: 21

Pag: 10

* LIGHTING - L&D CENTER Tel: 766-1064

Pag: 64

- AUTOMATIC GARAGE DOOR OPENERS Tel: 766-4973 Pag: 66

* GARDENING - GARDEN CENTER Tel: 765-5973 - RAINFOREST Tel: 766-4534, Cell: 331-241-9773

- ATLAS COUNTRY GOLF COURSE Tel: 33-3689-2620

Pag: 18 Pag: 58

Pag: 37

* GRILLS - NAPOLEON Tel: 766-6153

- MADERERIA CHAPALA-Hardware for Carpenters Tel: 765-2404, 765-3404 Pag: 68

* MALL / OUTLET - CENTRO LAGUNA Tel: 766-5514

* GARAGE DOORS OPENERS

* GOLF

- ARELLANO CORPORATION GROUP Cell: 331-331-0249 Pag: 42-43 - COMFORT SOLUTIONS Tel: 33-1228-5377 Pag: 14 - GENERAL HOME SERVICES - Amancio Ramos Jr. Cell: (045) 331-520-3054 Pag: 70 - PISOS Y AZULEJOS DE LA RIBERA Cell: 331-250-6486 Pag: 70 - ROBERTO MILLAN - ARCHITECT Tel: 766-3771, Cell: 331-340-3758 Pag: 18 - SIKA Tel: 766-5959 Pag: 60 - WARWICK CONSTRUCTION Tel: 765-2224, Cell. 331-135-0763 Pag: 56

El Ojo del Lago / November 2019

- HOTEL BALNEARIO SAN JUAN COSALA Tel: 387-761-0222 Pag: 61 - LA NUEVA POSADA Tel: 766-1444, 766-1344 Pag: 03

* LUMBER

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766-1760 765-4444 766-5555

- SOLBES & SOLBES Tel: 331-520-5529, Cell: 333-676-6245

* CONSTRUCTION

Pag: 71

066 765-2308, 765-2553 766-3615

* FURNITURE

Pag: 07

Pag: 50

EMERGENCY HOTLINE AMBULANCE - CRUZ ROJA FIRE DEPARTMENT POLICE Ajijic Chapala La Floresta

* HOTELS / SUITES

Pag: 21

* BEER & LIQUOR STORES

- TEPEHUA TREASURES Tel: 763-5126

* BEAUTY - CHRISTINE’S Tel: 106-0864 - EDITH’S SALON Cell: 33-1310-9372 - ESTÉTICA KAREN Tel: 331-741-8609 - GLORIOSA Tel: 766-3372 - NEW LOOK STUDIO Tel: 766-6000, 33-3950-9990

- CASA DEL SOL Tel: 766-0050 - CASA FLORES Tel: 766-5493 - CASA TRES LEONES Cell: (045) 331-350-6764

- WINDOWPLAST Tel: (0133) 2303-3080 Cell. 33-1699-1992

* COMPUTER SERVICES

* BANK INVESTMENT - INTERCAM Tel: 766-5978 - MULTIVA Tel: 766-2499