after reading china, lurching giant

it may be a painting or a poem or a phrase. santiago would know. whether created by colors or words, it is an image of a man painting a sinking ship. a puzzling image to contemplate, almost comical. a tragic comedy in which the tragedy is what i feel without a smile behind the scenes.

i walk in the sun and not the shadows. the wind is throwing down electric poles and the new year is here.

the chinese that stay home, the city dwellers, will destroy the image of "asians are smarter." not because their work habits or attitudes on education have changed, but because their blood lead levels are dangerously high. mental development of chinese children is at risk.

and where ever i have lived and worked, i have always wondered the same for the students i teach. in the cafe the other day, i overheard a handsome, older british woman explaining to a younger man that it is all about the environment. he (some psychologist i imagine) had proven that anybody could become a genius if provided a certain type of education. the young man offered no retort. my concern is the narrow definition of environment suggested by this woman. environment, lest education theorists forget, is not only "the social and cultural forces that shape the life of a person or a population," but "the air, water, minerals, organisms, and all other external factors surrounding and affecting a given organism at any time."

topographers come to casa guatemala to map the land. engineers come to build hydroponic green-houses that are too costly to run and instead becomes the best place to dry our clothes if it is not raining. i wonder if environmental health students have done a study of the surrounding area and the impact on the health of the inhabitants. if /when i have my own project, i would/will invite graduate students to complete a study on the land that is to be used to educate and feed not only children but people of all ages whose health and wisdom should be valued.

if we could just improve the education at casa guatemala, make the farm more organic and efficient, conduct an environmental study of the site, the isolated location would not be such a concern. of course, we would also have to reorganize so the children grow up more in family groups rather than in separate male-female boarding schools. the isolation of the dreamed "town for children" becomes highlighted in negative light when positive (often proven) ideas are not being imported to ignite the place with auto-catalytic creativity. this is theory talking, theory not bogged down with finding or fabricating funds to maintain the minimum of a large scale project.

i think i am against large-scale.