Humans Being

 La Fortuna, Costa Rica, 5/16/24

    There's nothing like an easy wake up and on time departure to make a great first impression on your local guides. Mission accomplished. As mentioned, pastries demolished. 

    Our first stop of the day was a few hours outside of San Jose. After passing through several small towns and cities and more than a few stunning vistas we eventually started seeing signs for "Land in Love." Intriguingly, some of these signs were written in... you guessed it... Hebrew. Turning off the main road, we were active participants in some remarkable bus maneuvering before we reached said "Land in Love." 

    There we met, Alon. Alon is one of the 18 Israelis who, 16 years ago, left Israel with the goal of establishing a community that reflected the values that he and his comrades wanted to manifest in the world. Among those values, hospitality, and most importantly, no cruelty to animals. The community they've built is stunning. They shelter thousands of animals, offer many and varied activities, and serve only vegan food. It was somewhere between weird and deeply inspiring to find ourselves in the midst of this utopian alternative community, deep in the Costa Rican rain forest. 

    While at Land in Love we did a small service project that involved helping clear some of their trails, not of trash, but of large fern leaves. Having said that, our saunter was light on leaf duty and heavy on beautiful scenery all with the soundtrack of the jungle ringing in our ears. The hiking was more rigorous than anticipated and midway through a steady rain began to fall. But we were treated to waterfalls, suspension bridges, and the sense of accomplishment that comes with hiking through a Costa Rican rainforest in the rain while being guided by vegan Israelis. Lunch was delicious, complete with Breadwinner size chocolate chip cookies. 

    From there we continued on to a tour of a cacao plantation at the foot of the Arenal volcano (one of Costa Rica's most active volcanoes!). Along the way we had a few nice views of the volcano, which was exciting for our guides who say it's often covered by clouds. The cacao plantation was actually quite fascinating. Our guide emphasized the fact that most of the chocolate we consume is sadly and troublingly produced from Cacao that is harvested in West Africa in an industry that essentially enslaves more than 1.5 million children. This was new and upsetting information to many of us. While it certainly requires further research, it's all too easy to see how such inhumane circumstances can continue to exist even to this day. Our guide raised big questions and it was clear that many of our 8th graders were willing to listen with open ears and open hearts. 

    The cacao plantation wasn't all doom and gloom late stage capitalism. In fact, the main event was learning how cacao is processed and turned into something we all enjoy. And enjoy we did. If you're lucky, some chocolate may find its way back to you. 

    Our final stop of the day, after checking in to our beautiful hotel, was a dip in some thermal hot springs followed by dinner. The water was a perfect 96 degrees and the setting was idyllic. The kids did their thing and so did the chaperones. We were touched that some of the kids wanted to spend their hot springs time chit chatting with us adults. We don't take that for granted! 

    When we sat down for dinner my heart sank. There was a young woman who was setup in the dining area with her guitar. Oh no, I thought. This poor musician is going to get eaten alive by our kids. Thankfully, I couldn't have been more wrong. Stop reading and check out the photos. The minute she started singing "Royals" by Lorde (don't get me started on Lorde, but it IS a good song), it was clear that she had them. Next thing we know, they were all singing, dancing, hugging, swaying, taking pictures, stuffing bills in the tip jar, bonding, and doing their thing. It was a testament to the power of music. And it was a moment that I promise you our kids will remember for the rest of their lives. And so will that young lady with the guitar. We were so spirited that the venue did something I'm sure they never do... they politely asked us to leave so the overnight guests could get some peace and quiet. 

    Now everyone is back at the hotel resting up for tomorrow. 

    As I reflect on the day, I'm struck by the humanity of it all. I think about those Israelis setting out to build the kind of community that they wanted to live in, manifesting their vision for how human beings should be in this world. I think about our kids trekking through the rainforest, huffing and puffing up the hill, soaking wet, smiling, complaining, praying for it to end, savoring every minute. I think about our guide at the cacao plantation, using his platform to call out the injustices in the world but without casting too much blame or guilt. I think about our kids, who thought they were just hopping of the bus to eat some chocolate, clearly thinking about what this young man had to say. I think about how good it feels to soak in hot springs and how touching it is for a teacher when a student comes up with no agenda but to chat for a bit. I think about that young woman with her guitar. I think about Lorde, who refuses to play in Israel but who writes good songs that our kids like. I think about what that young woman must have thought when she knew that she had our kids totally figured out. I think about what Chris Martin from Coldplay must have felt when he wrote Viva La Vida.  I think about our kids singing about "Jerusalem bells are ringing" and hoping with all my heart that they hear those bells sooner rather than later. I think about why I got choked up watching the kids singing, smiling, arms around each other. I think about the first person to make panna cotta and say "at last, I've created a dessert that jiggles."

    We're a strange species. We've got all the answers and we create all the problems. Maybe we're just not asking the right questions? Or maybe we're not listening? Or maybe we've just forgotten that we're the source not only of folly, but of wisdom? Or maybe we're just humans being human and everything is exactly as it should be. But that can't be right. Or maybe it can. 

    I'll end with a few facts that I find inspiring: Costa Rica dismantled its army in 1948 and reallocated the entire military budget to public welfare. And there's a young man working on the cacao plantation who has something to say. And there's a singer with a full tip jar. And there are Israelis living in Costa Rica who refuse to hurt animals. And there are our kids turning in for the night, dreaming about whatever it is that dreams are made of.