Day 8
Thought of the Day offered by Paula:
Go placidly amidst the noise and haste and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible and without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant, they too have their story. Desiderata
Journal by Linda:
The wind blew itself out last night. It blew and blew keeping Paula awake all night. But with the dawn came clearing skies and a bright sunny day that turned warm in the afternoon. We headed down to the conservation office after breakfast where Walter showed us the "trap cameras" that are usually set up in the forest to take pictures of the animals. They were "drying out" because of the amount of moisture that collects in them makes them inoperable. He also showed us the very professional looking brochure they had put together to inform people about the corridor of forest that is being replanted to attract the "Bell bird" which is endangered.
Then we headed down to our work project where the construction crew had already started work. We were joined today by 16 yr old, Oscar, Walter´s cousin. The crew had made great progress since our quitting time yesterday. We helped hold the panels of aluminum while they were nailed in place and handed what was close to 2x4´s to the carpenters to secure them as beams for the shed. Then aluminum panels were secured as the ceiling to the shed. One of the volunteers who had helped with construction at a hotel is going to request that they contribute some panels.
Walter showed us where he and the students are collecting the temperature of the air and earth as well as the rain fall. They are charting this information to help them study how the effects of rainfall and temperature affects the growth of plants and therefore food for the birds and animals.
After an early supper of delicious empanadas, we were picked up for our ¨"night tour", which starts early here close to the equator. It is pretty dark by 6 pm. Johnny, our guide, is very knowledgeable. We found out that he supervises and teachers the other guides. We went to the Santa Maria Reserve which is private. We were surprised at the number of people that were being guided through the forest but when we got away from the other groups, all we heard were the sounds of the forest which was very intriguing. It was amazing how Johnny could spot the small insects and lizards. Among the things we saw was a sloth, a poisonous vipor and coati. Although we heard an amaradillo move 3 times through the brush, we didn´t get to see him. And, of course, the stars were brillant out there in the dark!
Time to turn in,
HASTA LA NOCHE,
Linda
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