On the eve of another new year, I hope that I can do justice to the memories Ive taken with me of my time at Selva Bananito Lodge. I came on the 5th of October, not knowing how much my admiration and appreciation for this magical place would grow after spending two and a half months there. Ive been coming to the Lodge ever since it opened in 1995. At that time, and the years that followed, I associated it with heat, beauty, horses, and the crystal-clear rivers that flow through it. It was a place where my family came together, where stories were told, and where lessons were learned. I was greeted by the same, wonderfully-familiar feelings as I came this year. This time, though, I came to fully integrate myself into its roots instead of enjoying the place simply as a guest. After ten days being back home, it is completely clear to me that what I partook in was something I will never have the opportunity to do anywhere else. The community that has been built around the an idea which unites people of all backgrounds and ethnicities. The forest there gives much: water, food, shelter, oxygen, color, life. What does it ask for? It doesnt. And that is the crisis all over the world. The earth has been taken advantage of ever since humans began finding ways to make themselves bigger, better, and more powerful. As a collective group, humans are professional takers but very poor givers. However, the people connected to Selva Bananito Lodge, whether they found it through employment, family, travels, or business, work together (though they may not realize it) to answer a calling. The rain forest cannot travel. It does not have the power to contact people. It must wait until people come to it in order for them to realize what it needs. After two and a half months with it, I have no doubt that the people who meet it leave that place changed. Small paces have always started revolutions, and we are far from it, but something started in this place when the idea for an eco-lodge at the base of Cerro Muchilla was developed more than 20 years ago. The feeling that the forest there stirred in the people responsible for the first steps is still alive today and I could sense it in everyone with whom I shared my experience. We all sense the pull to seek ways to help our environment heal and are willing to carry weight (sometimes probably more than we should) in order to know that we are fighting the fight that the earth so badly needs. Photos: Wolke and me (2014, Rio Bananito) With Tequila (circa 2005) With my father, Jon, and sister, Maya circa 1994
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 19:27:04 +0000
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