Trabajando en la cocina (Working in the kitchen)

Today I woke up to my alarm, the roosters, and the dogs at the crisp hour of 5 am. You may be thinking why the heck is this girl crazy enough to wake up this early, get dressed by the light of a fading flashlight, and make the hike down to the beneficio. The answer to your question is I was going to cook.
I walked into the kitchen at the beneficio to the smiling faces of Cecilia, Guadelupe, and . They had been there since 4 am. We began by cutting the peels off of the platanos (sweet bananas) and then cut them into slices before throwing them into the oil to fry for about 5 minutes. While strugling to make and form tortillas, we talked to the three women about their lives in Las Marias and their famlies. All of them emphasized that they we going to be so sad when we leave and they hope that when we come back to El Salvador in the future, we bring our children and come visit them. They want us to pass on what we have learned in the kitchen to our friends and family at home. These women are probably some of the most amazing people I've ever met. Their kindness was overwhelming and they truly care about what we have to say.
There is something extremely tranqiul about peeling potatoes to make papas fritas and talking in Spanish to the women of la cocina. I don't know that I will ever have that feeling again in the same way that I did today. I know that when I leave here I will truly miss all of the amazing people I have met. I really do hope to come back to Las Marias, but if I am not able to, I know I will bring back what I have learned to the United States, especially what I have learned from the women of the kitchen.

We miss you all!

Sarah Maher