Adios

This morning very early I took Eleanor to the plane. Rather Don Francisco and I took Eleanor to the plane. He wanted to accompany us, and it seems to me so very appropriate that her last "official" trip to the airport at Comalapa was in the company of a Salvadoran friend and a St. Joseph of Peace Sister.

Then I settled down to an ordinary day - laundry, a little housecleaning, e-mails and letter writing. And I tested myself by driving out to find a couple of places I want to be able to locate - the Artesania on Manuel Araujo where we usually take visitors and Basilea, a charming collection of shops that includes - ah, yes - a bookstore with books and cards in English. I found them both, I'm happy to say, with some interesting misdirections along the way, mostly involving the Zona Rosa, where it's altogether too easy to drive around in widening concentric circles.

Back in Bellevue, in that other life, I worried a bit that I might feel afraid or lonely when Eleanor left. I certainly miss her, but I'm feeling fine. And I'm not even alone in the house - happily, a few days ago Joe Connelly arrived. Joe coordinates a program from the Center for Global Education that brings college students to Central America for a three-month immersion in language, history, environment, politics and culture. The group travels from Guatemala to El Salvador to Nicaragua, and when he's in El Salvador Joe has been staying at our base house. Tonight he came back with pupusas to share. Gracias!