Guatemalan Christmas

We were there in the
     Winter
High in the Guatemalan
     Mountains
Traveling by day,
     sheltering by night
At Christmas, in the
     time of unrest
It was a strange wonderful
     experience
A family with four
     young children
In small villages we
     wandered
Fascinated by the color,
     the traditions

It was a dream place
     in a fantasy excursion
And we were there
There were killings and
     explosions
It was a very bad time
     and sadness prevailed
But for us, a small family
     of foreigners
(By their standards)
It was a journey to
     the edge of existence
It was a surrealistic
     sojourn into the past


In a town by Lake Atitlan
     reached by small speedboat
         across the choppy lake waters
We walked the streets
     and marveled at
         the goods
Fine weaves of dyed cotton
    in traditional
         designs
Bright colors, birds and
    strange animals
And everyone wearing this
    woven cloth
By the lakeside a washing
    ritual
Clothes, clean, stretched
    on large rocks
And the soldiers, menacing,
    watching us

That was a disturbing
    moment
'Careful where you point
    the camera'
It is death to photograph
    a military thing
And perhaps most fascinating
Our visit to Chichicastenango
We stopped at a lonely place
    on a long descent
To view the cloud forest 
    and the mountains on high
Such beauty, such a 
    magical vista
But we moved on quickly
Past the remains of
    a burnt out building

It was a place where
    ambushes frequently occur
We moved on to Chichicastenango
The place was from
    another world
A fairytale on earth
The largest market, full
    of the diversity of Mayan
                                culture
Textiles, carvings, jewelry
    and the vibrancy of the people
The white church dominating
    the market place
Within this haven
    candles and incense burning
And the ritualistic chanting
    of an ancient religion

And outside again 
    that evening
It was New Year's Eve
The whole town had gathered
Fireworks and celebration
It was like a battlefield
    of celebration
Dangerous, with missiles
    descending, exploding
Some hitting people!
And the wild enthusiasm
    of Chichicastenango
Ancient center of the Mayans
It was the experience
    of a life time