Spring

El Salvador and Honduras share a lengthy mountainous border. High in these mountains the air is fresh and cool. All winter this air remains suspended on the mountain tops until the early November winds push it down between the crevasse of this volcanic mountain range, down into the valleys and finally across the flat lands of Usulután. It is fresh; it fills the chest and lungs with long awaited relief.

We returned to milder weather. The sting of the hot harsh winter air has been exhausting. It prevented restful sleep and caused much stress with the continued need to launder often to keep clothes and bedding clean. We are more relaxed, feel strengthened, breathing in routine breaths of fresh morning air. The body is functioning normal again.

The winds also move a lot of dirt. None of the homes are sealed, thus dirt accumulates on the floor, furniture, kitchen area. Cleaning table tops and floors twice a day is a small price to pay for the comfort that the cooler winds provide.

Hot humid winter and its rains are ending as we head into hot dry summer. The frequency of rain has diminished with the second Sunday in November the end of the rainy season, but the official end of the hurricane season is month end. David finished his four month project of patching the leaks in the roof. No leaks with the latest rains; we’ll test the patch job next winter. Summer - winter, only two seasons in Central America.

There’s a lot of evidence of seasonal change with the budding of fruit trees. Our avocado tree has buds but not as many as three years ago according to Gabriel. He said our fruit tree peaked three years with an abundant crop and hasn’t been the same since. When the avocados drop, it’s too late. They need to be picked fresh from the tree. Avocado with egg salad is a rich and tasty treat.

Birds are building a nest in the roof of the porch. The schools are closing for two months. The campesinos are waiting for the harvest of coffee and sugar cane, back breaking work that makes them old before their time. The rural boys 10 and older join their dads in the harvest of coffee or sugar cane during their school break.

Schools closing, trees budding, nest building, fresh cooler air. It’s a time of renewal. We get ideas of doing great things that we can only imagine, like back packing to the bottom of an old volcano or canoeing thru a port canal. All this fresh air brings vigor to the mind, needed rest for the body and renewal of the soul.

This transition is a surprise for us. While we are enjoying these changes, our Salvadoran friends tell us they think this time of the year is “too cold”.

David y Nancy