Several nights ago I was sitting with some acquaintances, when a very interesting question was raised: “Which Direct TV package would you prefer?” The heated debate lasted 15 minutes and was underlined by opposing arguments in favor of more channels for either movies or fútbol. The funny back-story to this conversation is that none of the people involved has electricity, let alone, a television on which they could watch 500+ channels.
For over 40 years the residents of San Francisco, Peru have lived in small adobe homes surviving as subsistence farmers. The town has endured coups, droughts, dictators, hurricanes and drug wars. But for a long dusty mountain road, this small caserillo has never been connected to the modern world. However, San Francisco is quickly proving that it is not impervious to change.
Last week I watched with residents as municipal workers installed home electrical boxes and strung up power lines. Though the electricity isn’t set to turn on until late December, you can imagine the excitement. People, who rush to consume fresh meat within 48 hours lest it go bad, will for the first time have refrigerators. Families, who’ve inhaled kerosene lantern fumes for generations, can soon flick on a light switch. And yes, those addicted to Telenovelas and fútbol matches will be able to veg their minds away. Yet San Francisco has also seen more recent progress than simply electricity.
High-wire balancing act
Over the last two years, due in part to generous NGO’s, progressive local representation and several government programs which have uncharacteristically taken rural Peru into consideration, the town has seen many modern improvements. San Francisco recently received its first public telephone, solar panels on the health post, municipal sewage lines, a remodeled schoolhouse and new attention from international buyers looking to increase the production of cacao and coffee.
Bearing witness to the changes in our little village has been exciting for my fellow volunteers and me as well. Though I’m not convinced having 15 different MTV stations is necessary, I am pleased that technological improvements have provided the health post with an emergency CV radio and a freezer for medicine. I am glad that my host family has the ability to communicate with their kids living in the city and that the elderly have the option of using a restroom rather than walking ¼ mile out to their fields. Even though I hold certain nostalgia for the San Francisco’s old-world methods, it has been satisfying to see how good change can really be.
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Yes, the sides to every story are so worthy of consideration….good for you for keeping your eyes and mind wide open! And, thanks for bringing that vantage to your writing.