Ecuador 11/27/2014 - 12/2/2014 |
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Saturday 11/29/2014 - Butchering a RoosterWe woke up at 7 a.m., took hot showers, and went out of the casita at 8:40. Sisa was the only one of the kids who was awake on this Saturday morning. When the other two woke up, we played with the tangrams.Yupanqui asked where our house was, so we took the opportunity to give them the small foam rubber globe that we had brought. We showed them where Massachusetts was on the globe, and also where Quito was, and we traced our flight path for them. For breakfast, we had chamburo juice (it's a fruit like a small papaya), a fried egg, croissants, and French fries. We gave Aida and Antonio a computer lesson, and looked at the videos and pictures from trips past. The kids got a kick out of seeing their younger selves. They thought that young Sisa was Tayanta. Aida asked to see the video of Sisa dancing in the kitchen from our first visit in 2010. Antonio left for the community center. He is a community leader and has responsibilities to fulfill. For lunch, we had guayaba juice, amaranto soup, beans, choclo, melloco, and quiche. The kids asked us to go outside. Once out on the patio, they continued their traditional treatment for Craig's MS symptoms. Aida put balm on Craig's left knee and massaged it with a massager made of tagua. Sisa walked on Craig's back. Mi Nena slept all afternoon. I colored with Sisa and Yupanqui. We had purchased some baby chicks for the family back in May. They have since grown into 5 chickens and two roosters. Today was the day that one of the roosters would be dispatched. Rosa and the kids caught the rooster and tied him to a tree. Rosa made a fire in the outdoor kitchen to heat a pot of water. She slit the rooster's throat with a knife. He didn't "go gentle into that good night," and it was a bit distressing to watch. It is difficult to see an animal killed, but as meat-eaters we feel that it is our moral responsibilty to come to terms with it. We must acknowledge that an animal gives its life for our sustenance, and we are very grateful. Rosa dunked the carcass into the pot of boiling water and the feathers came right off. The kids watched the process, as did the kitten, who sat there meowing. Once the rooster was nude, Rosa made a joke about him being cold now that he had no feathers. They often joke to lighten the atmosphere during the awkward moments after taking an animal's life for food. We all went out front near the cow pasture where Rosa butchered the chicken. Sisa was paying close attention and learning. They fed the gullet full of corn to the kitten. Then they also fed her the entrails. Nothing goes to waste. Antonio returned and played soccer with the kids on the patio. Dinner was fresh rooster soup including some "squeaky bits" (as Anthony Bourdain would call the organ meat), rooster meat with gravy, rice, peas, and fried plantain, along with passionfruit juice. Shina particularly liked the chicken feet and gnawed away at them. You don't get much fresher than this. This chicken was walking around several hours ago. Granted, chicken is not as tender here, because it has a "working" life, but you can't help but think about how much fresher the chicken is when you actually eat it. At home who knows how long ago a chicken in the grocer store was killed. Yupanqui's stomach was bothering him, so Antonio rubbed it with a volcanic rock to take away the negative energy. We went to the casita at 9 o'clock. Once again, the family performed a before bed ritual to treat Craig's MS symptoms. Rosa and Antonio rubbed Craig's left knee with balm and then wrapped the leg up with the aliso leaves for overnight. |
 Yupanqui, Sisa, and Achi Mama  Rosa prepares to dispatch a rooster  Antonio plays soccer with the kids See all photos from this day |
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