Tsunami, tsunami!

Francisco told me I´m painting too rosy a picture of what's happening here, because it's not all as smooth and happy as I would have you think.  To a certain degree he's right.  I prefer to focus on the bigger picture, which is largely positive.  I also believe that you get more of what draws your attention, so I would rather focus on the positive than the negative.  I also have a different perspective than his --  I don´t have the pressure of making sure everything is going smoothly, playing the political game, organizing, answering the phone a dozen times every hour, and visiting with friends who stop by, all while trying to create my own piece of sculpture.

So, in deference to my good friend Francisco, who we shall now call Tommy Tsunami for reasons that will become clear shortly, here´s a list of some of the annoyances big and small.

The air conditioning quit, along with the front seat power windows, in the van that transports everybody around town.  So every day for lunch, a crowd of sweaty, dirty people would crowd into the hot van for the five minute ride to the restaurant where we get a beautiful meal served and prepared by volunteers.  A new fuse fixed the problem, but then the battery died, so people had to walk places until it was fixed, which it now is.

The first morning of the symposium, tempers flared and a physical confrontation sent one sculptor to the hospital for stitches and a helper back to the city where he came from.  So a major troublemaker left early on, and the injured sculptor was back to work about the time his stone showed up. It wasn't pleasant, but it wasn't the end of the world.

A small culture clash between the tico men and the international women has been ongoing.  The men enjoy telling the women how beautiful they are, repeatedly and publicly.  The women were at first a little flattered, then annoyed at the continuing attention, and finally fed up with what we perceived to be harassment.  A conversation about boundaries resulted in a lessening of the misunderstanding, and now we´re back to good-natured teasing and friendship.

When the remaining stone finally arrived, it was dropped off on the beach, and there was no tractor available to place it.  Eager Costa Rican sculptors, who had been watching everybody else carve for three days, began working on the stone where it was dropped, creating a safety hazard.  At that point Francisco said he stood and watched, murmuring ''tsunami, tsunami, we need a tsunami to take all of this away...''

A tsunami is no laughing matter, and neither is the stress and tension that come with organizing and pulling off a major event of any kind.  While he was kidding about the tsunami, Francisco has been doing an amazing balancing act, as have Nancy and Ocho, keeping everything together while dealing with the needs and personalities of a diverse group of artists with different experience levels, cultural perspectives, and even languages.

So, my apologies, Tommy Tsunami, but I'm once again ending my post on a positive note.  You're doing a great job!

Comments

[JRA]

This is my favorite posting yet! I loved learning that even though there were many obsticles all worked out and the pictures show that the accomplishments are amazing!!! Francisco is a force of nature (just like a Tsunami!). Good going Francisco!

Jami

[marilyn]

Thanks, Jami. There are many forces of nature at work here, but Francisco is a powerful one!

[Sandy Allie]

I'm with you Marilyn and have to laugh remembering that one late afternoon we wondered if Francisco's "Tsunami-Tsunami" prayer was being answered. Two weeks have gone by and I am home now and enjoying re-living the incredible experience of carving marble on the beach at Punteranas and thinking of the wonderful new friendships made. Thank you for keeping a journal for us. Sandy Allie