Last week I was awoken by a noise that confused me.  It was dark out.  I had no idea what time it was and I could hear a man’s voice outside of my window.  And I heard a whip and something moving against the boards.  And then it was gone.  About four minutes later the same sound was back and I wondered if someone was pacing outside the building.  By the third time I got out of bed trying to figure out where the sound was coming from and if it was important.  No, it was just the neighbor plowing his field with his oxen.  I guess he wanted to get it finished before the fog lifted and there was a hint of sunshine.  As the dry season sets in the ground gets very hard to work and so there is a rush to get the fields planted again.  Here in Canilla, we are blessed to have two growing seasons because of the canal that feeds this area with water from the river a top the mountain.  And so thus begins an early morning, and an early start to another corn harvest.

And so this morning when I heard the same sounds and took a peek out the window to notice a slice of light peeking through, I knew better than to think someone was in distress…. it was just the neighbor finishing the plowing.