"Who will you be when you grow up?" April 10, 2011

Today, Jose gathered all the children and told a beautiful Kuna myth about the Daughters of the Stars. For most of the kids this was the first time they were hearing this quite well known among the Kunas story. At the core of it is a belief that the Kunas are deeply connected to the rest of the Universe, and that they in fact "came from the stars," as Jose described it.

Right after the story was told, taking advantage of this precious moment when children's imagination is wide awake, we asked each of them to paint a star on the paper we provided, and to dream for a little longer about who they would want to be when they grow up.  They then cut out the stars and wrote inside them their future professions.  Many children dream of being doctors, teachers, professors, lawyers, and policemen. The stars will be hung up high in the community building to remind the children that they can reach the stars.

We we were also really happy to have a Dutch scientist, Masha who studies lianas, pay a visit to Koskuna. She was helping the kids to paint more stars on the walls of the community building. The kids loved it!