White Picket Fences & Gangplanks
It was the dry season, so the neighborhood lakes had receded and were replaced by tall, green grass. However, the grass still did not reach high enough to touch the bamboo walkways and bridges that led to each stilted home. I was in Isla Trinitaria, one of the most impoverished regions of Ecuador, and my curiosity had reached an all time high.
The innovativeness of the families living here was greater than anything I could ever attempt. To build a house on what would be regarded as an unusable plot of marshland with a series of interconnected bridges to your neighbor’s houses was beyond me. If that wasn’t a feat enough, each house had electrical lines snaking their way from whatever pirated source was available.
In areas where dirt roads were accessible, local children came running in and out of brightly painted shantys. The white picket fences lining these homes begged to be considered in the mind of this American. The classic suburban symbol of family values, hard work, and community spirit had perfectly blended itself into these tropical neighborhoods of scarcity and ingenuity.
While taking up residence in Isla Trinitaria suggests a difficult life with few choices, the diligence of these residents to create something out of nothing holds my full respect and admiration.
