monkey in a tree lookin at me

what does it see?

 

Howler Monkeys live in groups in the rain forest of Belize. During our stay we heard their chanting constantly. We only had one opportunity to see them. James and I went canoeing on a small pond alone and as we were leaving we heard rustling above us in the trees. A family of Howlers had been watching us - once we spotted them, we hung out beneath them as they swung back and forth -

talked to each other and dangled by their tails. After 15 minutes of mutual staring, they tired of our inactivity and moved to another stand of trees beyond our vision.

BFREE in Belize

Prior to our Guatemala trip, James and I decided to add Belize into our journey. A "since we are going, we might as well see more" sort of last minute decision. Life worked out, as life always does, and while at a holiday party a few nights before our trip we met a couple who run a non-profit rain forest preserve in southern Belize - The Belize Foundation for Research and Environmental Education (BFREE). They, along with their children, were heading to the rain forest that week and were happy to have us meet up with them.

BFREE is situated among four protected areas in southern Belize, including the Mayan Mountain Forest Reserve and the Bladen Nature Reserve. Accessing BFREE  means hiking in 6 miles through Bladen Nature Reserve from Belize's main north/ south highway or catching a ride on a rugged four wheeler. Our timing was impeccable on this journey - the public bus dropped us off at mile marker 58 just as our new buddy, Jacob, emerged from muddy, isolated road on his Polaris - we caught a ride with him, his son, the education director, and a pile of backpacks belonging to a group of university students hiking in.

Jacob and his wife, Kelly, started BFREE 17 years ago in an effort to protect a pristine piece of rain forest filled with a diversity of plant and animal life. BFREE hosts researchers, offers workshops, classes, and eco-tours for both residents of Belize and those from abroad - all with the primary goal of protecting and preserving the unique environment and its creatures in perpetuity.

We spent four days at BFREE - it rained all day most days with only short bouts of hot sunshine, not typical but also not that surprising for this time of year. We journeyed around on our own, at times with various family members, and every now and then with the students; looking and learning, meeting many a bug and bird, all the while listening to Howler Monkeys carol in the trees above us. We could not have imagined that the rain forest could feel so inviting and it would not have been without the ongoing efforts of those at BFREE.

Trust

I trusted James' survival mentality as I followed him up the 100 foot plus fire tower in the rain forest of southern Belize. I trusted the skill of Jacob, Eric, and the others who dismantled the tower in the US and carried it by truck through Mexico and reassembled it in its new home. I trusted the strength of the tower. I trusted the aim of the birds swooshing by. I trusted the calm breeze and the nearby trees.

What I failed to trust was me, the strength in my own knees to carry me without the aid of handrails, my own ability to walk carefully on wet steps, my own will. So I sat three levels down from the top at about 80 feet for an hour before attempting to continue the ascent.

How often does distrust in myself make me hesitate when I know I can do anything I set my mind to?