Each day in the San Blas has brought us new adventures and today was no exception. We were anchored in the Carti Islands, a set of very densely populated islands near the mainland. Glomindo, a Kuna friend whom we met through an American sailing friend from Bocas del Toro, was our tour guide for two very special events. Glomindo is 49 and spent four years in the US in Utah with the Mormon Church, then two years as a Mormon missionary in Costa Rica. That is when he learned his excellent English.

The first event was the re-enactment of the 1925 revolution that resulted in the Kuna Yala nation gaining its autonomous status from Panama. Although still a part of Panama, it enjoys its own governance structures. February 24th for the Kuna Yala is comparable to July 4th for us. We witnessed a very realistically staged fight in the middle of one island that ended with two of the local heroes being killed and dumped into the sea. The actors really got into their roles.

When that was over we stopped by the equivalent to the local legion hall in Dighton, Don's hometown in Kansas, for a beer. We chatted it up with all of the old men who were catching up on local gossip and reading the Panamanian papers. They all liked it that Don spoke such good Spanish.

After that we went back to Away for a couple of hours to get ready for our next event. We had asked Glomindo if we could attend one of the Kuna Congreso (public) meetings, an event that takes place three or four times a week on populated Kuna islands. These meetings are where the local Kuna chief and his interpreter hang in two hammocks in a big hall and dispense with local government and recounting of local Kuna history.

Due to timing issues, instead of a Congreso meeting Glomindo took us to a Kuna church service on his island (Tupile) that bears many similarities to a Congreso meeting. The service was held in the Congreso meeting hall and happens three times a week. The service lasts two hours and anyone who wants to be in the good graces of the island chief has to attend. Everyone handed in little notebooks to have their attendance recorded. The chief dispenses visas to go to Panama City and if you haven't been attending church you don't get to go to Panama City!

Men sat mostly together and women and children together. At least a third of the women brought their molas (hand-sewn intricate designs) and worked on them by flashlight under their headscarves during the service. Seating was on primitive wooden benches that were, to say the least, very uncomfortable. The thatched roof building with a dirt floor was quite large and dimly lit.

As in the Congreso, the island chief lay in one hammock and his interpreter lay in another. The first hour, the chief sang about the coming of Jesus Christ. The interpreter gave a kind of response after every third sentence. All of this was in a mystical language that no one could understand. The second hour of the service, the interpreter translated the story into the Kuna language so people in the audience could understand.

We only stayed for a half hour of the service but felt very privileged to be invited. What's really interesting is that while there are two actual Christian denominations, Christian and Mormon, on Tupile, this common Kuna church service held in the Congreso hall is the one that really counts. Glomindo said that most of the 800 people on Tupuli are "Mormons" but that only about 20 regularly attend the very large Mormon Church on the island.

Probably none of us would have recognized the service as a Christian service. However, the Kuna have obviously adopted their faith to meet their needs and they have a very strong sense of community responsibility and caring for each other and their families that is very admirable.