Now, flyblown and forgotten, it has learned the hard way about thirst. No more fishing. Trees are dead. No one plants. The wells are dry.
Men catch the odd catfish or bass to supplement wages as laborers when work can be found.
But nothing much grows in their parched, salty fields. Mostly, the village languishes. The plight of El Mayor typifies what is happening around the world as politics and engineering shape access to dwindling water sources. Commonly, water flows uphill toward money. And the little village is just one example among uncounted others all over the globe where disputes over water may end up at the center of high diplomacy between neighboring nations.