gardens to include El Vivero, a tree nursery, which today still supplies free trees for reforestation in Chiapas. While Casa Na Bolom was the dream of Frans Blom, the day-to-day responsibility of running it fell to Trudi. For forty years, she struggled financially and emotionally; spending too much time fundraising, writing articles, and managing employees, many of whom were young volunteers from around the world. In the late 1980s, encouraged by concerned Chiapas citizens who valued her work and who wanted to protect the future of Na Bolom, Trudi formed the Asociación Cultural Na Bolom A.C., whose Board of Directors manages Na Bolom today. Today Na Bolom is still open to the public as a museum, hotel and restaurant. Volunteers are still welcome, working on projects with the library, translation of materials, and diffusion from information. Money from guests goes towards various community projects in the jungle. Today, guests still come and conversation still flows in many languages at the long table of Casa Na Bolom. Mayan Indians sell their tapestries in the shaded patio. The Lacandon still come to stay. The Bloms' adopted daughter, Dona Betty, is in charge of the kitchen. Their adopted Lancandon son, Kayum, often stays at Na Bolom with his family. The Asociación Cultural Na Bolom A.C. perpetuates the work of Frans and Trudi Blom, sponsoring a newsletter, art shows, concerts, exhibits, and other events and projects dedicated to the Lacandon Maya and the Selva Lacandona. A collection of 14,000 negatives taken by American photographer Marcey Jacobson (1911–2009) documenting daily life in the area in photos taken primarily from the 1960s through the 1980s, will become part of the museum's collection following her death in 2009. Seventy-five of these images were included in her book The Burden of Time / El Cargo del Tiempo (Stanford University Press, 2001). House of the Jaguar The name "Casa Na Bolom" comes from the Mayan word for jaguar, "bolom." The Bloms chose this name as a play on their own name, Blom. In the jungle, Frans Blom was often known by the nickname, Pancho Bolom, a great compliment comparing him favorably to the sacred jaguar. An ancient stone jaguar from a Mayan frieze installed by Frans marks the front door of Casa Na Bolom, House of the Jaguar. References External links Asociación Cultural Na Bolom A.C. website Documentary Photographs by Gertrude Blom Museums in Chiapas Houses in Mexico Mesoamerican