Blog 8 – Self-centered: reflections from LAST 303 and the Waorani

“If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”

Lilla Watson

I can’t believe this is the last blog I will be writing for this class.

This week I was assigned the Waorani. I really enjoyed it.

Big thanks to Alara Sever, Geneviève Lalonde, and Katerina Vyskotova, you did a great job!

While reflecting on this term, I noticed the strong sense of community in every one of the Indigenous groups we studied. For the Shipibo Konibo, the Garifuna, the Maya, the Quechua, the Zapotecs and the Waorani, the community and reciprocity were key.

Lately, I have been stressing and trying to unsuccessfully fight insomnia. I have been trying to balance academics and work while trying to comply with pandemic safety measures. I think it is quite easy to complain and be self-centred during these times. Realizing how self-centred I have been this term made me admire even more the sense of community of all the groups who have fought for centuries for their autonomy and the self-donation of many members for the well-being of their community. For example, how Nelida from “Hija de la laguna” decides to go live in an urban setting that she doesn’t enjoy, so she can protect community members from the injustices of mining companies and the government. Or Alicia Cawiya and Nemonte Nenquino, Waorani women, that dedicate their lives to fight for nature, which they feel is also part of their community.

Their example made me reflect on my own actions. I think it is necessary, and I should take action now despite the pandemic, despite being a student busy with school and work. Life won’t get any less busy afterwards. I should incorporate standing for others and fighting for what I care about today because no one knows anything about the future.

Anyways, another quote for the final season:

“It’s hard to find the rhythm when the rhythm keeps changing. Go easy on yourself.”

@drjenhardy

November 2, 2020November 3, 2020

Blog 6 – Oaxaca my love <3

Oaxaquita my love

This unit’s material was very special to me, I smiled and I cried. Chef Olvera’s Netflix episode made me feel proud to be Mexican. He made me proud and grateful to be born in Oaxaca. After the episode, I watched Rigoberta Menchu’s film, I got frustrated and sad about the injustices she had to experience. The reading about Brocolli (Benson & Fischer, 2007) made me think about the word desire differently.

When Chef Olvera says ” I want to retire to Oaxaca” or “If it were for me, I would have moved to Oaxaca already”. I got goosebumps. I realized how much I miss my family, my food and my culture. The fact that it was Día de Muertos did not help with my nostalgia.

I miss sharing a dish of chapulines (picture 1), I miss drinking a cup of hot chocolate with pan de Muertos, I miss visiting my grandma and eating her frijoles de olla. I miss sharing food with my family. I miss my Sunday enmoladas, and having mezcalinis with my friends.

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, in my home city we have endless issues. Social inequality, poverty, educational backwardness, gender violence, and corruption do not surprise anyone anymore. As citizens, we are always disagreeing. However, no matter your social status, your political view, or your religion, we can all bond over food.

To be honest, I just want more people to know about Oaxaca.

If you are thinking about a trip post-quarantine to Mexico, you should definitely consider visiting Oaxaca. I can assure you, you won’t regret it, and your palate would thank you.

Picture 1: Chapulines, Los Pacos, Oaxaca 2019

Picture 2: Mi maleta antes de volver a Vancouver, Oaxaca 2019

Picture 3: Gusanitos de Maguey, Mercado 20 de Noviembre, Oaxaca 2019

References

Benson, P., & Fischer, E. F. (2007). Broccoli and desire. Antipode, 39(5), 800-820.

October 17, 2020November 30, 2020

Blog 5 – Cosmology and “mal de ojo”

I would like to reflect on Cosmology. As an overthinker, I like questioning my purpose and existence. For that reason, I was surprised to learn what cosmology meant. “Cosmology is the union of all of these sciences, focused on understanding how the universe came to be, how it has evolved, and how it will continue to change in the future.” The analysis of how cosmology varies between Latin America and the West was eye-opening. Realizing that indigenous look at the universe from nature and spiritual perspective, while western societies tend to focus more on calculable science, made me reflect on my own life experiences.

My mom believes in energy. When we were little, she would use indigenous (Zapotec and Chatina) traditions (p.8) that she learned from my grandma to take away the “mal de ojo” (bad energies). She would do it by passing an egg over us and then breaking the egg on a glass of water. She has done it since we were babies. However, it was never a problem for me until I started growing up. I started getting very critical and skeptical about all of her methods. Honestly, it didn’t make sense to believe that passing an egg around someone’s body would have any real effect. I started to even get ashamed that my mom believed that, and I tried really hard to convince her that there was no way that her traditions worked.

This class made me rethink my own ideas and be more open to other ways of seeing life. Learning how western knowledge has been imposed and how indigenous knowledge is not always recognized made me do more research on the topic. I now feel ashamed of feeling ashamed about my mom’s traditions.