somewhere under the sky

the birthplace of the sun

to orient you-Lake Titicaca is a massive lake on the border between Peru and Bolivia. There are a hundred or so islands in the lake, two of which are Isla del Sol and Isla de la Luna, the supposed birth places of the sun and the moon.

i went to Isla del Sol yesterday, but only had an hour in total on the island. trying to go Che Guevara style, i wanted to get the history of the island from a local. after walking up an Inca staircase, which quite literally took my breath away every 8 steps, i eventually stopped and (with permission) sat down next a local, elder Aymara woman. i´ve observed people work with peasants, and i knew i first needed to gain her confidence. i only had an hour though, and i pretty much failed at this. i tried making small conversation, and then asked if she could tell me the history of the island. she said she didn´t know. i said " they say the sun was born here." she agreed, but said nothing more. i could get no story out of her. it´s not that peasants are distrustful people. on the contrary, i find peasants to be the most generous, humble, wise, and beautiful people i´ve ever encountered. many of them are in fact, quite open with foreigners (or at least, me). but many are also shy. it is my educated guess that if i spoke Aymara, she could have chatted my ear off. as it was, my spanish couldn´t serve me. i asked her friend if she could tell me a story. "there aren´t any stories that are told to children?" i asked. "ah yes, the children, they know how to tell stories. but they´re in school right now."
the first woman was weaving. yarn was looped around a small stick, and the stick she held in between her feet while she wove the yarn with her hands. i was mesmerized. she sells her work to tourists, and i bought one from her for about $1. it´s a small belt-like thing, with the woven inscription "ama sua ama llulla ama killa." Aymara for "don´t steal, don´t lie, and don´t be lazy," the three rules of ancient Andean society.
what divided me from this woman? i looked at her feet, and at my own. i was wearing New Balance sneakers that i had bought less than 2 months ago when i was San Fransisco. i had sustained an injury and needed tennis shoes so i went to the store, and paid $65 for a new pair of good shoes. her shoes were mocassin-like, black, faded, cracked and worn leather with holes in the top where her equally cracked feet poked through. her feet told a history, but i never got it from her.
what does it mean to be poor? to be rich?

posted by leah v @ 9:49 AM