more commentaries
i forgot to write something about Kapak Raymi which i found very beautiful. during one of the ceremonies, somebody commented that Kapak Raymi is not only to celebrate publicly the new leaders but it celebrates the strength and power inside each of us in the space that corresponds to us. it was simple but profound.
christmas has come and gone here in Saraguro, although this morning i heard once again the parade of Wikis, Ajas, Gigantes, etc. pass my window so maybe it´s not so gone. there is absolutely nothing here that reminds me of christmas where i grew up, so i have been missing the holidays less than i expected, simply because it doesn´t feel at all like the holidays. i have to say that christmas here is much more friendly to the environment - no christmas lights, no yards of wrapping paper and bows only to be thrown away, no plastic wrapping from toys and gadgets, etc. just by way of commentary...
today i had a lengthy discussion about the education system. in Ecuador the system has come from Spain, obviously, although i remember reading somewhere about trying to imitate the French system at some point. in either case, it is a system based on the paradigm of memorization, or "conductivist." which means the professor dictates the class and whether you agree or disagree doesn´t matter, the students stay quiet and seated and to "learn," they memorize. there of course, exist other types of schools. Montessori, etc. have been set up in some places. the fight for bilingual (native language and spanish) has been long and hard. the indigenous here in saraguro have set up their own education centers, since i think around 25 years ago, but these don´t go until high school. i was conversing with an educator of one these centers who was saying they are having a hard time because in the indigenous centers they´ve implemented the system based on the development of motor skills (destrezas). kids learn by playing, is the idea. they´ve had problems because people from the high school claim that the professors are lazy, that they don´t actually do any teaching, that they don´t plan, etc. in fact it´s the other way around. if you are a professor in a high school based on the dictate, memorize system, what planning is necessary? the professors work from 8-1 and that´s it. on the other hand, to implement an alternative system in the centers has taken a lot of work. not only are they constantly planning for the actual school day and discussing what type of education they want, but it´s also inclusive, which means once a month there is a meeting with the parents, etc. and this requires much more work than the salary they receive. it has also required a lot of work on the part of the educators, who themselves were formed in the memorize-dictate system.
it made me think of my own education. my friends from Asia claim that the united states is known for very good education. when i think about our popular society, however, i question this. or Miss North Carolina. or the sad fact that in 2002, 11% of U.S. students ages 18-24 couldn´t identify the United States on a map (88% couldn´t identify Iraq). but on the whole, i do think at least that we are not discouraged to talk, react, question, etc. a lot depends on the professor. as a national system, however, i have heard not so heartening views about no child left behind. well...
i´m very excited for "the old year", as new year´s eve is called here. people form groups and make life-size dolls to burn and with it comes a whole dramatization and the people burned leave "wills" and the imaginary figure that remains is the "widow." i´m pleased to announce we are burning the mayor and the indigenous candidate who ran against him. for all my wanting to see the good in people and wanting to give him the benefit of the doubt, i have come to the conclusion that the mayor is a racist, authoritarian jerk. or maybe even a harsher word would fit. he was already a term as mayor and for the new constitution, the country had new elections. he changed political parties to ally himself with Correa (the president), obviously to have more funds, and won the election by a series of fraudulent events. if you are wondering why the indigenous candidate is also being burned, this is because it´s part of the dramatization - in other words they can re-enact the elections and have them insult each other. i´m very excited.
II
to continue with Kapac Raymi, someone i was talking to about it mentioned how christmas is the celebration of the new King - Jesus. and so around this time the indigenous also celebrated new leaders, so it was easy to transpose the one onto the other. yesterday started celebrations of Kapac Raymi in a different community. there was a dance competition and an invited group of music but it was terribly cold and i didn´t even stay to dance.
i´m very pleased to say it has rained the past couple days in saraguro and it seems winter is finally here. not like winter on the east coast of course, but winter is needed here too. the drought has affected not only crops...Ecuador gets most of their energy from hydroelectricty, which means when there´s no water, there´s no energy either. to save energy the government has been cutting electricity by regions for a few hours a day. in city centers of course, businesses are subsequently affected by this. in turn, i imagine it has created much more business for sellers of generators, since businesses started buying them to keep from closing.
in Saraguro the celebrations and activities continue. nothing interesting comes to mind at this moment although in the past week i have had many conversations and experiences that have taught me. hopefully next time i´ll have something more interesting to say...
अ फेव नोट्स
i tried typing the title "a few notes" and apparently it is automatically translating this to arabic (?). i hope my text appears in english for you.
i am in Saraguro, Ecuador again, working on my thesis (again, or as usual). it is the first time i am away from home for the holidays but while i miss my family, Christmas time in Saraguro is fascinating. they started celebrations last weekend and they continue intermittently until 7 january. rehearsals for the dances started months ago, and in fact, the patrons/financers of the celebration for next year are named this year. to explain would take a book, which there is of course. but briefly, there are two patrons who are held in high respect by the community, and the community contributes bringing different items of food for the celebrations. there are parades with dances with different personalities, the most interesting of which, to me, are the two Ajas and two Wikis. Saraguro was catholicized when the Spaniards came, so of course one would try to relate these characters to the Christmas celebration, but no where else in the world, that it is known, are there characters like these. which means they are either of mix of some Andean/Saraguro simbolism with the Catholic stories or they are Andean images that were incorporated into the celebration. apparently, in times past, there even used to be the figure of a priest who was ritualisticaly decapitated; but that ended on the order of one of the priests. go figure. anyway, the celebration centers around the "image" which is a figure of the Christ child, who is guarded and made vigils over for these few weeks. sources on/from the Saraguros talk about how celebrations incorporate several things - they are a break from daily hard work, they are key to maintaining social relations, they are one of the ways the community expresses reciprocity, and their symbolic meanings are a way for the community to literally express their religiosity. in my obversation of the celebration of Kapac Raymi yesterday in one of the communities, this was all very clear to see. Kapac Raymi is different from Christmas, it is celebrated on the winter solistice but i´m not sure yet of all it´s meaning. Kapac means leader and Raymi means festival. the celebration is a time to laugh, to establish, reaffirm, and create values, to express reciprocity by bringing "pinzhi" which are contributions to the food, etc.
on a personal and unrelated note, today i had my own mental celebration. i suffer from a disease called perfectionism; one of the effects of this is that i never acknowledge work that i´ve accomplished and instead i tell myself i haven´t accomplished anything in accordance to the goals that are in my head. being aware of this, i´m trying to celebrate accomplishments. today i went to meet a figure in the community whom i don´t know to consult him about several things, and i celebrated the simple fact that i approached the house correctly. this involved: first observing the dogs to see if they were dangerous (almost all houses in the communities have dogs for protection). upon seeing that they were not so friendly, i looked around for a stick, and armed, i approached, also giving the hissing sound that is given to get dogs away. then i gave the other whistle that is to notify people of your presence and yelled out "se puede?" which means can i enter? of course, even knowing these customs will not hide the fact that the person who came to greet me found a scared-looking gringa with a stick in each hand.
i celebrate this as something that i have learned little by little throughout my stays in Saraguro, and it something that i did not know before. so, if you are a perfectionist, celebrate something you have learned today.
until later
