- Cycle of Open Classroom Conversations Towards the Bicentennial
- "Towards a prehistory of Cajamarca"
- Friday October 30
- 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
- Transmission: Fanpage of the MPC and via YouTube - Canal Escuela Taller San Antonio, Cajamarca
- Link: https://bit.ly/2Bpw6SF
Yesterday I had the opportunity to witness the virtual conversation between Laura Acero from BibloRed, Colombia, and Alfredo Mires from the Red de Libraries Rurales de Cajamarca:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emb6JoqOYbQ
I am a follower of Rural Libraries, awaiting their news and –in these times of pandemic– I have been able to enjoy many webinars, virtual presentations and similar conversations through different channels and platforms.
It is always enriching, encouraging and hopeful to listen to what Alfredo shares with such kindness and gratitude, but last night's conversation was really beautiful.
Laura, so kind and affectionate, inspired a lot of tenderness and respect for the work of Rural Libraries, and managed to convey her admiration for the work of the Network to the public. And Alfredo presented, in a very short time, a sum and an extension of everything that Rural Libraries does: from its conception to the details of the exchange of books, from the encouragement and effort that a Coordinator inspires to the need to join forces to protect this planet. It was, really, great.
Thanks again to the Rural Libraries Network and BibloRed, Colombia, for such a beautiful sunset. Congratulations and my great respect.
A follower of the Wanderings
The School of Mediators of the District Network of Public Libraries of Bogotá —BIBLORED—, of Colombia, once again led a beautiful meeting between the librarians of this fellow country and our Executive Advisor Alfredo Mires Ortiz, to talk about libraries, networks, community. Here we review some of the main ideas of the conversation.
- Librarians of Latin America
For this important axis, Alfredo recalled some elements that unite us as Latin American peoples, also "to emphasize that there is more that brings us together than what separates us. Latin America can boast of having a marvelous common root; a fantastic diverse landscape guided by the Andes mountains; a reckless story with the same despotism and similar rebellions; and a utopia to which we are still galloping.” That is, we have a common and latent source, the color of the soul is the same and therefore we bond through nature that gives us life.
He recalled the words of the Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez who masterfully summarized the uniqueness of our peoples. Gabo in a Proclamation entitled "For a country within the reach of children", which was read in the Palace of Nariño in 1996, said that even before the arrival of the invaders, our people: "Did not have a notion of State, nor political unity among them, but they had discovered the political prodigy of living as equals in differences”, and that –a few years later–, “mixing was already an irrepressible demographic force. The thousands of African slaves, brought by force for the barbarous work of mines and farms, had brought a third dignity to the Creole broth, with new rituals of imagination and nostalgia.”
- Networking
Alfredo emphasized that the meaning of the Quechua word suq is one, but at the same time it means another, therefore, we are the others, I am the other, we are community. We work as a network because that is how we are, or rather, that is how we should be. He added that: “If reading is a way of threading with the world, by threading we know better what we read for, why we are in this task. When we talk about network it is about a common thread, it is about knots, it is about different colors and textures, but it is the same yarn. A Network is a diverse and plural search for meaning, the path and the objective. But this would not be possible without a sense of gratitude and gratuity. That is why we are volunteers: we do not fall into the logic of benefits, which is basically the same logic as that of torture ... There is a clear cause that drives us and there is an aspiration that is already waiting for us.”
“We work as a network so that the humble steps that we undertake are a certainty and also a hope; so that the life of the defenseless does not continue to be a disgrace.” The meaning of being a network is that “we are together, we know that we are near, joined, connected, protected and close”, and this is a responsibility, a formidable concern.”
He also stressed that in order to constitute a network it is essential to have a conception, to know which are the flags that command us; in addition to considering consensus, trust, independence, the willingness of the collective to "maintain the underground river" and always have the courage to read the context.
- A librarian who reads roots
He stressed that "the librarian is not a file manager, but one who takes on the challenge of reading and reading himself in these roots, in these landscapes, these stories and these utopias." "We are librarians also to take shelter and to be awed, to unmask and unmask ourselves."
- Libralances: libraries as ambulances
"Today, getting to read and being librarians puts us in trouble: it is one of those emergencies that requires all "libralances", that is, that all libraries rush like ambulances."
- Libraries that sow desire and freedom
“In the case of libraries, it is a question then - as when the fields are cultivated - of sowing the desire to get to know books and with the freedom to read them; to fertilize the desire to reveal them and the urge to share them; to reap the impetus to enjoy them and the dazzling of understanding them.”
- The oldest book: the earth
“The oldest book of all is the earth, where the movements of time and wind, the song of the trees, the words of the stars and the water are written. Where the paths of rain and seeds are written, the voices of birds and peoples, untamed mountains and cultivated lands. Reading the land, walking it, exploring it and getting to know it is the best way to love it and learn to respect it.”
An anthropologist studying the customs of an African tribe put a basket full of fruit near a tree and told the children that the first to reach the tree would win all the fruit. Given the signal, all the children held hands and ran at the same time! Then they sat under the tree to enjoy the food.
When the anthropologist asked why they had acted in this way, they replied: "Ubuntu, my friend: how can one of us be happy, if all the others are sad?"
And how could all the rest of us be happy, if one of us is sad? Or, as we say in Rural Libraries: "What if you were us?"
Rita mocker
Rural Libraries of Cajamarca is close to turning 50 years of journeying in the different communities of Cajamarca. It was forged little by little, thinking of the other as oneself, because the other is oneself; respecting nature and adapting over time.
Our brother Alfredo Mires, in the midst of virtuality, tells about the work of our Network in a conversation with BibloRed in Bogotá. With heartfelt words he makes us feel proud of who we are, encourages us to enjoy what we do and to look forward to the new times.
To see the full discussion, follow the link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emb6JoqOYbQ
Some months ago, in this pandemic year 2020, our brother Alfredo came up with a proposal that would respond to the previous diagnoses of the social and organizational context of our Network and the challenges and needs to face the current situation. So, since the month of August, after being approved by the Central Team and agreed with our library families in the Cajamarcan countryside, the steps of the Remote Coordination Strategy -ECOR- and the Virtual Library of the Network - BIVIR - began. We have held some meetings via WhatsApp with the coordinators of the area or sector and of the rural libraries in educational institutions —BRIE. Some reading materials, texts and posters have already been shared to inspire and continue the work of our rural libraries in the communities.
It is another way of continuing together, being present and ratifying our conviction and encouragement to share books, readings, voices and paths.
Infinite thanks for being present and continuing on!
On 14th October, our brother Alfredo met with teachers from various provinces of Cajamarca, through a webinar organized by the Regional Directorate of Education of Cajamarca -DRE-, to talk about reading, students and families. We highlight some ideas expressed by Alfredo:
- He drew attention to the decontextualization of the books used in the educational system, having an oppressive mold and not responding to the conditions and realities of the population. Likewise, he spoke of the supposed neutrality of education that imposes a vision of the world, alienating the content and alienating us to ourselves so that we stop being indigenous and Cajamarcan, so that we abandon our own image.
- Regarding the use of technologies, he said that “the use of technological means is a recursive maneuver, it is not a pedagogical proposal. They are not the cause, nor the reason for being”.
- He referred to the issue of functional illiteracy or student disconnection with the universe of authentic reading; He pointed out that "it is not exclusive to the rural area: in the city it is probably worse because it is more linked to the sources of alienating predominance."
- On the subject of educational strategies for reading and other teaching matters, he proposed that these be seen as an action plan or process to achieve a goal. But, first, it would be necessary to ask if the purpose to be achieved is clear, since it is necessary to consider that "a strategy does not serve us if the principles, diagnoses and objectives are not clearly stated".
- He spoke of two ways to achieve life-giving reading processes: on the one hand, the presence of adequate books, since we cannot encourage reading if we do not provide ourselves with the materials to read. And on the other, he emphasized the importance of setting an example, because "it is necessary for students to see their parents, their teachers, the authorities, happy reading books or talking about reading."
- Regarding reading, he replied that grammaticalization is not reading, since we can read in multiple ways. We read with everything: with our nose, with our hands. Reading is not confined to the text and, although reading is visual, it is still auditory because it is always vocalized, the words are always sounded.
- Some of the best books for our peoples are those that emerged from the communities, those that were born from this fertile land.
- “One of the most terrible self-flagellations is underestimating what we are, what we are worth deep down. And we let that which makes us possible and that which gives us beauty and multiplies genius die, dilute and disappear."
- "What we have to cultivate is the lively and enlivening taste for reading, the extraordinary pleasure of reading and the sensitivity to share and put into practice what we learn."
- “When a child who is in school stops appreciating the extraordinary value of being a farmer, what he loses is not a job: what he loses is the sense of his culture and the mood of his horizon. What is lost is not a worker: what is lost is the wisdom of the land. If an old potato seed is lost, what is lost is not a genetic resource: what is lost is tomorrow's food, what is lost is the essence of future pleasures.”
- He returned to the importance of rescuing the reason for being of the word, which vivifies culture and makes the life of these traditions possible. He invited the written word not to cool the life of the spoken voice, to take care not to freeze it, not to isolate it from the lived and vivifying sensation.
When a family descends from a small town, despite the passage of time there are customs that are not lost, on the contrary, they are yearned for more every day, they become stronger in the memories of the descendants.
This is what happened to us a few weeks ago: when we saw up close the celebration of the Virgen del Rosario in Ichocán, we were reminded of our parents who hurriedly prepared their luggage to go to town a few weeks before to start the dough, prepare the rich corn bread, the turcos, the treats, the bread ... everything, to wait for the visit of the children and grandchildren.
The old people are already laid to rest, and those of us who remain have not learned enough, but the intention goes further. Thus, with the old recipes of the grandmothers, this year we learned to prepare some of those sweets. Hopefully with practice we will improve the flavors although, as my children say, by gas oven it is not the same as by wooden oven.
And the fact is that when we remember the dough, other memories also come flooding in, such as the smell of the wood stove, the hubbub of the boys climbing the trees to collect mouthworms, medlars; or those winners looking for the best stone to crush the others' conkers; also the murmur of the guinea pig and, of course, the memory of some conversations between neighbors or relatives:
- Good morning, sister, do me a favour: lend me your ruco, because my guinea pig has given birth.
- Of course, sister! I will when I find it and give it to you.
OR:
- Neighbor Pancho! Good Morning. Are you in?
- Good morning, Don Manuelito. Here I am, blinding a little alfalfa for the guinea pigs. Tell me what it will be.
- Lend me, Don Panchito, your pickaxe; Then I'll return it. I need to earth up and mine has the handle worn out. This week I fix it.
- Yes, Don Manuelito, of course. Take it.
These memories do not pass.
We recently learned of families who have returned from other cities to live in the village. They say there are now more inhabited houses. I think hopefully it's for the better. And it is not for wanting to return to the past, it is for the fear of losing what is left. You need to preserve those memories and practice them. These gestures of solidarity are no longer seen in these times; those good habits are being lost.
If we do not want more sad memories of this and other pandemics, it is better to rescue what makes us live healthy, in harmony, in peace with our neighbors and with nature. And, everything new that comes, if it is for the good, welcome.
Lola Paredes
