Ñaupitas that cheer

A few weeks ago, the Ñaupitas have begun their journey through the Cajamarca communities with the aim of encouraging the little ones (and also the old ones!), who are already receiving them with great joy.

Today it seems that there is a party: the children are happy, they talk, share colours, smile and put on the best outfits; each one, in their style, brings their ñaupas back to life.

Our gratitude to our brother and sister Alfredo and Rita for making this project possible, valuable therapy material for these tense moments that we are going through.

Ñaupa for coloring

For several years now, the Ñaupa, this sympathetic Andean ancestor made drawing, accompanies the tasks of the network. He enchants children and adults, he is reproduced and re-animated at different times and spaces.

In the Community Program, at the beginning of each year we send therapy material to children with projected abilities in the communities. In this way, the children with their families can constantly perform –and at the time that suits them best– the replications of the therapies that our field coordinators agree with the families.

A part of these therapies is aimed at preparing the children of the Program with a view to future school inclusion. This involves children doing exercises such as tearing paper, cutting with scissors, gluing pieces of paper, drawing and colouring, among other tasks.

For this reason, every year we also look for colouring books at a reasonable cost ... and every year we are disappointed with the offer. There are coloring books with motifs from European tales, Greek fables, parts of the human body or animals from other continents, to mention the more passable. The least appropriate for our context are those with figures of Superman, Pikachu, Hulk or Batman.

With these accumulated disappointments, last year we asked our brother Alfredo Mires to design a colouring book with Ñaupas, a book of our own.

And look how beautiful it is!

It is now possible to acquire it from our Central Office in Cajamarca.

From a peasant woman

“Thank you, thank you chacrita (dear farm), thank God for giving us the food! Hopefully next year you will produce the same, chacrita”.

This is a phrase that we can find in the testimonies of brother Marcos Florián.

This past 4th June we had the presentation of a new son of the Network, the book "El Campesino y la tierra", a testimony of brother Marcos Florián, with all his affection for the dear land.

I am very happy to have been able to collaborate with the drawings. When I read the book, many memories came to my mind of what we lived as peasants, on the farm and in the daily bustle of work. This work is sometimes very hard, but raising, respecting and valuing our dear plants and animals is a daily learning for me; recognizing practices that sometimes we are already losing, that we are forgetting.

This is a book to avoid abandoning the knowledge of our grandparents; it is a daily learning to share in the farm with the family and with the community members. It is something that young people must now bear in mind: this wisdom. And to become a little aware not only of the work of the peasant, but how great it is to have such an incredibly rich source of knowledge: our land.

Zelma Gálvez Vásquez, from El ahijadero.

"The puma on the prowl"

On Friday, 11th June, the book "The puma on the prowl - Chronicle of the permanence of Cajamarca" was launched.

This virtual event was conducted by our sister Lola Paredes and the welcome was given by our brother Javier Huamán, from the Liuchucolpa community.

Jorge Ventocilla, a friend of our Network, who was in charge of presenting the book, connected from Panama.

Miguel Garnett and Alfredo Mires, the authors, intervened jointly and alternately, telling of how the idea was born and what the writing process was of this excellent historical reference that, in addition to being written from “those from below”, gathers data of great value and actuality.

You must read it!

A place for books

A few weeks ago, our friend Victoria Vilca called us to ask if we could receive a donation of some books for our Libraries.

It was not the first time that Vicky showed us her enormous generosity like this, but this time there was a difference: her daughter Diana Escalante and her friends Paola Machuca and Jeffri Amambal had kindly put together some books to send to us.

"People need to know that there is a good place where they can donate their books," they told us later.

Thank you very much on behalf of our entire Network!

Book launch

A few months ago, the National Library of Peru invited our brother Alfredo to publish one of his books in the "Reading, Library and Community" Collection.

On Thursday, 27th May, then, the launch of "The book among the sons of Atahualpa", a selection of international conferences that Alfredo has given in recent years, took place.

Made greets the Apu Qayaqpuma

In many ways and for a long time, Madelaine Grau continues to volunteer for the Network.

Just a few days ago, from a friend's terrace, Made was surprised by the portentous greeting from Apu Qayaqpuma.

She has shared this photo of hers with us and, with it, the blessing of the sacred mountain.