Our books

We celebrate the arrival of a new book, because it is a new child in the family, a new hope, a new light on our journey, a great companion, one that will continue to reaffirm us in our culture, the one that will tell our grandchildren what we were, are and will continue to be; and you can't imagine how hard it is for these little ones to turn out nice and pretty.

We believe that our books should be impeccable and we like to be demanding; we are very careful with the processing of information, with the design and layout. However, despite the efforts of teamwork and applying what we have learned from the best teacher, our brother Alfredo Mires, we see that we still have a lot to learn - if only our "boss" were here - we say.

If you find any mistakes: please let us know! We assure you that we check the drafts over and over again, as a team. If there is an extra letter, if a margin has been moved, if there is a symmetry problem... nothing is intentional.

We welcome our books as the most precious thing in this family, the fruit of the contribution of many comrades from the countryside and the city, who bring the message of those who came before us to fight for an ever more just world.

Encouraging us to read

In our meetings and visits to the countryside, for several years now, we have heard expressions such as "reading is not what it used to be", "young people don't want to read any more, they are only on their mobile phones". That makes me sad, thoughtful, attentive.

I believe that television, WhatsApp and mobile phones are not in competition with books; they are simply other, different means of communication. And that, with rare exceptions, nobody reads a book on their mobile.

This gives us the option to look at the situation from another angle and to re-evaluate the book as a tool and a firm companion in our wanderings.

In August I was invited to a school in Sucse, Sócota, Cutervo. There we have a rural library in an educational institution, which opened at the beginning of the year. The person in charge is Abel Vásquez Saucedo, a skilled and committed coordinator with a long career as a reading promoter in the network.

We started the day with some games and dynamics to "break the ice", get to know the students and sound out their interest in books. And we were surprised by the spirit of these students: no one was left aside, everyone wanted to participate, everyone paid attention and collaborated with great enthusiasm.

Afterwards, Abel led a reading circle with students and teachers, using the book Letter from Chief Seattle. Once again we were pleased with the active participation and the dedication of everyone. It was a very enjoyable day, and I confirm: if we encourage reading with enthusiasm and preparation, we spread the passion for books. That is what we try to do in the Libraries.

Rita Mocker

Idylls

The reflection of the moon

in a wet petal

the first honey of the day

for a hummingbird in love.

A drop of dew

the wing of a beetle

the top of the mountain

looking up at it.

That's you and by far

the most beautiful inspiration

the dream of desires

the most precious smile.

The gleam of a tender eye

a ray of sunshine singing

the echo of a faithful sigh

a thread of a shining voice.

The smell of the earth

after the first downpour

and a cartridge of the lily

toasting with a star.

The ledge of a rock

to climb the mountain

a clean space

in the middle of the tangle.

 

Alfredo Mires Ortiz

"Resuellos" (Breaths)

Welcome, to keep on walking

The arrival of a loved one, the birth of a child, is for our families and communities a cause for hope and celebration.

A few days ago, three new books arrived in the network; two of them as reprints - at the request of our readers - and one, completely new, authored by our brother Alfredo Mires: his legacy is endless.

The new members of the library family are full of charm and wisdom; tales and stories about musical instruments in the Cajamarca tradition; games and guidelines for the care and rehabilitation of our beloved Juanitos -children with "disabilities", cared for by the volunteers of the Community Programme, and our dear ñaupas organised in mandalas to help us with motor skills and the hundreds of benefits of painting.

May these new children and great companions encourage our wanderings and strengthen the commitment of the whole library family to continue being.

Ñaupa in Colombia

Yesterday I received a picture of a painted little Ñaupa. It was one of the pages of the El Ñaupa colouring book designed by Alfredo Mires in 2021. He did it because, from the Community Programme, we had asked him for a colouring book with cultural motifs from Andean culture.

When I took a good look at the photo of this little Ñaupa, I realised that it had much more detail than the original: it had been filled with images that looked like they had come from the walls of some cave painting or from some lover's dream. It is full of designs and little things that invite you to let your imagination fly and get lost in fantasy. Our friend Mateo Oquendo has done it. Our daughter Mara has brought him a Ñaupa colouring book to Medellín, to try to draw a smile on Mateo's face. And the result is spectacular.

Thank you, Mateo, for your encouragement from Colombia. You are fantastic. And I know that Alfredo is smiling at you from where he is now.

Rita Mocker

Learning together

One of the principles of the Rural Library Network is the permanent training of all of us who are part of this family. And one of the best ways to learn is when we get together to read, talk, exchange experiences and listen to what others have to share with us. So, a few days ago, we met with the volunteer coordinators of the Network's Community Programme. At this training meeting we had the always pleasant visit of Professor María Trinidad Arana, who shared with us the importance of family participation in the rehabilitation of children with projectable capacities. Mara Mires, a volunteer as well, helped us to understand more about the world of technology, teaching us how to make better use of a tablet. We shared a reading circle led by don Sergio Díaz, volunteer coordinator of the Programme. And it was also necessary to dedicate a time for homeopathic medicine preparation, led by Rita Mocker, responsible for these tasks. And, of course, we always give ourselves a space to remember, commemorate and be grateful for the presence and wise legacy of our brother Alfredo Mires. We are well aware that it is he who continues to guide this work.

For us, these training meetings are very important because not only do we learn more, we are encouraged to meet, to talk to each other to find out how we are doing and to plan new actions that will allow us to move forward. We greatly appreciate the presence of the volunteer coordinators who make the effort to travel from their communities to our headquarters, and the support of our fellow volunteers of the Network for their constant help in the logistical details.

Murals

My husband, Alfredo Mires, was fascinated by the murals, these immense paintings that adorn walls and that inspire us to think. I think that was one of the reasons why he travelled and walked the hills of Cajamarca to recover try to decipher the cave paintings and the messages that the ancient inhabitants of these lands have left us.

And I have witnessed many moments when Alfredo stopped in front of a graffiti to take a photo or write down the text in his notebook; also his computer is full of files with these graffiti notes. Sometimes, over an afternoon coffee together, he would talk to me about his projects of decorating the Rural Libraries' premises with graffiti and murals, of adorning our house with his texts and paintings or of convincing people of some beautiful place to draw and write the stories of the Encyclopaedia Campesina in the walls of their houses, making it even more beautiful.

That is why I was not surprised when our daughter Mara a couple of weeks ago asked me if she could decorate the walls, doors, steps and other spaces in our house with drawings, paintings and texts of her father.

That is what we are doing: painting, drawing and writing in different spaces in the heart of our ayllu.I believe that this is Mara's way of transforming the house so that it no longer reminds us so much and in every corner of  Alfredo's absence, but also to follow in his footsteps, to capture his memory and honour his legacy. For Forever, Alfredo

Rita Mocker