Notes from the Field

I have noticed that many women in the community wash their dishes using a plant they call "polush." They use it instead of a dish sponge or scouring pad because they claim it has many benefits including:  It doesn't cost money-- the plants grow in the wild;  It doesn't accumulate bacteria because fresh leaves are used each time they wash dishes;  It is completely biodegradable and thus doesn't harm the environment;  It gives their dishes a clean and fresh scent.                                                                               "Polush" plant                        Woman collecting "polush" leaves "Polush" is used to wash everything from big metal pots to plastic plates: ...

Members of the community light candles outside their homes and along the sidewalks every year on December 7th to help Jesus (the lost child) find his parents.  The tradition is based on the Bible story in which a young Jesus gets separated from his family during a festival in Jerusalem and his parents search for him for three days (Luke 2:41-52).  When they find him, he is sitting in the temple having discussions with the Jewish teachers.  The celebration of the lost child was reportedly started by a friar in the north of Veracruz several centuries ago as part of an evangelization effort, but has been embraced by local communities and continued ever since.  Here are some photographs from that night:                   .      

Although there is no lack of water at my field-site, there are problems with its distribution.  For many years, Pemex (the Mexican oil company) provided running water to everyone's home, but after a hurricane in 1999 destroyed many of the pipes, Pemex never bothered to restore the service.  While the government provided funding to build a new water system for some of the affected communities, others to this date still lack running water in their homes.  These are some of the alternative ways people get water: Wells.   Since there is abundant groundwater, many people have dug wells near their homes and get water by filling buckets and pulling them up with a rope.  Some people also keep pets in their wells such as fish or crawfish.                    Natural Springs.   There are several of these in the area and people can fill buckets and water bottles (the water is clean to drink) or hire a ...

For people in the community this is the biggest holiday of the year, and they plan and look forward to it much in the same way I do Christmas.  Although Todos Santos is essentially a holiday about death, the mood surrounding it is neither sad nor creepy, but quite festive.  The holiday (which lasts for several days from the end of October to the beginning of November) involves the decoration of an altar set up in a prominent spot of the home. Altars are dedicated to family members who have died and are decorated with leaves, flowers, fruit, cut-out paper, candles, candy skulls and photographs.  The dead person's favorite foods and drinks are also placed on the altar and often include tamales , bread, chocolate, beer and Coca-Cola.  Incense is burned and the home is filled with a special holiday scent.  Todos Santos is a time where families come together (often returning home from afar) to remember their dead relatives and spend several days feasting and communin...