On being human and actualizing connection
I recently had a conversation with a friend, which reminded me of why I do what I do. More importantly, why I believe it is so essential. The art of being human and to actualize connection is interdependent upon the ability to attune to the natural world.
We chatted about family, art and social projects that we were working on, but the one thing that stood out the most was remembering and practicing what she call ancestral skills*.
She shared that her daughter, a young woman of 19, was reconnecting with the rich textile tradition of their people. For her these skills were more valuable and relevant than the frenzied surge of technology, 5G, and AI (Artificial Intelligence). I personally could not agree more.
Irrespective that they were both Diné, having deep roots here in New Mexico, and I’m not, we both shared love and respect for human wisdom and skill. In this case, the rich traditions of hand dyeing and weaving. Her daughter is passionate about ancestral skills and travels into her community and around the world to learn weaving, natural dying, and metal work.
Ancestral skills are vanishing and it is our responsibility to remember, learn and maintain. What connects me to who I am, the nature of who I am, is keeping this wisdom alive through practice.
My ancestors were cattle ranchers, farmers, fishermen, seafarers, craftsmen, bread bakers, world travelers, artisans, entrepreneurs, and gardeners. Who I am is a unique expression with my collective ancestral memory.
The fisherman knows how to read water, how to understand currents, how smells will reveal different behaviors, how to listen and read cues even in the air around them. It is a natural language they attune too. Within this language they understand water and the fish below.
The farmer knows when a storm is coming by reading cloud patterns, knows when seeds are ripe and ready for collection, can sense the nights warming and the moon waning. My love and intuition for farming and gardening not only comes from direct experience and years of work, but also from familial memory, my ancestral connection. Now, working outside is a continuous conversation where I am using all of my senses to experience life. In remembering these skills I am able to connect with myself, others, and nature.
*I am referring to the knowledge and skills of hunting, weaving, herbal foraging, bow making, ironwork, medicine making, natural dying, etc. Skills our ancestors had but are largely forgotten in modern, industrial living.