Sleeping with Dogs (For Last on the Card)

6 Replies

Click on Photos to Enlarge

Can you find three dogs in this jumble of sheets and pillows? Barely room for one human to join them and it takes a bit of pushing and relocating. Now it is 6:30 a.m. and soon they’ll all be off like a shot for a walk with Oscar. It’s the first day of the celebration of the Virgin of Guadalupe, so we’ve all been up since 6 when the cohetes (bottle rockets) started going off. The actual celebration is Dec. 9-12, but San Juan Cosala likes to stretch the occasion out from Dec. 1-12.

There will be shrines set up in front of buildings all over town.  Yolanda will switch my candles to a position in front of the Virgin statue on my divider between the dining room and kitchen and “native sons”—men who have gone to work in the States—will send money for huge displays of flowers in the church. On the 12th, the 92-year-old statue of the Virgin of Guadalupe will be paraded through the streets and there will be a huge procession with many of the people being led blindfolded behind her statue. In former years, many would crawl on their knees in the procession, but I’m not sure if this happens now. Always a celebration being held somewhere in surrounding villages.

Ajijic is still celebrating the San Andreas Festival, with booths and carnival rides being set up all over town. Earlier, San Juan celebrated for San Juan, then Day of the Dead, now the Virgin, then Xmas. In Jan., Tres Reyes and February Candlemas, then Carnival leading up to lent and depictions of the crucifixion. I’ll stop there as I could go on month-by-month throughout the year.

Oscar just arrived and the dogs are off like a shot, my body being no big obstruction—they all just ran over or leaped over.  Coco always returns for one brief cuddle as Oscar puts the leashes on the others, then bounds out a second time when it is her turn. I’ll know they are home when I hear their food dishes rattling as he doles out their breakfast. It is 6:54. So go mornings on M-W-F in this house.

 

For Bushboy’s Last on the Card prompt

6 thoughts on “Sleeping with Dogs (For Last on the Card)”

  1. Unknown's avatarSam

    I have personally witnessed that procession of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Panama and it was a bloody thing with some beating themselves with chains and whips across their back and others with bloody knees and hands, etc. crawling, climbing up a mountain. This is one of the things the Spanish Catholics included into the pre-history native rituals as a way to get them to accept Christianity and it is something still done when I lived down there. Because it has become a strong part of their religion I think it will never go away. The sad part of it is that some think that it absolves them of the sins of the past year.

    Like

    Reply ↓
  3. Lou Carreras's avatarLou Carreras

    Some of your descriptions of the procession ring bells with similar Saints festivities I’ve studied. the leading of the blind folded is not something I’ve seen, and the kneeling or crawling is something I’ve been told about, but have not seen. Damn! I want to come down and do some fieldwork!!

    Like

    Reply ↓
    1. lifelessons's avatarlifelessons Post author

      Okay. I have a nice casita upstairs.. you are welcome to stay there. The kneeling and blindfolding is either penance or asking for something. There is also a three day walk through the mountains to visit the Virgin of Talpa. All of Yolanda’s family has done that and so did my helper before Yolanda..When I went to Yoli’s first communion and didn’t go up for communion afterwards, the old woman next to me motioned for me to go. I told her I wasn’t Catholic and she moved away from me with eyes wide!!! Ha.

      Like

      Reply ↓
      1. Lou Carreras's avatarLou Carreras

        The visitation at a chapel some distance away is right out of stuff done in southern Spain. Oh! it’s deja vu all over again! the circuits are burning up as my enfeebled elderly mind starts pulling up citations form journals and monologues, I itch to reach out and find my old notes from working at the Smithsonian. I sell insulation burning. Off to soak my head. Thanks Judy!

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply ↓

Leave a comment