11 October 2003 Saturday Cuzco

This is a brief, interim day - between S’alka Wazi and Puno, our next destination which is higher, colder. The connection between the two destinations is not yet clear to me.

An eagle flew overhead just as we began the ceremony which everyone considered an affirmation and a gift. (not my photograph)

Meeting with the Q’eros ... Don Americo was not on the bus when we met after the morning’s shopping session with Junior. He had met the Q’eros earlier and traveled with them in a small van to where we would all be meeting, at a place not far from town. Americo told us the Q’eros had walked two days to meet with us from their high mountain pueblo.

Our meeting place was high above Cuzco. The wind was howling cold when we got out of the bus. Looking down at my thin cotton pants and sandaled feet, I realized I was not dressed properly for this occasion, even with my coat. It felt like it could snow at any minute.

The first thing I noticed about the twelve Q’ero sitting on the ground in front of us was their size. They are tiny. Most are not even five feet tall.

Three women from their village came which Americo said is rare. Don Martin, the apparent leader was there (absent in years past), including two other high ranking men, whom Americo called "mayors." They were all dressed warmly in their beaded, knit hats, colorful ponchos and what looked like black, knit knickers. They were truly adorable.

They were here to give us blessings, to offer ritual, to share their music and their magic because they

I’ve never seen feet so small, so weathered or toenails so thick. Muchas gracias, Don Martin.

"see a bridge of waiki’s between their salka (undomesticated) world and the other world (ours - domesticated). They come, because Americo says it is good for all of us. We all felt it was good. There was no possible way to spend one minute with these precious beings and not feel their love for each other, for the earth, for us and for the cosmos. And more, Americo added, it is our intended connection ... to love, to share, to embrace in a knowing beyond earth. I get that we have a greater job to do here, folks. More than we know. And it isn’t about how one makes a living. It may be as small as being a single ray of loving energy in a dismal mid-western town or the best shoe salesmen at Bergdorf-Goodman’s or as significant as being the (first and) most consciously integrated President of the United States. I am getting how much we all matter, how we all play a significant part, no matter who we are, where we are or what we are doing. If I leave out a teaspoon of a critical herb in a huge pot of marinara sauce, it just won’t taste the same without it.

I left this people with a profound sense of gratitude ... for their making the arduous journey to spend some time with us, for their welcome blessings, for sharing their rituals, for delighting us with their music, their voices and their innocence. I made a mental note that when I next get to visit the Q’ero I will do a special photographic piece on their remarkable feet.

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