Beingindigenous | Magazine


My story: a testimony of a quechua girl

My name is Nayra Luna. I am 10 years old and I have always lived in Iquique. When I was 17 days born I went to the town (Mamiña) for the first time. Since I was little I knew that I was a indigenous girl. My "tata" (grandfather) always spoke to me that it is a wonderful thing because it make you feel unique in the world.

With my brother Omar Atahualpa (he is 7 years old), we have been talking about to be young quechua. Both of us say that is special to have our ancestors in Mamiña.

I watch my hills covered with terraces which were made by the hands of my ancestors and see the perfect stone houses. Although I just know a little bit about my story and only some words in my language, I feel that Mamiña is the pride of my life. Therefore, I would say to other children that they should find out their origins to know: who were their ancestors, what they made and learn from them.

Live in a town is very different from the city. In spite of in my home in Mamiña there are not light, nor television, we enjoy a lot. In the town, almost all are family and my grandmother Pascuala Cautín live there too. She is 100 years old, slanting eyes, dark-skinned. She uses a cane when she go to the farmyards where she has rabbits of all colors.

The Carnival is the most beautiful. The band play and we dance raising to the hill to eat "picante de conejo" .

My brother says that it would be good that the national day would be celebrated with the celebration of all towns of Chile together, because these towns have also history and heroes that make irrigation channels, terraces, etc to live peacefully with the nature and the community.

All that is very pretty, but it is necessary to take care of it. Therefore, I believe that all indigenous people that live in the city must to remember our culture. We have to go to our celebrations, to defend the water and the Earth from minning, to write our stories and sing and play our music, so that it will never extinguish.

Note:
Beindigenous congratulate our friend Nayra on speak with courage by her town. Children like Nayra are the future of the indigenous nations of our continent.