Urban Garden welcomes Aztec blessing and the Milpa crop
Sarah Jasso
Issue date: 5/19/09 Section: Features
After Rodriguez blessed the land, Aztec dancers performed a traditional indigenous dance to acknowledge rain, and then there was a feast to celebrate.
"It was a great day" remembered a student who attended the event. "It was really cool to see all the rituals they used to perform."
Of course there was a lot of work that went into the ceremony before the celebration could begin.
"The hardest part for me was digging the path way for the pipes to install the water system" says Bryant Burgos, a Chicano Studies student.
"It was the best and the worst part of the experience" Burgos says. "It was a lot of hard work to get the land ready for planting but in the end you felt good,like the land has connected with you."
Oriona Kovatch, a classmate of Burgos, agrees with him. "When you are working out there you feel connected to the earth as well as the plants. I even named the plants that I planted" Kovatch laughed. "Sometimes I'll walk by them and say, hi."
The semester is over now but the students say they want to stay committed to the project.
"I will come back when it's time to plant the beans and squash" says Karla Pedroza, another Chicano Studies student. Pedroza mentioned she'd be back "in September when it's harvest time."
Davalos wants to continue with the Milpa and make it a permanent project for the Chicano Studies Program.
"In the fall we will have a harvest ceremony for the Milpa." This will give the students a chance to enjoy the fruits of their labor, and for some that is the ultimate reward.
"It was hard work, but in the end it will pay off" says another Chicano Studies student. "It'll be great to have a ceremony and be like, wow, I planted this!"
"It was a great day" remembered a student who attended the event. "It was really cool to see all the rituals they used to perform."
Of course there was a lot of work that went into the ceremony before the celebration could begin.
"The hardest part for me was digging the path way for the pipes to install the water system" says Bryant Burgos, a Chicano Studies student.
"It was the best and the worst part of the experience" Burgos says. "It was a lot of hard work to get the land ready for planting but in the end you felt good,like the land has connected with you."
Oriona Kovatch, a classmate of Burgos, agrees with him. "When you are working out there you feel connected to the earth as well as the plants. I even named the plants that I planted" Kovatch laughed. "Sometimes I'll walk by them and say, hi."
The semester is over now but the students say they want to stay committed to the project.
"I will come back when it's time to plant the beans and squash" says Karla Pedroza, another Chicano Studies student. Pedroza mentioned she'd be back "in September when it's harvest time."
Davalos wants to continue with the Milpa and make it a permanent project for the Chicano Studies Program.
"In the fall we will have a harvest ceremony for the Milpa." This will give the students a chance to enjoy the fruits of their labor, and for some that is the ultimate reward.
"It was hard work, but in the end it will pay off" says another Chicano Studies student. "It'll be great to have a ceremony and be like, wow, I planted this!"
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