Þórdís - Teotitlán  

Twenty three years ago Orri and I visited Teotitlán del Valle and bought a small rug from a woman who lived a bit separately from the rest of the village in a tiny house up in the mountains. She showed us her loom which took up most of the space in their humble cabin and we met a few kids who were running around outside the house. After buying the rug and seeing that Orri was carrying a camera the woman asked if he could take a picture of the family. They had no photos of themselves and we were more than happy to take a couple of pictures of them. Before saying goodbye we said we would send her the photograph, but sadly we lost her address and never did. A few months ago, while going through his old negatives in Toronto, Orri came across a picture of the family from Teotitlán and decided to make a print of it in case we would be able to visit the village again and find the family.

It was a funny feeling stepping off the bus now more than two decades later and looking around. The village is unrecognizable from the tiny and poor pueblo we visited in 1993. I recognised the main square and a couple of houses around the zócalo, but Orri and I agreed that we didn’t feel that we were at the same place. Tourism has obviously brought money to the town and it shows. After walking around the town and looking at all the beautiful rugs and other textiles, we showed some women at the main square the picture and asked if they recognised the family. They said they certainly did and pointed us to Adelaide’s new house and store which we decided to visit. It was a bit of a walk but as soon as we entered the store I recognised the woman who greeted us. When we showed her the photograph her eyes became moist and she called out to her son to come and take a look. The boy who was 7 years old in the picture is now 30 and works beside his mother. He told us he had been 8 when he started weaving and that at the age of 12 he had become quite good at it. From the age of 15 he has been doing the more complicated patterns and designs, he said proudly. Adelaide told us that when the picture was taken they had been living in the old house and I remembered how poor they were and how, after we had bought the rug and left their house, I wondered what sort of a life awaited them all. Now I happily noted that they seem to be thriving.

After Adelaide and her son showed us their house and the store they gave us a lesson in how they work the wool into yarn and then colour the yarn with different insects and plants. The boys saw the entire process from the sheep in the backyard to a finished rug up on a wall. They even got a chance to comb the wool and try the loom. Flóki was particularly fascinated by the different colours they use to dye the yarn and since our visit both boys have been experimenting with plants they find in our garden and in the hills around the house to make colours for their artwork.

Finally after a long visit, which included a sister who was fetched to come and say hello and look at the photograph, we selected and bought a beautiful rug that we will take with us home to Iceland. I know that when we admire it we will all think of Mexican sheep, cactuses, insects and hardworking people who take pride in their traditions and respect what nature provides.