Last Thursday Jenna and I went to a presentation given by Rigoberta Menchu Tum who is a nobel peace laureate and a great Guatemalan woman. She spoke of many wonderful things and I though I would give a small summary.
- She reminded us of the importance of remembering our ancestors and our culture. She taught that "Our cultures teach so many values that humanity needs today."
- She said "that we must review the quality of life based on two principles: material balance and spiritual balance." She also says that "human beings have abandoned basic relations with mother earth" and we must maintain this relation in order to acheive any balance.
- One of my favorite quotes was, "We can read many books, but it is the cultural practice that will give us happiness."
- She talked of the hardships of Guatemala and addressed the younger generation by saying, "Why do we have to first suffer before we think we can fight for life? There is no excuse not to fight for our rights and justices."
What I got out of it was that we must look to our ancestors and cultures and not be afraid to fight for our rights. It was a very moving presentation and I am glad that Jenna and I could attend.
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