Whenever I go to Kiskeya, I always look forward to trying the seasonal fruits that are available during my trip. I am very particular about my choices and take my time to find the fruits that are from this land and were consumed by the Taino ancestors.
On my recent visit, I arrived during the summer, shortly after the solstice. It is a wonderful time to be here as the land was abundant with a variety of fruits, each offering a unique combination of flavors, textures, and colors. I had the pleasure of trying many fruits such as níspero, zapote, guanábana, chirimoya, pitahaya, papaya, and jagua. I also had the opportunity to taste Canistel, a delicious fruit related to caimito that originates from Cuba.
When I am in Kiskeya it is also important to me, collecting cultural items from my ancestors to bring back to my adopted home. This helps me maintain a connection to my indigenous legacy and eases feelings of nostalgia, which are almost always present.
A cultural item worth mentioning from this trip is the ink made from unripe jagua, commonly used to decorate the body, as well as for coloring textiles, hair, and painting on ceramics. My wonderful family members from the countryside are the ones who generously provided me with this precious fruit, and through the ancestral technology and my own spiritual practice I carefully extracted the ink to take it with me to my home of adoption.
I am sharing a video tutorial of this process that is intended for everyone, but especially for members of the Caribbean diaspora who may not have regular access to our cultural experiences. The purpose of this video is to share knowledge so that when you return to our lands, you can create this traditional ink. It is also important that every day there are more of us who recover our cultural heritage, which we are putting together like a puzzle, and spreading it generously with our fellow community members. Our hope is that this tutorial will bring a piece of our culture to you, wherever you may be, and help you feel closer to home.
Ahan katu,
Akutu Irka
