Happy Anniversary MUCOV! 365 days later

It has been what? 365 days? 52 weeks? 13 new moons? 8800 hours?

A little more than a year ago we planted the first seeds of an idea, a vision that we named Mujeres Con Vos, Documenting Herstory. But it is today, June of 2010 since the MUCOV proyect came out of the womb and opened her eyes to greet the world. A year ago, we embarked on a journey from Colombia with only the bare necessities, and like the turtle carrying its home, we started out with only a little camera, our big bulky backpacks (that little by little contained less and less of our own physical items and more and more of MUCOV´s dire needs).

We were also carrying some maps and one Lonely Planet guide, the strenght of our bodies and a big ocean size vision that made our eyes shine with anticipation and our hearts beat with excitement mixed with nervousn ess to take huge leaps of faith... And r eally, it is literally faith that has been the thread that has connected and sustained all of the part, sizes, and shapes that MUCOV has manifested into her first year of life. And it was also faith that lead to the different moments forever embedded into us (which was mostly recorded and documented for posterity). Faith that the long winding roads we have made our way through would lead us exactly where we needed to go... Crossing the border of Ecuador into Peru, going from green to gra y, from lush to dry, from warm humidity to the long blanket of a desert only marked by the sound of winds as they shift the sand from one dune to another...

Getting lost in the chaotic city of La Paz in the dark as we try to find the right bus out of a thousand to get to the home of a beautiful feminist couple, Victoria and Julieta, out on the edge of town... Winding our way through Cuzco, breathing in her Herstories and looking for a place to rest our feet and nurture our bodies...

Faith that we could learn new skills and become one with the technology that could make MUCOV a reality...

With hundreds of trial and error experiments,learning how to synchronize with GIA (video camera) and NIKA (photo camera), our electronic companions with MUCOV´s eyes and ears...

Acquiring what is known as Chutzpah (in Hebrew) , which in MUCOV terms translates into following our intuition shamelessly and sometimes ignoring our manners a bit to make sure we do not miss an opportunity for adventure. That is, even if it meant making our way through a thick crowd in Cochabamba, Bolivia through the ambulance entrance in order to get footage of South American presidents about to create histories, the colorful crowd cheering in front of them, their excitement a palpable force...

Or erasing the lines that divide the stranger from the non stranger over and over as we dared to approach womyn after womyn. Even when the air around them was charged with questions unanswered and we asked whether MUCOV could be a true witness to their experiences...

Or Mayra stopping time in its tracks and snapping a moment of truth: Children working in the streets, like Veronica and her much older eyes, her day filled with unceasing work and her hands carrying sweets for those with a life different from her own...

Faith that womyn of all walks of life will want to share their own visions, lives and Herstories with the world... Violeta, tears running down her cheeks, with her eyesight almost gone, as she speaks of her pain of being given away, abandoned during her childhood... Marcela, her laughter ringing in our ears, saying that she got married so that her mother would never again question her about her virginity and how afterwards she became happily divorced and independent... Julia and her determination to stand up to the corruption of the law and put her children ahead of anything else including having to face the rejection of her community for being a “single-mother”.

Faith that we were protected by our own hearts and courage and by the elements that have created this universe...

Pieces of broken glass surrounding us as we leave the wreckage of a bus, alive and healthy yet impacted forever by the images and voices, by how randomness and gravity create collisions that reminded us of the closeness of death and the quickness it has to touch you through another body that suddenly has no heartbeat. Faith that the difficulties, tears, disappointments and downhill moments we would experience on this roller coaster of a journey would also go hand in hand with the upward motion of laughter, hopes, renewed energies and growth... The tiredness of yet another hostel and the frustration of one more thing lost that we couldn't afford to leave behind...with the excitement of a new place to explore and the relief one less thing to carry..

The sight of a 3 year shoe shiner, already carrying the weight of a life lived long and hard....

Francisca carrying her 11 year old daughter Beatriz on her back as she tells us that they are each others strength and saving grace...

Faith that we would always find a friendly face,a friendly smile, a friendly hand to share with and reach for... Felix and his family opening their hearts to us, his grandmother singing for MUCOV with her beautiful voice, looking straight into the camera... Marco, Allison and baby Lucas sharing a delicious dinner and their home with us in Cuenca, Ecuador...

Faith that the Pachamama (Mother Earth) was watching our every step, guiding us to recognize that we as her daughters also speak for her.... Breathing in all 5,800 meters of altitude in Huayhuash, our hearts beating together with the winds and mountains that surround us.... Walking with Fanny on a road not often traveled during a full moon, only our shadows and the thoughts of the mountains around us to keep us company..

Lake Titicaca, its face a blue blanket of collective memories composed of the faces of thousands of ancestors, Herstories and sacred moments...

Faith that abundance would open its doors to us and provide us with everything we needed to sustain our bodies and our vision...

Ivonne and Patty in Cuzco, Peru and their warm welcome and abundant support... Mary and the girls in Bolivia sharing so much laughter and dreams with us...

Panchito, Leo and Eugenia in LA Paz Bolivia and the solidarity and love they have shown us... all of those people that send us love, a love letter, a notice that we had some funds coming our way!

And this faith has taken us through 12,000 miles and five countries all the way to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

After MUCOV´s time on the road, it was finally time for a pause. A pause we needed to design, find, and improvise. We felt tired, saturated with experiences and moments that had not had their due chance to ferment and grow into trees of thoughts and reflections in our lives. In order for our vision to continue on its path and for us take flight again, we needed to find a good and solid place to land. So we decided to land in the grand city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. For MUCOV,this was a resting point. For me, Carly, this landing also meant a return to an origin point, a bridge to my past in the country where I was born 28 years ago.

The smells of sweet toasted nuts, the hustle and bustle of people, the sounds of cars and voices mixing together, recent times with my family in Tucuman and the joy of reuniting the house on Lavalle where I used to live with my family, its walls faded white, its stairs,once mammoth sized (I have a funny memory of me rolling down this flight of stairs) and now small and lonely on their way up. Memories of the small slightly abandoned park with only one swing left for the spectator, where I used to play. I never thought I would have the chance to remember how it felt to stop holding on to my pink dress while I now observed this city with womyn eyes. “Carly’s Herstory includes this city,” I realized, “and it is no coincidence that MUCOV had lead me to the place in which my first words were uttered”.

I was no longer five, nor was I solely Argentinean. I came back to my past yet I carried my present with me: hundreds of moments of South America and all of its colors, flavors, visions and laughter, tears and fears; and also a full year of a changing world, in which illegal military coups took place, earthquakes shook a planet already shaken by ignorance and abandonment, where senseless wars, presidents and politics took thousands of lives in vain and where a big black oil spill is so symbolic for this dark matter we have let overtake our responsibility for the one who sustains us and for each other. These moments and so many more like them were now etched into my skin. Memories of the past mixed together with the necessities of the present as we searched for and found work for the practical purpose of survival and continuity. And with luck and the same faith that had accompanied us all along, we settled into a semi routine with the vision of MUCOV´s future now a more attainable reality.

Here is our usual run-on breathless of some of our experiences in the city that never sleeps:

Massive humidity, endless walks, getting lost again and again and again and again, the subte (subway) and its musty smells, crowds and crowds of people as we make our way through the center, a mother crying for her three children on the street, laughter in our matchbox size home, rice and eggs everyday, mate tea 24-7, managing to get backstage to hug Lila Downs, long hours on buses, cold cold nights, books and customers and always asking “where are you from?”, paying way too much for vegetables and fruits, children with eyes of adults selling things on the subte, movie nights with our dear neighbors, conversations about 2012 late into the night, tiredness and early mornings, existential crisis, walking 25 blocks on Cabildo avenue on the way and back from work, rude people, Empanadas, new friends, Alfajores with Dulce de Leche, nostalgia and a roller coaster of reflections.

And most importantly, we had kept alive the faith that the voices of those who have talked, shared and dreamed out loud will now reach and inspire the hearts and minds of those who are willing to listen from the inside out... We are now working on fulfilling the promise that we made to the all of the womyn who shared their Herstories with us and to all of you who have supported and encouraged us throughout our journey. We are creating a short sample video, a compilation of moments and Herstories to share with you and give you the opportunity to actively participate in the process of conserving our collective memories .We are also creating postcards made from our own photographs which we will send out to people around the world. Our eyes and wings are set towards Mexico at the moment and we will keep you updated as we continue to fly...

7.000 Km, 13 lunas, 52 semanas, 365 dias y un Monton de momentos despues...

FELIZ ANIVERSARIO MUCOV ! BUENOS AIRES Junio 2010 Dependiendo de donde estés, de la geografía que te coloca en tal lugar en el mundo, este mes de junio puede significar entre un gran MUCHO o un abstracto NADA (con todos sus intermedios particulares). Para muchas personas, este mes es el inicio del verano (en el norte Americano) pero para otras (como nosotras) este mes es el principio del invierno! Y para otras personas junio es simplemente otro nominado ciclo semanal, pero para nosotras es mucho mas significante: ESTE MES ES EL PRIMER ANIVERSARIO de MUCOV!!!!

Hace un año estábamos en el primer mes de viaje con las alas bien puestas y la mirada buscando la brujula del azar y el destino!

Habíamos terminado mayo en Colombia, despidiéndonos de toda nuestra gran red de amigas y amigos, compañeras y compañeros para poder tomar un paso firme al país limítrofe de la zona por donde empezaba nuestro camino al sur. No sabíamos aun todo lo que nos esperaba, estaban tan frescas las emociones, la imaginación no cesaba de crear encuentros y la piel apenas si cargaba el primer capullo de lo que ahora llamamos memorias.

Hace 13 Lunas llenas no sabíamos como resultarían nuestros planes de viajar con MUCOV. No sabíamos que cada prenda perdida por allí y por allá, seria remplazada en nuestras mochilas por historias de Mujeres. No sabíamos que las tantas desconocidas pasarían al lugar en donde las llamaríamos hermanas después de un encuentro improvisado.

Hace un año en el calendario gregoriano, no sabíamos lo que seria perderse por decenas de urbes, por caminos en los campos, y sobre montañas para completar un viaje terrestre hasta Argentina.

Hace cinco países con gastronomía diversa, Mayra-Sofía ni siquiera se imaginaba que probaría nuevamente carne después de ser vegetariana 10 años!

Hace mas de 365 días no sabiamos que a los 5.800 metros de altura, se ama mas a la Madre Tierra!

Hace un año Carolina no se imaginaba lo que seria vivir nuevamente en la ciudad de donde partió para Israel hace 23 años!

Hace mas o menos 300 miradas a dozenas de mapas, no sabíamos lo que significaba estar “mas perdidas que desubicadas”.

Hace 12 meses no sabíamos lo que seria llorar en ciudades desconocidas por estar saturadas de toda clase de emoción existente en la psiquis humana!

Hace mas de unos estimados 7.000 kilómetros no sabíamos que los recuerdos no acumulan distancia si no que la distancia acumula recuerdos. Hace 4 fronteras geopolíticas no sabíamos que la identidad latinoamericana es mas fuerte que un paso adentro o un paso afuera de la misma tierra. Hace mas de 52 semanas no sabíamos cuantos pesos colombianos son soles peruanos o cuantos bolivianos son cuantos pesos argentinos! Hace 8800 horas no sabíamos que estar un kilómetro mas lejos también era estar un kilómetro mas cerca. Y un año después estamos viviendo otra etapa del Proyecto, el otro paso hacia nuestras metas y para eso, era importante RECORDAR desde donde empezamos. La mirada hacia atrás nos permite mirar para el frente y en estos 360 grados de reflexión, estamos justo en donde teníamos que haber arribado. Y seguimos en el camino para llegar en su dado momento al norte americano de tierras mexicanas. Y para imaginar ese futuro nos encontramos nuevamente revisando el material acumulado, recordando a cada una de esas personas quienes tuvimos la gran fortuna de encontrar en el camino, a todas las Mujeres que nos compartieron sus historias, a las personas que nos dieron la mano, que nos dieron el pan callejero, a las que nos regalaron sonrisas, a quienes nos acompañaron a la estación, a las personas que nos motivaron cuando la cima parecía estar al otro lado del mundo sobre los Andes. Un año después estamos cumpliendo la otra parte de la promesa que es la de próximamente compartir un poco de lo mucho que se nos regalo!

Estamos actualmente armando espejos con las lindas imágenes que se nos obsequiaron a lo largo y ancho de este viaje que no acaba de terminar. Estamos en donde soñábamos estar soñando sobre lo que queremos lograr después de llegar a donde vamos...

Y en todo este tiempo de subidas, también recordamos las bajadas porque tuvimos que aprender “cuantos pares son tres botas” y que si “nos gustaba el durazno, teníamos que aguantarnos la pelusa!”

Y ahora, gracias a las bajadas pudimos mirar nuevamente lo lindo que se ven de lejos las subidas. Y aprendimos sobre la importancia de no dejar que las cosas que ya no vemos queden invisibilizadas por el olvido o la indiferencia. Aprendimos que lo mas limitante es hacer del miedo un verbo y que lo mas valiente es no dejarte vencer ...y eso también se entiende en un simple “Echar Pa’lante!” Gracias a las personas que nos continúan inspirando porque estamos en donde soñábamos estar soñando sobre lo que queremos lograr después de llegar a donde vamos...

Pd. Malinche le contesta al gran silencio de Mafalda con su imitación del acento Argentino:

“Cheeee, Mafalda, hay veces que los sentimientos no tienen palabras porque no todo lo que mirás se entiende. El Mundo sigue al revez: el derrame de la BP sobre el Golfo de Mexico, el incremento de los Muros Xenófobos, la continua militarización de las Americas, la estrategia de tildar a defensoras y defensores de la paz como terroristas desde los campos mas remotos hasta las flotas en aguas internacionales, ...Si vos te sentís pesimista por solo querer mirar nuestro mundo en su representacion como mapa en forma de globo, trata de mejor miralo por el lado positivo!"