Tarahumaras and birthdays

When I was little, birthdays were a big deal in my family. I remember my parents would host parties for my sister and I in different places in Oklahoma City, like the zoo and various parks or pools. Then, when we were older, our parents would let us pick a restaurant to go to for our birthday dinner. It was always a very special day. Now, lest you think this is a BIG hint for a party or presents for my upcoming birthday, let me get to the point. In the Tarahumara culture, birthdays are non-existent. Many Tarahumaras do not know when they were born, not the year, the month, or the day. And birthday celebrations are just not done - it is not seen as a big deal - unless you were born on one of the big saint's days in the Catholic calendar. If you are a Juan, then you would have a big bang of a time on June 24th; not because of you in particular, but because this is the day when the rains usually come and the monsoon season begins. In many communities, they make tesguino and get drunk hoping to encourage the rains to begin. There are other important days, that are celebrated in a like manner.

I say all of that to share with you a photo from the birthday party for Isaac, Jaime & Lupe's youngest son, who turned 1 year old on April 22 (sorry that this post is so very late!). We had a great celebration with good food, sodas, and cake. I pray that this helped Jaime & Lupe recognize the precious gift God gave them in Isaac and that all of us will thank God each day for our children.