Author Archives: Hannah Butler

Sopa Paraguaya

My informant is the daughter of an indigenous Paraguayan Guaraní woman. She shared the story of how a certain Paraguayan dish came to be.

“So the story of Sopa Paraguaya is basically that there- we had like this one dictator, I don’t remember which dictator it was. *laughs* Yeah, there’s a lot. Um, they ended in the, like, early 90s? So I don’t- democracy is recent. Anyways, so the point is that we had this dictator and he was not a wonderful person, and he hired a cook. And basically, like, he was notorious for basically murdering his cooks if they gave him food that he didn’t like to eat. Um, and so he asked the cook to make him, like, soup. Like ‘what’s the best soup that you have in Paraguay?’ Which is bori bori but we’re not going to get into that. Um, and so the cook, you know, he basically tries to make him this corn soup but what ends up happening is he like, leaves it on the stove for too long and it turns into like a cake- bread- it’s cornbread basically. And, he brings it to the dictator – I wanted to say the king, that’s how ridiculous the story is – and, the dictator was just like ‘Oh my god! What is this? This isn’t soup!’ and the cook, you know, terrified for his life – and it’s important to note, at this point, that the dictators are never, like, Guaraní or like indigenous, like, they’re white- they’re “Caucasian”- they’re European, so they don’t know shit about our culture or anything like that. So he was like ‘Alright, well, what… like what the hell this isn’t soup’ and then the cook was like ‘Okay I gotta save my life here… Uh, this is Paraguayan soup! This is how we do it here, in the P.Y. *laughs* and… basically the dictator’s like ‘Fine, whatever’ and ate it and was like “Oh my god this is so good! Um, you’re not gonna get murdered.” and that’s the story of Sopa Paraguaya or Chipa Guazu.”

I’m really happy about the fact that I was able to hear this story from someone of indigenous Paraguayan descent, as I believe she has more of a humorous and grounded way of looking at the legend involving a white dictator being tricked and his frightened cook.

Bobbie the Wonder Dog

My informant comes from a very small and fascinating town in Oregon. The town idolizes this dog named Bobbie the Wonder Dog, and he has become almost a symbol of the town itself. Here is a transcription of her account:

Informant: “So, um – have you seen ‘Parks and Recreation’?”

Me: “It’s my favorite show.”

Informant: “So you know Little Sebastian*?”

Me: “Yes.”

Informant: “We have our own Little Sebastian in Silverton. So, this is a real thing – you can look this up and get all sorts of pictures because we have murals dedicated to this creature everywhere. There is a border collie, a dog, uh, called Bobbie the Wonder Dog. It’s a real thing. In like the 1900s or something, it went with its family on a road trip like halfway across the country and got left behind and made its way back to Silverton without them, so it’s considered Bobbie the Wonderdog and we have, like, um, we have a statue to it, uh… in the middle of the town. We have a bunch of murals to it that showcase its journey, and uh we have a Bobbie the Wonderdog Parade. It’s called- its nickname is The Pet Parade, and everybody- it’s generally in May and everybody brings out their pets, which vary from frogs, to goats, to alpacas, uh… horses-”

Me: “No dogs in Silverton. Or cats.”

Informant: “A few dogs. A few cats. But it’s a lot of farm animals. There are some horses too, you know, but um, I feel like goats are like the peak- oh lots of people walk their chickens. That’s a thing too. Or they’ll like take them in the… like, wagons and move them around. And it’s like a big thing like Bobbie the Wonderdog- I took a drawing class, and one of the first things we learned how to do was draw this dog. It was like really important.”

Me: “This is so wholesome, I love it.”

Informant: “Yeah, it’s like on the internet. Bobbie the Wonderdog, Silverton Oregon.”

I love these quirky small town-specific traditions and festivals. They seem so bizarre and difficult to understand for anyone not a native to this small town, but for anyone who grew up in Silverton, Bobbie is just a part of everyday local culture.

 

*Little Sebastian is a running joke on the NBC television show “Parks and Recreation”. He is a miniature horse that has achieved celebrity status in the small town in which the show takes place, for no reason other than simply existing. Residents lose their minds whenever he makes an appearance at a festival, much to the confusion of characters from outside of the town.

Romanian Bear Dance

My informant is the daughter of Romanian immigrants. She has spent much of her childhood visiting relatives in Romania, in an area that she describes as “Romanian hick country”.

There is a traditional Romanian dance known simply as the Bear Dance, in which Romanian men dress themselves in real bear skins and dance through the streets of their town. This tradition takes place some time between Christmas and the new year, as a way to ward off evil spirits and welcome in a safe and prosperous new year. Everyone in the town comes out and watches this dance, even though it is the dead of winter and freezing cold. Romanian winters are similar to Russian winters, and these people are not dressed in the heaviest of clothing. My informant speculates that this was most likely a pagan celebration that has over time become “Christianized” as a holiday ritual.

I’m curious as to how these people acquire so many bear skins – I asked my informant and she admitted that she had no idea.

Romanian Superstition

My informant is the daughter of Romanian immigrants. She shared with me a superstition that he heard from her mother.

According to my informant’s mother, if you’re sewing something, you need to keep a string in your mouth. Otherwise, evil spirits will sew your mouth shut, Alternatively, you could lose your wits and become stupid.

I can relate to the entirely unfounded feeling of security found in these practices while performing tasks like sewing. It reminds me of the discomfort I feel when I am performing a task that could go badly, and I do some strange unrelated gesture that convinces me that I am protected from this bad outcome.

Bizarre Elementary School Tradition

My informant went to an elementary school in Seattle, and she told me about a very bizarre yet fascinating belief and tradition that was specific to her school. Here is a transcription of our conversation:

Informant: “So, my elementary school building is like really big, it’s like this old brick building.”

Me: “And what’s the name of your elementary school?”

Informant: “It’s called McGilvra Elementary School. And, uh, it’s like a few blocks from my house. And, it has like a really giant attic with really high ceilings, and there’s like this one door on the top floor where the fifth graders’ classrooms are that leads to the attic that’s always closed. And there is like… this very mysterious door that the fifth graders would always talk about a lot. And so every year the fifth graders would get to go on a tour of the attic, and every time someone went up there, uh, there is this plastic mannequin leg that is super glued to the floor in the middle of this giant attic. And it’s like, this giant attic- it’s a giant attic but it has one thing in it which is this plastic mannequin leg.”

Me: “What is the significance of this plastic mannequin leg?”

Informant: “And so they tell all the fifth graders every year: ‘This is the leg of our founder of our school, Mr. McGilvra. And, uh, Mr. McGilvra haunts the school and if you go into the attic, uh, by yourself without permission he will take your leg and super glue it to the floor.'”

This particular story is so bizarre but so hilarious to me, and I appreciate the fact that no matter how outlandish it might seem, elementary school kids will develop their own folk beliefs around their school and take them completely seriously.