Author Archives: Sabrina Pina

Pig Roast

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 74
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Sunnyside, WA
Performance Date: 3/20/17
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

LW is a retired 74-year-old woman who lives with her husband in Sunnyside, WA. She was born and raised there and came from an immigrant mother and father who came from Guadalajara, Mexico. She never went to college but became a mother to three children and a grandmother to several grandchildren. She was remarried twice and worked two minimum wage jobs to support her family. Her primary language is Spanish but her English is perfect as well.

Are there any special rituals that you thoroughly enjoyed growing up with?

LW: We used to have occasions with the whole family where we would get together and bury a whole pig in the ground to roast it. It is kind of the same ritual as Hawaiian luaus have but it is a bit different because it is a Mexican tradition. We had to eat all the parts of the pig that we could, even the gross insides and the feet. We used to cook the feet in a stew called menudo. It was kind of disgusting but some of it tasted really good.

What would you do at the get together?

LW: We would mostly just catch up with our relatives. It was more of a social event than a ritual to get all of the family together. I have twelve brothers and sisters so you can imagine that means a lot of cousins and grandchildren and the gathering of us all got huge. It was such a fun event and every year it seemed the family was growing more and more.

Do you still do these ‘pig roasts’ every year?

LW: No, we don’t do them anymore because too many people have grown old and moved away so the ritual has died off a bit but I still talk about the events with my brothers and sisters and look back on all the fond memories I have of them and associate the smells and tastes with amazing times.

Analysis:

These kinds of events are popular among cultures of larger families and they often create rituals to make a tradition and reason to see each other more often in the year. Mexican families are commonly larger than families in other cultures and tend to follow the big and loud stereotypes of the likes of Italian and Greek cultures. The food of the gathering is directly associated with memories and importance of the social event and is a huge factor of the significance of the event.

Lessons in Friends

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 74
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Sunnyside, WA
Performance Date: 3/20/17
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

LW is a retired 74-year-old woman who lives with her husband in Sunnyside, WA. She was born and raised there and came from an immigrant mother and father who came from Guadalajara, Mexico. She never went to college but became a mother to three children and a grandmother to several grandchildren. She was remarried twice and worked two minimum wage jobs to support her family. Her primary language is Spanish but her English is perfect as well.

Are there any saying you have learned that you have passed down or that were passed to you?

LW: My mother used to be big on the fact that my friends were a direct reflection of me and that they would tell her a lot about the kind of person I was so she used to always say to me in Spanish, ‘Dime con quien andas y te digo quien eres’. That saying basically means, show me who your friends are and that will show me who you are.

Do you think she learned it from anywhere or did she invent that saying herself?

LW: I am not sure if she got it from anywhere but I also don’t think she came up with it all by herself. I mean, the philosophy behind it was something she may have come up with on her own in order to teach me a lesson about making friends with trouble-makers. I have passed it on to my own children in order to teach them the same lesson my mom taught me, because it really is true that the friends you pick are a direct reflection of who you are and how other people will perceive you.

Analysis:

It is common to pass on saying from family member to family member that teach a lesson. The particular lesson of this saying was very important to the heritage of this family and continues to be passed down from generation to generation. Although the lesson is widely known, the direct saying may not be. This piece of folklore could easily die out if it is not passed on from the previous generation, but the lesson is the one thing that will live on.

El Sordo

Nationality: Mexican
Age: 74
Occupation: Retired
Residence: Sunnyside, WA
Performance Date: 3/20/17
Primary Language: Spanish
Language: English

LW is a retired 74-year-old woman who lives with her husband in Sunnyside, WA. She was born and raised there and came from an immigrant mother and father who came from Guadalajara, Mexico. She never went to college but became a mother to three children and a grandmother to several grandchildren. She was remarried twice and worked two minimum wage jobs to support her family. Her primary language is Spanish but her English is perfect as well.

Are there any sayings you grew up with that you still use today that you are fond of?

LW: Yes, there was a saying that my aunt used to always say to me and I heard it from a few other family members as well and it was, ‘El sordo no oiye pero compone’. It means in english that the deaf cannot hear so they make it up.

Do you know if there is an underlying meaning to that phrase or proverb?

LW: I think the underlying meaning is that people will make up what they think or believe you said if they could not hear you correctly or if they cannot hear at all literally. Its more about being clear about what you say and what it means so it cannot be confused or so people don’t think you are saying the wrong thing. My own interpretation is it might be a fake-it-till-you-make-it metaphor on how if you don’t understand something or cannot figure it out it is okay to fake it or make something up. Improvising is a skill of the deaf that we could find helpful in day to day life I believe.

Do you think then that this phrase is to be taken more literally or figuratively?

LW: I am thinking that it is more figurative than literal. I don’t think many proverbs are literal these days and it is more about the internal lesson than the metaphor used to describe it.

Analysis:

This Spanish proverb is not very well known, it was almost impossible to find any record of it at all so it must be rarely used now. The significance of this unique phrase is interesting because it could be interpreted in many different ways. I am not sure whether it should be literal or figurative but either way I do not think this proverb could have much variation because of the way it has been passed on up till this point.

Two Kisses

Nationality: American
Age: 50
Occupation: accountant
Residence: Bothell, WA
Performance Date: 3/5/17
Primary Language: English

TM is an accountant who was born in Sunnyside, WA and now is currently living in Bothell, WA. He descends from a heavy Irish and Italian background which have influenced much of his culture growing up. His grandparents were the ones to teach him the most about his culture through their traditions and common sayings.

You haven’t commented about your Italian background as much, is there anything significant you could tell me about that?

TM: That is because the only person who actively practiced Italian culture or spoke the language was my great grandmother and my grandmother a little bit. It seemed to be heritage that has disappeared a bit since. And most of our Italian side was very friendly and loud. Being Italian is all about the greetings and being very loving towards each other.

What are some greetings that stood out to you?

TM: Well my grandmother used to always kiss me on both cheeks and squeeze my face even when I got older it was common for her to always see me as her little grandbaby. But kissing someone twice on the cheek is something I have seen in common in many European countries as a greeting. It is not very common in the US unless you have those roots already. We just don’t get as friendly as they do I guess.

Do you think there was any significance that it was both cheeks?

TM:  Not that I know of, I’m sure there is but I was never told what the significance of it was… hmmm, well I wonder whether it could have been that two is better than one? I’m really not sure but I can tell you it was significant who you kissed and where. Sometimes my great grandmother would kiss me right on the mouth! I would wipe it off and feel like it was a bit gross when I was really little, but I am sure she just did it cause she wanted to show her affection that way. She didn’t speak the best English to begin with.

Analysis:

The culture and meaning of cheek kissing varies in many parts of the world. The US is friendly to it but most of these traditions started in Europe. In countries in Asia physical contact happens less so it is less likely that cheek-kissing would be used on a day to day basis. Now it is not as commonly used in non-European countries but cheek kissing remains a significant greeting and has many variations added with a hug or the kissing of both cheeks one, two three or four times. The affection dates back to 1602 in art and practice.

Irish Blessing

Nationality: American
Age: 50
Occupation: accountant
Residence: Bothell, WA
Performance Date: 3/5/17
Primary Language: English

TM is an accountant who was born in Sunnyside, WA and now is currently living in Bothell, WA. He descends from a heavy Irish and Italian background which have influenced much of his culture growing up. His grandparents were the ones to teach him the most about his culture through their traditions and common sayings.

Is there any sayings that your grandfather used to say a lot?

TM: In his house, he hung multiple sayings that were mounted or framed and were old Irish jokes or sayings that he often practiced in conversation. Many of them were very witty or sarcastic in a way that could make anyone laugh.

What was one that you remember?

TM: This one is a nice one, a blessing he used to practice; ‘May the roads rise to meet you, may the wind be at your back, may the sun shine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon your fields, and until we meet again… May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.’ That is an Irish blessing he often said to his siblings and my dad and uncles. He was adamant about telling those to the people he cared about.

Were there any specific times he would say it to others?

TM: He would say it when saying goodbye to someone or he would say it to my father before he went to bed. He may even have said it at family events or holidays when he says some of my relatives that weren’t around as often. He took pride in expressing how much he cared about others by the quality of conversation and blessings he gave them.

Analysis:

Blessings and prayers were important to Irish Catholics. It was very important to say prayers for others and bless the less fortunate. It was part of common consideration to say blessings for those you loved and cared about. The specific blessing was one known by many and often varied slightly from person to person. Major holidays in the Catholic religion such as Easter and Christmas made these blessings and prayers more frequent.