A Merry Christmas in Haiti

December 23, 2015

Merry Christmas is Jwaye Nwel in Haitian Creole.

As in much of the world, Christmas is a beloved and eagerly anticipated holiday in Haiti, with rich traditions and exuberant celebration. Preparations begin weeks before with decorations beginning to appear in stores and markets and quickly finding their way into Haitian homes. Trees are a part of the decorating scheme, though in smaller homes, branches suffice to hold colorful holiday lights and homemade ornaments. Fanals are elaborate paper lanterns, often cut to resemble miniature Victorian gingerbread houses or churches. The “windows” are lined with colored tissue and a lighted candle inside the lantern combine to create a stained glass effect. Placed in windows or on porches or doorways, they create a warm, welcoming aura and light the way inside. (Click to see an example of this handcraft.)

Children look forward to a visit from Santa Claus, known in Haitian Creole as Papa Nwel. In preparation, they clean up their shoes, fill them with straw, and place them under the tree or on the porch. Of course, they are hopeful that he will replace the straw with a wonderful toy or present, and that Papa Fwedad, the dreaded dispenser of lumps of coal (and worse!) does not show up instead!

Because Haiti’s population is largely Catholic, midnight mass is an integral part of the Chrismas observance. Following the service, families

Claudy Soulouque with his sculptural wish for peace on earth.

gather in parties collectively called Reveyon. Children are often allowed to stay up very late, playing games such as wosle (similar to jacks) and lighting sparklers and homemade fireworks. A creamy spiced coconut drink, known as Kremas flows freely (Recipes abound, but this one is a good representative, should you care to try.) while music, dancing and shouts of good will fill the night air until the wee hours.

Jwaye Nwel. No matter how you say it, the traditions are dear and the feeling is warm and heartfelt at home, in Haiti, and around the world. Merry Christmas. And above all, Viv ak ke poze sou Late. Peace on Earth.

Contributed by Linda for It’s Cactus

The Season of Giving

December 18, 2015

It is the Season of Giving. What an opportunity to do good! Truly, it is a wonderful opportunity – one that anyone is loathe to squander. But how does one give effectively? Ah, that is the harder question.

If you give a man a fish, he eats for a day…

There are many ways in which to give, but I am going to boil them down to two and use the time-honored fishing analogy as my vehicle of explanation: If you give a man a fish, he eats for a day. Tomorrow, he might get a call that the new job is his and he will never have to learn to fish. You cannot foresee what brightness tomorrow will bring and in the meantime, you help a needy man over a rough spot. He might never know hunger again, yet he will always be grateful for the kindly hand that offered up the fish when the time was tough. Sometimes it works out that way, and when it does, it is wonderful.

At It’s Cactus, we believe in teaching a man to fish, and we do so by giving opportunity. We open trade opportunities and teach our trading

By giving opportunity, we give a gift that can last a lifetime.

partners about the business of production and marketing, giving them the skills they need to feel success and see it grow. This is not an easy path, and achieving positive results takes a great deal of time and patience. Yet we have seen terrific results in our 17 years of working with our Haitian artists and practicing Fair Trade. The best part of it is that we have seen success sustained. Once the opportunity is seized upon, once the lessons are learned, they sitck. They stay. They LAST.

Here’s how: When a new artist approaches us with an innovative design to sell, he gets an order worth $100 USD to make samples. This enables us to evaluate his style and consistency as well as assess his ability to follow through on our agreement. When those hurdles are cleared, we work with the artist to establish a selling price that is both fair and marketable. We discuss all aspects of pricing; teaching and learning in both directions along the way. When the price is settled, a new order is written, again with 100 percent paid in full up front.

As our sales of the new artist’s design grows, our ability to buy more from him grows as well. This steady growth enables us to experiment with other new designs and orders with him. He becomes more skilled not only as an artist, but also as a

If you teach a man to fish, he eats for a lifetime.

businessman. With lessons well-learned and well applied, the rise in his prosperity – though not meteoric – is substantial and sustainable. In this way, the gift of opportunity becomes a gift that can last a lifetime. Multiply that gift by the 30 artists we work with on a regular basis, and the impact on their families and their community becomes enormous. That success reinforces our continuing efforts to keep opportunity growing and expanding.

Giving is a very personal thing. Bringing happiness in any form to anyone at any time is a worthy gift whether it is meant for a moment, a day, or a lifetime. Giving opportunity is simply how we at It’s Cactus choose to give. When you buy from us, you support our artists, and that is a very great gift, indeed.

Contributed by Linda for It’s Cactus

Feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe

December 11, 2015

Peruvian retablo featuring a very traditional Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Tomorrow, in much of North and South America, the Feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe will be celebrated with pilgrimages and fiestas throughout the two continents. It is believed that on that date in 1531, the Mother of God appeared for the second time to Juan Diego, a humble Nahuatl peasant, and gave him the proof that he needed to convince the Spanish Archbishop to build her a temple on Tepeyac Hill in what was to become Mexico City.

The Virgin of Guadalupe is widely embraced as the Mother of the Americas for a number of reasons. She appeared to the indigenous Juan Diego, rather than to the Spanish ruling priests, and spoke to him in his native tongue, saying, “Do you not recognize me? Am I not of your own kind? Are you not in the shadow of my protection?” The miracle of the tilma – her image being emblazoned on Juan Diego’s cloak – was covered

Ceramic recreation of the appearance of Guadalupe by the Aguilar Family of Oaxaca, Mexico

up by Castillian roses and revealed only when the roses tumbled onto the floor of the office of the Archbishop. He would have recognized the significance immediately: The roses did not grow on Tepeyac Hill and certainly not in December. They were from his own native Spain. Even with her uncustomarily dark skin, the Virgin’s image was laden with Marian symbolism which the white colonial Archbishop could not fail to understand, from the blue of her gown, to its celestial brocade, to the aura that surrounded her. In short, Juan Diego’s evidence was compelling beyond fault and her miracle was declared.

The beginnings of the temple were built in 1533 and dedicated in her honor. A second church on the same site was begun in 1556 and in 1695 the cornerstone of a new, larger sanctuary was laid. The modern Basilica de Santa Maria de Guadalupe, was formally dedicated in 1976. Therein,

Guatemalan wood carving of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

The Virgin of Guadalupe worked in Haitian metal by Edward Dieudonne.

the miraculous tilma hangs on permenant display.

Over the centuries, European and New World cultures as well as tradition, history, and politics have combined to establish the Virgin of Guadalupe as a universally recognized Marian icon. Her image is revered and artistically rendered in every imaginable medium: ceramics, textiles, paper – even tatoo ink. As the “Mother of the Americas,” the Virgin of Guadalupe’s role and corresponding iconography evolves continuously in response to the ever-changing needs of society.

Contributed by Linda for It’s Cactus

A Fascination with Folk Art Nativities

December 5, 2015

A Haitian version of the Nativity, by Exulien Exuma

Isn’t it fun to look at Nativity scenes? I love to see how the “First Christmas” is expressed in folk art, with variations from one artist to the next;

one tradition to the next. Diversity is a wonderful thing! Just looking at the three pictured here, the cultural clues are as distinct as they are endearing.

In the first example – worked in recycled metal from Haiti by Exulien Exuma – the evidence of it’s tropical origin is plain. The Holy Infant is unswaddled, for the evening is warm and balmy. He is laying in a tuft of grass under swaying palms, Joseph wears a straw hat, and Mary’s hair is bound up in a kerchief, Caribbean-style. A goat stands in close attendance, nary a sheep or camel in sight.

This Peruvian version, created in Ayacucho, has design details characteristic of the indigenous cultures of the Andes. Even the clay from which it

is made is indicative of its source. The bread being offered by the adoring shepherd is likely Pan de Chuta, if I had to guess. (And I do.) I think it’s a good guess, though. Pan de Chuta is a sweet, anise-flavored bread and regional specialty of the Peruvian Andes. Baked in traditional

Peruvian Nativity set from Ayacucho.

wood-burning ovens over eucalyptis leaves, and the small, round loaves are frequently offered as gifts. (To read more about the bread or to see the recipe, click here.) The shepherd also wears a knitted cap, very typical of the region, while Mary and Joseph wear heavy felted wool fedoras, also popularly worn in the Andes. Each of their cloaks, and the Holy Infant’s blanket bear indigenous weaving motifs, all of which combine to create a very Andean signature on the scene.

The third example, though not strictly a Nativity scene, depicts the Holy Family in their flight to Egypt, as interpreted by a Central American folk

artist from El Salvador. Again, clues to the artist’s world view abound. The perfectly cone-shaped mountains that loom in the background of the

From El Salvador comes this vibrantly colored rendering of the Holy Family.

painting echo the volcanic cones that dominate the Salvadorean horizon. Mary and Joseph are enveloped in what might be considered biblical robes, but their bright colors and bold floral and geometric patterns are straight out of the Central American tradition as are the chickens that mill and peck near Joseph’s feet.

While the central story of the First Christmas is universal, its representation through folk art is a unique reflection of the individual artist’s cultural identity, conveyed through the values and aesthetics of his communtiy. Like a translation, folk art nativities are expressions in colloquial language, with nuances and accents that make them vivid and easily understood. And that is precisely what makes each one unique and wonderful.

Contributed by Linda for It’s Cactus

Papa Nwel and Papa Fwedad

December 2, 2015

A wish for you and yours, by Winston Cajuste

Since it is the beginning of December and many of us are caught up in holiday preparations, I thought I would look into some of the Christmas

Decorate our Hanging Spiral Christmas tree with tiny red bobbles for a bit of color and Suess-like whimsy.

traditions of Haiti to share with you here. Christmas is one of the major holidays of the Haitian calendar and many of their traditions are quite similar to ours in the States. There is a holiday tree to decorate, songs to sing, special foods to enjoy, and there is the embodiment of our

Santa Claus in Papa Nwel. However, Haiti being Haiti, there is a Rada to the Petro, a yin to the yang. In addition to the beloved Papa Nwel, there is a dreaded Papa Fwedad as well.

During my last trip to Haiti, i realized how prevalent the idea of balance is. Haiti is ” 90 percent Catholic and 100 percent Voodoo”, as they say in references too numerous to mention. Within Voodoo are two distinct spirit groups – Rada and Petro. Rada is benevolent and kind and the other, Petro, is fierce and dangerous. In Voodoo temples that I visited, I found images from both spirit groups represented in equal measure, together forming an idea of justice within. When the spirits are in harmony, there is balance in the world. In the sense of Voodoo, then, Papa Nwel would be associated with Rada family of gentle spirits, and Papa Fwedad would be the counterpoint, one of the fierce Petro spirits.

To be honest, Papa Fwedad was mentioned only a time or two in my research, but in both cases, it was in the same breath as Voodoo. ( See The Haiti Observer and Prezi.) Though I am no expert, I am not convinced that Papa Fwedad was born of Voodoo belief at all, though the association now is strong. I think he was appropriated from the tradition French tradition of Papa Fouettard, who accompanies Papa Noel on his visits to children during the Christmas holiday season. In both Haiti and France, the one bestows wonderful gifts to good children, while the other brings lumps of coal and punishments to those children who are naughty.

“They see you when you’re sleeping, they know when you’re awake.

They know if you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake!”

Contributed by Linda for It’s Cactus