Womb Flowers: Teachings of Mamita Esperanza in the Sibundoy Valley

Authors

Abstract

This text presents the teachings of Mamita Esperanza
regarding the profound relationship between the human body and the "chagra". Life’s essential nature is the *minga*,
as health arises from collective work among plants, knowledge-holders, and patients. Basil opens itself to its surroundings through generalist pollination, demonstrating a shared and relational way of life. Similarly, the womb functions as a woman’s driving force—a meeting place that connects generations. The text describes menstruation and flowering as cyclical processes of exposure, where life circulates rather than accumulates. Through dried-flower poultices, the plant guides the cycles of uterine opening and closing. Thus, body and "chagra" are extensions of one another; existence is possible only as a constant bond.

Author Biography

Ana Sofía Obando , University of Caldas

Born in the Sibundoy Valley, she is an anthropology student at the University of Caldas. Her thesis work is woven within that same territory alongside "Mamita Esperanza Jacanamejoy" —her friend and field mentor—with whom she has come to understand life through the act of doing things together. In this process, the "chagra" (traditional garden) has also served as a teacher and a place of understanding, revealing the rhythms and movements that sustain life. From this foundation, she focuses on Andean thought, child-rearing and labor practices, and the concepts of illness and healing within the life-and-death cycles of both the "chagra" and its people.

References

Coccia, Emanuele (2017). La vida de las plantas: Una metafísica de la mixtura. Miño y Dávila Editores.

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Published

2026-09-26

How to Cite

Obando León, A. S. (2026). Womb Flowers: Teachings of Mamita Esperanza in the Sibundoy Valley. Memorias Disidentes. Revista De Estudios críticos Del Patrimonio, Archivos Y Memorias, 3(6), 282–294. Retrieved from https://ojs.unsj.edu.ar/index.php/Mdis/article/view/1578

Issue

Vol. 3 No. 6 (2026): Traces and Murmurs. Plants and Animals in Dissonant Memories

Section

Lenguajes Instituyentes

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Ana Sofía Obando

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