Reflection

Reflection

Our ancestors can be figures who guide, motivate, and inspire. As a Panamanian-American, I look to my own ancestors, the Kuna people of Panama, as models for interacting with the world around me. A culturally vivid people, Kuna communities live by nature’s whim. Their houses, “chocitas” as my mom likes to call them, are made of wood and thatch. The Kuna rely on natural resources like fish, coconuts, and shells for both food and trade, and the crystal waters of the San Blas Islands are their biggest companions. Often, Kuna women weave intricate molas, colorful bracelets, and unique garments while paddling in wooden canoes along the Caribbean coast. Sun-tanned siblings play by the same blue sea, while grandparents watch over restless infants. These distinct generations merge as one people who thrive in Panama’s tropical environment. For this reason, I chose to portray a real Kuna family surrounded by the Panamanian sand, trees, and waters they call home. I wanted to showcase not only how the Kuna respectfully embrace nature, but how that appreciation is passed to younger generations, as well. Yet, as broader society chases rapid industrialization, climate change, pollution, and deforestation poison the possibility that future generations of Kuna have to enjoy the same organic lifestyle once championed by their elders. As companies slash through rainforests and sully Caribbean waters, they destroy our earth and jeopardize the cultures of indigenous groups, like the Kuna’s, that exist as extensions of nature. Through my drawing, I wish to bring awareness to those environmental struggles and to the Kuna people, their inspiring lifestyle, and ultimately, to their gorgeous heritage that represents Panamanians like myself. The Kuna’s is a heritage that has the greatest right to be learned from, preserved, and appreciated alongside the environment that shapes it for generations more.