Adela 1

Sumi Ink, metal leaf, and watercolor on paper, 17" X 22"

Adela de las Mercedes Corbea Pita January 21, 2006. Perico, Cuba.

Bueno desde que ten铆a 9 a帽os me cogi贸 Oy谩, ven铆a de la escuela al campo, de pase y cuando me bajo de la guagua me dio una cosa y entonces ah铆 mismitico al frente, estaban tocando y era el d铆a de Oy谩, quince, que yo toco aqu铆 el d铆a 15, yo celebro a Oy谩 y el d铆a 4 de octubre tambi茅n celebro a Ma Francisca. Y me bajo de la guagua y cuando me bajo de la guagua mi mam谩 me estaba esperando y ah铆 me caigo y no se m谩s nada. Cuando despert茅 me estaban quitando la saya que me hab铆an puesto y eso y ah铆 sigui贸 Oy谩 cogi茅ndome hasta ahora grande. Nadie me ha ense帽ado. No, me invitan a los tambores, yo empec茅 a bailar sola, desde 9 a帽os, empec茅 a bailar sola, porque aqu铆 se toca tambi茅n, los 17 de diciembre, los d铆as 15 de octubre, los d铆as 4 de octubre. Yo aprend铆 sola y son las cosas que el muerto me indica, que haga esto, que haga lo otro y as铆 aprend铆. Mis muertos son los que me ense帽aron estas cosas. Cuando va a venir Oy谩 o va a venir Francisca me empiezan a temblar las piernas y las manos y ya鈥h铆 no s茅 nada m谩s. Ya cuando me lo quitan estoy como si me hubiera quedado dormida y digo, 'eh, como estoy aqu铆 si yo no estaba en ese lugar?

 

Well, since the age of nine, Oya has taken me.  I was coming from school in the country, and when I got off the bus they gave me something, and right then and there, right in front of me they were playing, and it was the day of Oya, the 15th, (I play here on the 15th, I celebrate Oya the 4th of October, and I also celebrate Ma Francisca). I got off the bus, and when I got off the bus my mother was wating for me, and that's when I fell into trance, and I don't know anything else.  When I woke up they were taking off the skirt they had put on me, and all that.  Oya started taking me at that time, continuing to this day, and I am old now.    No one taught me.  No, they invited me to tambores, and I learned to dance on my own. Since the age of nine, I started dancing on my own.  Here they celebrate on the 17th of December, the 15th of October, the 4th of October.  I learned on my own.  The "muerto" (spirit of a dead person) instructed me to do this and do that, and that is how I learned.  My dead spirits are the ones who taught me these things.  When Oya is going to come down, or Ma Francisca, my legs start to tremble, and my hands, and that's it, I am not aware of anything else.   Finally, when they get me out of trance I feel like I had been asleep, and I say, "hey, how can I be here if I wasn't in this place before?"