"PEHUENCHE POWER :
A Mapuche Story of Courage"

She's expecting. Maria and "Pato" just got the news. We waited for about four hours at the clinic -- and it's confirmed! They're going to have twins. And I'm with them when they find out, having just arrived in Temuco, capital of the Araucania region.

From there, we went to Maria's pride and joy: the hogar, or home. She lives there with her husband, sisters, and an outstanding group of Pehuenche university students, mostly from the rural outskirts of Lonquimay. What a warm welcoming bunch!

They even have a special room for wixan (pronounced wee-tron), or visitor, in this case -- me!

Mapudugun is the language of the Mapuche people. Mapu means Earth and -dugun is literally speech. The Mapuche people say "we are part of nature, and nature is part of us." The language is quite charming and the accent most unique.

"Na piuke yeyu pichi capurra" is my favorite phrase so far, meaning "I love you little goat."

Some background information about the Mapuche people of South Central Chile :

Chile is divided into thirteen regions and one metropolitan district. The Araucania is the ninth region and is the ancestral home of the Mapuche people, the che (people) of the mapu (Earth). For millenia, the Mapuche have lived and thrived in this area of Chile and Argentina.

The present year is 12,471 in Mapuche culture. Time is cyclical. The Pehuenche are Mapuche that come from the spectacular Andes mountains where delicious nuts called piņones grow.

The Kultrun drum is at the heart of Mapuche ceremonies. It is divided in four and has many representations, including the four seasons, the four elements on Earth, and the four stages of life (baby, youth, adult, no-longer-a-spring-chicken).

In Mapuche culture, woman was created first. They say she asked ngenchen, the almighty, for some company and man was created. The wise healers are called machi, and are women as well.