Neten Niwe (Breathe of the World) was born in the Peruvian rainforest. As soon as he learned to walk, he learned to swim. At six, he takes his baby sister on the river in a dugout canoe that sits low on the water.
The hut where he lives is small with a thatched roof shaped like a beehive. The hut is 32 meters above the ground, protection against flooding between December and May. He climbs into the bottom of the hut on a long, wooden ladder. Many times, heavy rains damage the roof. His parents easily rebuild it. His older sister is sixteen and already has two toddlers and no husband. All seven of them sleep in one room. His parents sleep in the other.
His father teaches him how to fish, using a fishing line tied to a stick. They have a small farm plot where they grow fruit and vegetables. They gather nuts and yucca and hunt for any animal they can find using a bow and arrow or shotgun. Because many live in this village, food is sometimes scarce. Every month they take a boat to Iquitos. The boat is crowded with people and chickens. They mostly use the chickens they raise to trade for what they need, so they don’t eat much chicken.
I travel to the Peruvian Amazon in the Summer of 1981, with a small group of scuentists, to experience the rainforet first-hand. We fly into Iquitos, a metropolis of half a million people surrounded by jungle that can only be accessed by air and river. We head to the dock to meet a medium-sized motorized boat that serves as the lifeline between Iquitos and the tribal communities downstream. The boat is quite crowded, almost all indigenous people, carrying large, filled sacks. The restroom is in the back of the boat. The toilet, an open hole in the middle of a wooden platform, the river directly below.
We travel 50 miles downstream through tropical jungle to our first destination, Explorama Lodge. The lodge sits on the banks of Yanomono Stream in a lowland rainforest reserve. The lodge is a rustic facility with a palm thatched roof, covered walkways and a small restaurant and bar.
We spend the next day exploring a jungle that contains the world’s highest biodiversity of trees per hectare. It’s hot and humid. The temperature is in the 80s but it feels warmer. Not used to this humidity. There are only a few paths that cut through dense jungle. Our guide points out trees that are used in Western medicines. The wildlife is amazing. Mammals include sloths, Howler monkeys and caiman. Birds include macaws, tamarinds, toucans, puffbirds and antbirds. Lots of frogs and toads. The following day, we are on the water in search of freshwater dolphins, alas with no luck, but we do see crocodiles. I love spending time in a non-motorized boat on the water.
The next day we head further down river to the Explorama Camp, where we will spend most of our time. This portion of the river is occupied by the Shipibo Tribe, the largest indigenous group living along the Peruvian Amazon. The camp is comfortable but basic, with outdoor covered cooking and sleeping areas. A thin mattress with a bed sheet covered by mosquito netting sits on a wooden floor. There are no seasons in the Amazon other than high and low water. It’s too warm to use the sheet, so I sleep uncovered under the netting.
Local young men are our guides and translators, as the Shipibo have their own language. We get into a regular rhythm, jungle walk in the morning and evening and resting during the heat of the day. The sounds of birds, Howler monkeys, cicadas and frogs are everywhere. The air has a thick, pungent smell from decaying vegetation and wood and the smell of rich soil that reminds me of a greenhouse. It rains for a short period most afternoons, but we barely feel the drops because of the dense tree canopy.
We also spend a lot of time on the water. A few of the men in our group are avid fisherman with fancy fishing gear gear. I don’t fish, but one man lends me his extra gear. A local young ternage boy is on the boat with us. He uses a notched stick with fishing line and hook. He churns the muddy water to attract the fish’s attention, then pulls up the line hooking them by the gills. That day, the group catches about fifty fish total, including pirañas, which we throw back after marveling them. The fisherman catch about 10. The boy catches about 40. It makes a big difference if you are catching fish to feed your family.
We are well fed, eating mostly chicken, reserved for guests, and some fish, with rice, potatoes or corn. The local young men almost exclusively eat fish. They take us to visit their families. We spend time in their homes and where they work outside. We also visit with two village elders- Inon Sanken (Elegant One Among the Jaguars) and Kesten You (Loud Word). Although language is sometimes a challenge, we begin to understand each other.
The Shipibo maintain a close connection to the land. Family and community are important. They are deeply spiritual people with plant-based shamanism. They have an ongoing dialogue with the spiritual world and powers of the rainforest. This worldview is displayed in their pottery, textiles, baskets, art and beadwork.
I often wondered how the people in this village fared. After many inquiries over many months during COVID, I was finalky able to make a connection.
I (Netan Niwe) now live in Cantagallo, a shantytown located on a former landfill in Lima. Drought followed by flooding, killed the plants our village ate. Logging, mining, oil speculation, narco trafficking caused havoc. The government did nothing to help. Fearing for our lives we were forced off our land. We live in one bedroom shacks, but our pueblo joven has prospered. The women keep doing what they did in our village, sew, embroider, paint, make pottery. I sell my artwork.
We are survivors in a strange new world, but now we are fearful again. COVID has ravished our population. The government is in chaos, with five Presidents in six years. There is rampant corruption. There are no vaccines. Our multigenerational families live in small spaces. It is even worse for those who stayed in the rainforest. Many who stayed were forced to become wage earners and work for the companies that so changed our way of life. But our roots are strong.//
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Roger Funston came to writing late I. Life after a long career as an environmental scientist. He worked on projects in remote locations on four continents, which informs his experience. Roger’s work appears in Synkroniciti, Last Stanza Poetry, Stick Figure Poetry and Alchemy Spoon.
About the Author
