Paje

Paje (read “Payé): noun. Magic, wichtcraft, castspell, sorcery.

In many latinamerican traditions (if not in all of them, and perharps, all of the world), there are many touches of magic around. Paje it’s in paraguayan tradition, a spell casted against someone trough symbolic items. Ex.: a dead chicken’s leg, sand from a graveyard, some drops of blood of your enemy, and a ritual with a conjuro in guaraní or toba’s languaje, or maká’s languaje. The goal is to cause a looot of annoying situations to the person upon wich paje is cast. Nothing bad, but bad enough to satisfy the author of such spell.

“Someone casted paje on you” said Poly last Friday. I’m starting to credit her words. One after the other, all things that can possibly go “wrong” actually went “wrong”. From not finding four dresses on a row; losing two scarfs; missing three busses and finally taking the wrong one... To being horribly late in work; fall sleep; lose my pen drive; fight with my Blue Prince; ser plantada in a date; being cheated by CPJ people, who didn’t give me back my money; errasing by accident my graduation pictures; geting to know that Neko the cat has no house again; breaking my favorite bag; not finding vegetarian food thus no lunch... And, finally, the apocalypsis: The technician took the library’s computer without asking me before – thus, leaving me without internet.

This was not bad. This was worst than ever!. I started to feel excited because I had internet, and I could comunicate with you all. Then, this chain of amazing events, all linked by paje, started their synister influence in my daily life. Today the computer got back. It has no adequate hardware to conect it to internet.

BUT... I have to admit that it’s actually beautiful to see that, despite the fact that I lost my internet conection again, I won’t lose this new contact with you. Things can always be done, and paje will not stop my love and my words. Nor me finding a new dress; neither buying a new scarf. It’s time to buy a new bag. Graduation pictures are on facebook too. I need to lose some wight =P. Neko might be back in the library with me. I bet tomorrow will be a better day.

So... This time, instead of using the space to tell you about my life and what I’m doing, I had to clarify that I’m under the influence of paje. Nevertheless, I’ll still appear around. First I need to find a guarani chaman. And you know, these guys are harder to find in the city. I’ll have to go upnorth or something like that to find my chaman. Who knows? Maybe I’ll fall in love with an indigenous boy and then never come back =) Or a group of Paraguayan kulaks (we have them here) will kill me because of my “clear leftist ideology”.

Nah, I better stay in the library where I’m working at.

May the force be with you and protects you of paje.