Pretty Pictures

Humilidad

Saw this little pencil drawing at the flea market.

While the image on the left seemed like nothing more than a crude depiction of a stoic peasant tirelessly working the land, the accompanying image on the right was what grabbed my attention. Upon closer inspection, I realized that the rough sketch was actually a tearful little girl on her knees, mouthing the words “humilidad.” For those of you English-only purists unable to connect the dots, this translates to humility.

Aside from the strange pairing of images, it made me reflect on the treacherous plight of many Latin women bound by the strict morals of a Roman Catholic upbringing and the guilt-ridden feelings brought about by sexual expression. Without launching into a tirade about the Flying Spaghetti Monster, it saddens me to think about the inner turmoil young women face to this day when contemplating eternal damnation for simply fulfilling the most basic of biological functions. Not coincidentally, it’s exactly this repression that fuels so many forms of sexual “deviation” and ultimately our collective fascination with spankings and Catholic school girl uniforms. I mean, who doesn’t like a good old dirty Sanchez? On second thought, maybe it’s not such a bad thing.