Lessons in beauty and simplicity

Residing in the hills of Panama are a beautiful native population known today as the Emberá Indians. They live a simple community-focused life in much the same manner as their ancestors going back before Columbus landed in the Americas. We were lucky enough to get to visit one of their villages. They served us a delicious meal of freshly caught tilapia, fried plantains, and fruit in lovely bowls made out of leaves. The meal was followed by a fascinating Q&A session with their current chief via a translator. We had a chance to explore their village, watch some traditional dances, and purchase handmade arts and crafts.

We were awed by the beauty and simplicity of their lifestyle. The chief — who seemed to hesitate a little bit at the word “chief” and indicated that “community leader” was probably a closer translation — told us that the life expectancy of his tribe is quite long. His grandfather, who founded the particular settlement where they currently reside, lived to be 82. It is not uncommon for Emberá individuals to live close to 100 years. The oldest resident of the village during our visit was a 95 year old woman, which is pretty impressive when you consider that the total population of the community is only 59.

There are six settlements close to the area we visited, and each has a community leader from which an overall head chief is chosen every 5 years. The process of electing a new leader is public and democratic. Every one who wishes to be considered stands side-by-side in a line. The rest of the community–including women and children over the age of 12–then proceeds to line up single file behind the person they choose. The longest line determines the new leader. When our new friend and fellow passenger Santiago asked if it was possible to serve as head chief for more than one term, our host laughed and responded that it was possible but has never happened so far. It’s pretty much a volunteer position with lots of work and no material compensation. The one thing that sets the chief apart is a blue and white beaded necklace that is passed down to each successor (you can see it in the photo below with Shannon in the middle). The rewards of the job are intangible, and everyone who has served in that position has been very tired by the end of his term and declines to “run” again. Kind of makes you wish we could change the U.S. Presidency to be similar, doesn’t it?

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