So I learned this GREAT word - QUERENCIA. It was defined as “a place from which one’s strength is drawn; where one feels at home; the place where you are your most authentic self”. I thought it was Spanish and so I looked it up in the Merriam –Webster Dictionary to see how Americans defined the word. It said “an area in the arena taken by the bull for a defensive stand in a bullfight”... not quite the same definition.
When I read the American definition, I wondered at the difference. Was it a difference in perception, a difference in nuance, or a difference in culture? I searched online and found a site that defined the word from a Spanish perspective. It said…” In Spain, it is the place in the ring where the wounded bull goes to renew his strength and center himself, ready for a fresh charge…a place in which we know exactly who we are; the place from which we speak our deepest beliefs.”
I like this definition and thought –what a wonderful concept. It defines that which we, as Americans have no word for. In fact, the author goes on to further define the word. She says… “In Spanish, “querencia” describes a place where one feels safe, a place from which one’s strength of character is drawn, a place where one feels at home. It comes from the verb “quere”, which means to desire, to want.”
I love that. She goes even further in her explanation of the word. She speaks about the bull in the fight and what happens to the bull once he gets wounded. “The wounded bull retreated to a spot to the left of the gate through which he had entered, to rest, it seemed. He had found his querencia: a place where he felt safe and was therefore at his most dangerous. The matador tries not to let the bull find this place, because it increases the danger to himself. For the bull, it is a place where he believes he can survive this unfair game. Unfortunately and cruelly, he almost never does. It is said that if the same bull were to fight more than once in the ring, every matador would die; once an animal learns the game and stands in his power, he cannot be defeated.”
I understand why we don’t have a comparable word in the American language; we do not have bull fights. But for many of us, life is a bullfight and we are the bull. Thankfully, we do not die every time we step into the ring of life. Thankfully, most of us have a querencia to go to. A place where we can lick our wounds, heal and come out fighting once again. A place where we can process what we have learned so we don’t continue to make the same mistakes. A place where we can regroup, refocus and gain a proper perspective. A place from which we, like the bull, can finally learn the game of life and then stand in our power confident we can never be defeated.
So I am grateful for having learned this word. It defines that which we, as Americans have no word for. It is the place where we renew and strengthen ourselves. It is the thing that helps us feel safe. It is the person, or people with whom we feel at home. For indeed, we know with whom and where we feel most at home. Our bodies tell us, if we listen. There are certain seasons during which we feel more at ease, certain things we rely on to center us and keep us at ease, certain times of day when we feel safe and more relaxed, certain climates, certain foods…even the clothes we wear help us feel more at home.
-- written by asd --
sista girls cafe - friends for life
sistagirlscafe.blogspot.com
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