Manuel surprised me with this garden statue. He is the newest addition to our Meso-American garden, the part of our farm that grows traditional Central American species such as chile peppers, corn, amaranth, onions, nopal, tomatoes, gourds, tomatillos, dahlias, and marigolds. It's been an education learning how many widely-loved plants originated in that part of the world (let's also not forget cocoa beans and vanilla!).
This little guy welcomes both the sun and garden visitors. He faces east with a smile as the first daylight strikes his face. There is a lot of symbolism in his design, from his earrings to his headdress. I believe it is Mixtec (to the south of the ancient Aztecs), and it could be a Tlaloque (a mini Tlaloc god of rain and fertility).
Manuel likes to put fresh-cut flowers at his feet each day, as a plea to Mother Earth. We can use all the divine intervention we can get!
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