Jane Hasty Photography

So tonight is the night that we, his children, have chosen to all get together to honor our father, Joseph Lucio Rodriguez. We have photos to share, stories to tell, laughs to be had and tears as well. We are hosting our fiesta, the party he requested to CELEBRATE his life. We have hours of Mexican guitar music on the iPod that he recorded for us himself. My dear friend & neighbor insisted on making us a traditional dinner of chicken en mole, black beans, guacamole, salsa & tamales. I’m hoping there is even a little of his Oaxacan Mezcal to go around. So, here’s to you dad!!!

This is a photo I took on our trip to Mexico in 2008. He met this woman, her name escapes me, a few years prior and goes back to their village in the mountains of Zinacantan just outside San Cristobal, Mexico every year. He goes, not to give them money or feel sorry for them but to visit their home, share a meal, purchase their goods and help their family by helping their economy. He made it clear to us that purchasing their wares is the best gift we could give them. When this woman returned from gathering fire wood in the hills and walked into her home to see us, to see him, her face lit up like the sun! This photo speaks volumes as to what these families think of my father. When my dad became sick in April, shortly after learning of his fate my first thought was this woman, her family and the other families he kept so dear to his heart. Every Christmas he would tell our kids that his gift to us was what he did in our names for these families in Zinacantan. It pained me to think they would never see my dad again. I feared they would wonder why he never returned. I didn’t want them to feel abandoned. As much as it hurt me to face reality with my father I knew I had to. So, I made the call to him just weeks before he died and told him of my concern for the Mayan families he loved so much. He was touched beyond words that I would think of them first. And although he assured me that they knew it was possible he may not return I offered to make the trip back, with a few friends, my husband and an uncle or two in order to take them a message. He said it wasn’t necessary but for some reason I am still entertaining the idea. Maybe one day, before my memory fades and I forget where to go I will return in his name. In the meantime I will continue to enjoy our photos from our trip, as well as all the ones we share and collect this evening as we celebrate his life.

I love you dad!