Tag: nature

Bilingual commentary — The Enigmatic Nature of the Blowing Wind

As I write this, the wind outside is causing trees to sway and birds in flight to move erratically. These must be the March winds in April.

I recalled reading about the beliefs of the Aztecs regarding the wind. They surmised that the wind served as a bridge between the realms of the physical and the spiritual. They depicted Ehécatl, the Aztec god of the wind, as the sacred entity that breathed life into humanity. 

The Aztecs venerated the wind and lived in awe of its dual nature; it gave life, but it could also chaotically take it away. For them, the wind carried both messages and benedictions from the gods. It was a transformative force to be reckoned with. It moved and changed the elements of the world around them. 

Bilingual commentary — Wild Geese and White Pelicans

A number of years ago, I was pursuing a college degree in liberal arts at Oxnard College (OC). I wanted to soften the sharp edges of the decades of technical education that I had acquired up to that point. The classes that I took at OC imparted to me a vision of the world that no physics, math, or engineering class could ever have given me. 

Some of my most cherished classes in the liberal arts program taught me to appreciate poetry. Those classes in poetry were taught by one of my colleagues, English professor Shelley Savren.

One of the poems that deeply impressed and mesmerized me was Mary Oliver’s Wild Geese. It conveys sheer, unvarnished truths—the ones that are not easy to confront and that we don’t want to admit are relevant to our lives. 

Sept. 15 — TWEET THIS: An Interactive Pop-Up Exhibit for Children of All Ages

SANTA PAULA — The Agriculture Museum will feature a hands-on interactive exhibit about Ventura County birds during an opening reception from 1-3 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 15. Admission is free for members, $5 for nonmembers. The Agriculture Museum is located at…

Jan. 12 — Paso Pacifico Executive Director Dr. Sarah Otterstrom to Star in IMPROVology at the Santa Barbara Zoo

SANTA BARBARA — Biodiversity conservation and comedy don’t typically fit in the same event, but Paso Pacifico and the Santa Barbara Zoo are making an exception at IMPROVology this weekend. IMPROVology is a live, family-friendly mashup of science and comedy…

Bilingual commentary: When I lit up like a flower

Editor’s note: Amigos805 welcomes guest columns, letters to the editor and other submissions from our readers. All opinions expressed in submitted material are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the viewpoint of Amigos805. By David Magallanes / Guest contributor In…