A Day in the Life of the Taos Pueblo

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A Day in the Life of the Taos Pueblo

As a member of the Taos Pueblo I know that tradition and keeping it alive is very important to us. It is for this reason that I feel the need to share what it is like to spend your days in a village of the Taos Pueblo. We are located in New Mexico, about 70 miles north of Santa Fe. One might think that being so close to a city like Santa Fe we would be modernized as a people, but that is not the case. We like to keep our traditions alive.

A typical day begins with me waking up in my family's hut, a hut that I had a big hand in building. It is made of adobe bricks and I sealed it with a straw and mud mixture. My hut houses my wife and my child. My wife usually stays in our home to take care of my child and tend to the housework. While my wife works in our hut, I join the other men of our tribe to work in our village on the farming and occasionally hunting. Lately there are fewer animals around, but I look forward to hunting because I get the chance to use the hides of the animals to make new clothing.

Something which many may find interesting about our group is the lack is set rules. Our culture is more about upholding tradition than following written rules. We learn the proper behavior through example from our elders. It is second nature to me not to get involved with alcohol or allow outsiders into our villages most sacred of areas. I want to become a member of the Civil Branch of our government and by lowering the level of my social behavior I would severely limit my chances of gaining a government position when I become older. All the power in our culture is in the hands of the older males which serve in government and that is exactly the place where I want to be when I come of the proper age.

While I'm out helping to keep the village running with the other males, my child attends school within the village so that he too can become a valuable member of our society. In school he learns our culture's tradition and folklore.

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