Spring Fiesta, on Saturday, June 7th, definitely felt more like Summer than Spring as the mercury climbed towards the century mark.
Still, it was confortable inside the Center, where all the activities took place. The theme was mostly the New Mexico environment,
with special displays and a ranger on hand from the New Mexico Game and Fish to noted author William W. Dunmire and his latest book,
"Gardens of New Spain."
The day started out by revealing the photographic exhibit "Reflections of the Rio Abajo" by Charlie Sanchez,
Jr. His wife, Irene Sanchez, read the poetry that accompanies each of the 35 photographs. Sanchez' imagry along the Rio Abajo covered
topics from Tome Hill to the villages and towns along the Rio Grande. The photographs are beautiful and meaningful, consisting of
both color and black and white photography. The photo exhibit remains on display at the Center until September 30.
After
lunch, our guests were well entertained by William Dunmire talking about food ... specifically, the foods and herbs of New Mexico,
and which of our foods were New Mexico in origin (such as corn, squash, beans and tomatoes) and those that were brought
from the Old World by the early Spanish colonists settling New Mexico along El Camino Real (such as grapes, peaches, watermelons and
wheat).
Mr. Dunmire gave an excellent talk with his slide presentation ... not only the history of foods and crops in New Mexico,
but blended with the history of El Camino Real, how foods were prepared on the trail and brought into New Mexico, and how the introduction
of foods from the Old World, especially sweet fruits, blended the cultures of the Spanish with the Pueblo people together.
It
must have been an intriguing subject to our guests, as many purchased Mr. Dunmire's books to learn more.
This was the third time
Mr. Dunmire has made a presentation at the Center.
And, not to be forgotten, was Lou Ann Tafoya who manned the New Mexico Game and Fish booth all day. With numerous exhibits,
brochures and pamphlets, Lou Ann explained how critical our environment is for our wild animals, and much of the work being
done by Game and Fish.
If a solid fence is built on the U.S.-Mexico border, how will rabbits, coyotes, deer, and antelope get
back and forth between their grazing and mating areas? Is the spread of killer bees in New Mexico being monitored? (Yes). How about
diseases, such as mad cow disease? (Very few cases). These are some of the questions overheard, in which Lou Ann explained the
concerns and how New Mexico Game and Fish are addressing these issues.
