Did you know the original Nahuatl name for the plant we call “poinsettia” is cuetlaxochitl (pronounced kwe•tla•so•cheetl), cultivated by the Aztecs long before the European colonization of the Americas? In 1828, cuetlaxochitl was taken from its native home of Mexico and brought to the United States by Joel Roberts Poinsett, the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. Poinsett is celebrated for introducing the poinsettia to the United States and for co-founding the Smithsonian Institution. However, his legacy as a slave owner and his role in the displacement of countless Native Americans has led some people today to reject the name “poinsettia” in favor of the plant’s Native name, cuetlaxochitl. I’d like to practice saying that indigenous name to honor its forgotten heritage: kwe•tla•so•cheetl.
I was gifted an amaryllis bulb by a congregant a few weeks ago and it has just now bloomed this week. I am delighted by the colors and the emergence of something living in my apartment. I have enjoyed watching it grow and reach toward the sun, the red and white buds bursting slowly forth and adding festive colors to my otherwise green houseplants.
After recently learning of the indigenous name of the plant commonly called the poinsettia, I decided to look into the amaryllis as well. The genus name “Amaryllis” comes from the Greek word “amarysso,” which means “to sparkle.” In Greek mythology, it was the name of a shepherdess who shed her own blood to prove her true love, and in doing so inspired the name of this lovely bloom. These South African bulbs were likely brought to Europe in the 16th Century and arrived in England in the early 18th Century. The discovery of amaryllis in places like the Canary Islands and Madeira theorizes that its importation may have paralleled the history of the sugarcane trade as well as the slave trade. Today, the U.S. imports more than 10 million amaryllis bulbs every year, mainly from Holland and South Africa.
May we be mindful of the complex histories of things we take for granted. May our awareness only increase the brightness of color and sparkle of life brought to us by these holiday plants. May our faith call us to search for truth and meaning out of love and justice. Amen.
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