“To be a strong runa warmi (kichwa woman) one must wake up with the sun and swim in the river at its coldest”, rukumama would say—our grandmother whose strength and livelihood was born from generations of intimacy with the river.Rukumama can’t walk to the river anymore but we continue to do so.Swimming beside my cousins, resilient runa warmis, I remember her message along with her stories of this river…but today this river is not like it was in rukumamas time. It’s not like it was during our childhood. It’s not like it was even months ago. It has become sick.How long until we can no longer swim in it? Until it dies?If it were to die we would not only lose drinkable water and food but also a source of strength, a connection to those before…a connection to the river beings…to our rukumama.

There was a time before roads, before earthworms turned into pipelines and candles became lightbulbs.

Now there is a time before and after dark polluted waters.