Perijá Mama: leadership among flowers and foods

Oiris Hernández is often affectionately called “Yiyi”. Mother of a large flower nursery, Yiyi is a woman who cares. She takes care of every detail in her kitchen, she takes care of her chickens, she takes care of her flowers, she takes care of the people who visit her, she takes care of herself, she takes care of everyday life.

Imposing and sweet, Yiyi is a local leader who encourages her community and insists on the importance of everyone realizing the wonder of her territory.

She surprises with her seasoning, her smile and her knowledge about plants. She has been part of the Tourist Routes for Forests and Peace since the beginning. Community tourism has inspired her in several dimensions of her life. In fact, she started the nursery “Perijá Mama” three years ago, at the same time that she began the tourism project, with the intention of sharing her special relationship with plants with all the people who would visit her. She also decided to build an outdoor dining room in the middle of her garden, where she serves all the delicacies that she plants, harvests and cooks. Yiyi has a unique relationship with food. Each bite of the food Yiyi prepares is a celebration, a kind bonfire in her mouth, a story carved in her garden and in the bush.

Her hands are resourceful and she is always repairing the little parts of her house that are deteriorating. Yiyi has the power to repair, with an amazing creativity, she is always working to improve her house, her dishes, her garden, the bellies of her guests.

She undoubtedly believes in the potential of the community and says that sometimes she gives plants to her neighbors, simply to brighten their day. Strong and wise, mother of her land, she takes care of everything that is born there and dreams of having a small restaurant where she can continue to put in her pot the biodiversity of her territory, her love and her strength.

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