The Heritage Of Herminya, year 1987....

In the year 1987, I had not developed my first pubic hair and I looked like this.




In the year 1987 I doubt that the legendary chile pepper grower Mats Pettersson had graduated from the university.

Yet, some interesting events occured during that period.

My neighbour, whom I call "general Soto", moved to Sweden 1984.

( General Soto himself, enjoying a dinner)

With him he had his daughters and wife. Seeking a better life in the colder regions of this world.
I guess he got tired of getting tortured and needed to make some distance from past events and regime. Considering a disturbing political climate nationwise and internationally it is good to remind people of the reason why some people actually move from their native countries.

Enough politics.

When he moved to Sweden he realized that the swedes were not actually using the spices he was so accustomed to in Chile. But that did not disturb him so much. Not as it would do to a lady friend of him who was going to visit him.

The name of the Lady was Herminya. And the year was 1987. Herminya brought with her 20 Ristras of a pepper sort called "Aji". As a somewhat rather knowledgeable pepper grower, we do know that there exist quite a lot of "Aji" pepper varieties. So this is as close as it gets when it comes to identifying the variety.

Unfortunately, It came to be that this Herminya died 1994 in cancer. My neighbour, who is a very warm-hearted fellow, decided to keep a part of a ristra as a memory of her. Why he had actually left one ristra even 7 years after he had obtained the ristras I do not understand.

But 23 years later. In the year 2010, the year which I started to grow peppers seriously. It became so that my neighbour entrusted me part of this ristra.


He told me " This is my memory of Herminya. When someone brings me something. I usually keep it as a memory of that person. Especially if that person perishes. It would be interesting to see if you could actually get something growing out of this."








I thanked my neighbour for the trust. And initiated a sowing seed ritual of wich I had grown somewhat familiar to. This time, a feeling of awe was blended with curiousity. Seeds from a 23 year old pod. The Pod had been transferred over the Andes, the Atlantic Ocean and probably part of Europe. I myself was transported in the year 1984 from the middle east. Over the mediterranean to Sweden. Some weird circumstances has led one of the pods of this Ristra to get into a blind date with someone as me.

In a way it is a strange and beautiful world. In the year 1987 I had not developed my first pubic hair, nor do I think anyone could expect me be the one who carried some form of a legacy of the lady Herminya to the world. At least I did not. This "Aji" pod have had one interesting and long journey. Let us see if there is still some DNA willing to give a living legacy to this lady Herminya. I am sowing some seeds of this "Aji". In memory of my neighbours "amigo". This I do with hope and respect.