A Love Letter to Nuevo Corraleños

Published November 22nd, 2024 at 10:51 am

Submitted by Carlo Aragón, Corrales

¡Bienvenidos a nuestro pueblo bonito! As life-long Corraleño I extend New Mexico’s warm embrace. I hope to see you at the Harvest Festival, the newly renovated Sandia Bar, or taking a stroll along the acequias. I was born and raised in the village, attended Corrales Elementary, picked pumpkins at Wagner Farms, and played soccer at the rec. center. As an adult, I took an oath to serve my country as a U.S. Diplomat in the shade of Corrales’ iconic cottonwood trees and served on the frontlines of diplomacy in faraway places like Algeria, Nepal, and Lebanon. Yet, Corrales remains my home. 

My heart and soul remain tethered to the oasis of cottonwood trees, the sounds of the migrating sandhill cranes, and the visions of pastures watered by the life-giving acequias. Corraleños, are masters of the art of biomimicry, building homes and landscapes that blend seamlessly into the land. In Corrales, there is a deep reverence for the land that translates to pride in our traditions and love for our community. In New Mexico, we have a word to convey those very feelings – Querencia. A concept originating from the Spanish verb querer, meaning “to love”, Querencia conveys a deep spiritual and emotional connection to one’s homeland and people. To choose Corrales as your home, means you felt Querencia guiding you here. 

Time and distance from Corrales gifted me perspective to see that the village is changing and much of that change is welcomed. Growth is inevitable; however, it is up to us to decide its contours. We are drawn to Corrales because of its nature and rural character, but recently we are seeing less of that as land, trees, and pasture are replaced by homes. Corraleños believe that “water is life” and increasingly this fundamental value is being challenged by homes drawing water from the aquafer with no way of replenishing because traditional irrigation practices have ceased. Over the past few months home, I spoke to many at the Growers Market, The Farm Stand, Sandia Bar, ExNovo, and walking along the acequias and they share these concerns. We feel this because we care about our common Querencia – the village of Corrales. 

As I transition back to Corrales from a career in diplomacy, I invite you to join me in the centuries-old traditions of this village. As a “parciante” I commit to help you clean the acequia of debris in the spring. I will reserve a space for you at the Old Church to watch the matachines dance. I invite you to harvest apples and pick chile in the fall. I hope you join our Las Posadas and try our traditional posole during Christmas. Finally, I look forward to meeting you and welcoming you to our unique village. 

As we move forward together, let us preserve Corrales as a sanctuary for Querencia, where our shared traditions and care for the land bind us as a community. We must balance progress with respect for our environment and heritage, ensuring that each new development honors the deep connections that first brought us here. By protecting the acequias, our trees, and the open spaces that define Corrales, we pass down not just a place, but a legacy of belonging. In doing so, we invite future generations to find their own Querencia here, in the heart of our village.

Carlo James Aragón is a proud Corraleño with roots in New Mexico dating back to 1692. Across his careers in diplomacy and business, New Mexico has remained central to his work, guiding him and his partner back to their beloved homeland.