Category: Dichos

8/22/2015 Comments

What's a "Dicho"?

From "Living by Los Dichos: Advice from a Mother to a Daughter" by Cristina Perez.

“Lo que bien se aprende, nunca se pierde”
(“What is well learned is never lost”)

I believe strongly that for any culture to have any kind of longevity, its participants must practice an active curiosity in each stitch of thread that has created the culture and holds it together. Both young and old should continuously learn, access, and live by their culture’s roots so that those roots can continue to flourish for future generations. Every culture possesses its own unique way of passing this wisdom on from generation to generation.

In the Latino culture, Dichos act as that intergenerational gateway, offering rules to live by for generation after generation. They are invaluable proverbs and sayings. In just a few words, each delivers a serious message, value or belief. They are utilized to help make a point, and teach a life lesson. Dichos have the power to convey a valuable human experience and validate life’s trials and tribulations. Dichos serve as profound lessons to be learned from the life experiences of our forefathers, each incorporating the astuteness of past generations and serving as teaching tools for us to live by today and tomorrow.

Dichos are a beautiful tradition of communication passed down within the Latino culture. They allow elders to connect with and carry wisdom to new generations. In learning, accessing and living by los dichos we continually breathe life into the inspiring, humorous and philosophical proverbs that have woven themselves throughout Latino culture for centuries. Dichos have a profound impact on society because of the history they are rooted in, the emphasis they place on individual Latino cultures, and because they are blind to educational, economic and class systems. Dichos are words translated into history.

There are thousands of dichos in existence today – some humorous, some serious, and some specific to certain countries. Each has a particular meaning that is generally universal and crosses over all cultures. Dichos are a genuine and unique form of expression, a way of exaggerating or pointing out an important aspect of life.

Dichos provide messages of hope, direction and guidance just when we need them. When for some reason or another a basic truth escapes us, dichos put us back on track in the right direction. When we face challenges in life dichos can give the situations a sense of clarity and direction.

Because of these reasons and many more, dichos are the day-to-day rules that I live by. I am blessed to be part of a family that allowed me to live and travel to unique places. I have gained valuable life lessons through dichos from my family that provides direction in all facets of my life.

“De Tal Palo, Tal Astilla”
(“Of the stick comes the splinter”)

This dicho is also like the English sayings, “the apple does not fall far from the tree” or “like father like son.” My parents migrated to the United States from Colombia in the 1960’s. They came to this country with essentially nothing except each other and a dream of a better life for themselves and their children. My father came from a large family of modest means, with thirteen brothers and sisters. Actually, my grandmother, my father’s mother, was pregnant twenty-two times. My mother also came from a large family of eleven brothers and sisters. My family is a walking and talking billboard for the “big Latino family”.

Shortly after they were married, my parents decided to move the United States “temporarily,” as is frequently the intention of many immigrants. Their plan was to work and save enough money to, hopefully one day, send my father to medical school and return to Colombia. Forty plus years later our family is still here.

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5/6/2015 Comments

The Court of iCommon Sense

As originally heard on Judge Cristina Live at 9 on KABC Radio

There’s a term that I created and have used quite a bit here on the show, called iCommon Sense. It’s something that I made up after reading a story about a couple who left their young children in the car on a cold night while they attended a wine tasting, and turned on the Facetime feature of their iPhones to keep an eye on the kids. They thought that their smart phones apparently were so smart, that they qualified as human babysitters. I said – well jeez, since everyone is so addicted to their smart phones, technology, and social media, we should create an app called iCommon Sense because let’s face it – common sense isn’t very common at all! The phrase stuck and I started using it in stories where people demonstrate a lack of common sense – and usually suffer the consequences as a result; or someone around them does.

So let me ask you: Do you think technology and social media have replaced common sense? Are we so dependent on our devices and the internet that we can’t even think for ourselves anymore?

Well today I’m going to present some evidence to you so you can make an informed decision on the answers to those very questions. So without further ado: Here Ye’ Here Ye’ – The Court of iCommon Sense is officially called to order with – ME – the honorable judge Cristina Perez presiding.

So the first case in the Court of iCommon Sense – where technology has replaced thinking – deals with everyone’s social media network – Facebook. I’m looking at a story here about a daycare worker in Texas who was fired before her first day of work at a new job. And it was all because she posted a status update on Facebook that read: “I start my new job today. But I absolutely hate working at daycare. I just really hate being around a lot of kids.” Now imagine you’re the owner of the daycare center – isn’t that exactly what you’d want to hear from your new employee? I’m going to guess no, it’s not. Well her boss did find out about the post and told the woman not to bother coming into work. Fired before she even clocked in. The woman later said that when she lands her next job – which I’m guessing won’t be in daycare after all this publicity – she will keep her opinions to herself. Good movie genius. My verdict here in the court of iCommon Sense? Guilty!

After I read this story, I got curious about how many other people have been fired for what they posted on Facebook. So I searched online using the phrase “fired over Facebook post” – and I found a whole PAGE of headlines! Prison official fired over facebook post. Waitress fired after complaining about bad tips on facebook. Bartender fired after facebook rant goes viral. And even – 19 Facebook posts that got people ARRESTED! Do any of these people know that the internet, especially social media, is a public place? No matter what privacy settings you have in place – if you put it online, you’re putting it out for everyone to see. And don’t blame Facebook either… it’s all in the fine print you agreed to when you signed up for an account. You can post that bogus notice that’s always going around the site all you want - that “I hereby declare that I own all my content, I claim my private, Facebook doesn’t own me” – and so on. But the fact is, when you log on to Facebook you are basically getting in front of a live TV camera and sharing your life with the whole world. With that in mind – doesn’t it make the most sense to only post things that you wouldn’t mind for the whole world to see? Facebook, I’m sure, didn’t come to the defense these people I’ve just mentioned who posted rants about their jobs or their bosses. So don’t count on Facebook being there for you either. Mark Zuckerberg does not care if you said something stupid and got fired because of it. So for the sake of time, I decided to group all the people in these stories about Facebook posts gone horribly wrong, together into one class action iCommon sense lawsuit and say – guilty.

This brings up the question: WHAT is this compulsive need we have to share every detail of our lives, every thought in our head, every meal we ate today – on social media? Is this the place where people now go to get attention and feel validated about their lives? Is the Internet nothing but an epicenter for narcissism and sympathy?

Now I certainly can’t fault people for needing an ego boost or needing to vent about their life… we are human after all. Life happens! Sometimes good, sometimes not so good. We need a place to let it all out once in awhile, right? My point is that perhaps the extremely public, worldwide forum that is social media, is not that place. When I’m upset I vent to my husband, or my sister, or my girlfriends. And sometimes there’s wine involved. But I don’t go online and tell the world about it… well actually – I take that back... If I want to vent about something that’s happening in the news, apparently I go live on the radio and give all of YOU my opinion. But that’s professional, not personal. One of my favorite dichos – which are like Spanish proverbs, words of wisdom - that I learned from my parents is: La ropa sucia se lava en casa. Which means - “Dirty clothes, wash at home. Keep problems at home.” And that is the advice I would give to everyone who appeared in the Court of iCommon Sense today. Keep your dirty laundry at home – not all over Facebook.

Court adjourned.

Now it’s your turn to weigh in: Do you post your dirty laundry on social media? Do you feel safe doing that or do you understand the risk involved?

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What's a "Dicho"?

The Court of iCommon Sense

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YOUR CART

What's a "Dicho"?

The Court of iCommon Sense

Opening Statements

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Cristina Perez

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The Evidence

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