Puntada Mitocondrial/Abuela Debe Ser Tiempo
Weaving is a "methodological resource" (Lomanto Perdomo 4) that allows writers to consider the expansive combination of literary genres as a semantic expression across various forms and disciplines. The concept of weaving guides writing toward a responsible treatment of affective bonds between humans and non-humans, the gendered division of labor, and intertextuality beyond the code of words and the page. I argue that domestic labor dynamics are conceptual invitations to create with words. According to Federici, domestic work produces the labor force, a fact naturalized in the nuclear family as women's work (Patriarcado del…10-18). This leads women to avoid wasting material resources, a relationship transferable to the written word. Consequently, the relationships of care within domestic labor, enacted through repetitive actions and communication with both humans and non-humans, are central. I focus on plants due to their sensitivity and diverse evolutionary strategies (Viola y Mancuso, Introduction). This dynamic of intertwined relationships is "simpoyetic" (Haraway 58). This juxtaposes patriarchal violence in the domestic sphere with relationships of mutual care, often occurring between women and other species. In How Forests Think, Khon argues that all beings, human and non-human, read and process signs (13). From this perspective, considering the material realities of domestic work, I posit that the word operates in creative cycles beyond the page, permeating reading. Words, in a way, mimic stitches that should not be wasted materially or semantically and can be expanded to the practice of weaving, among other things. Finally, I propose an expansive genre, based on the concept of weaving, that does not prioritize intellectual over manual labor, accounts for the gender division of labor, and explores the possibility of interspecies mutual care. This work is grounded in research on my maternal family, where women cared for my sick and elderly grandmother during her last three years. This research includes interviews, testimonies, and the creation of embroidered and knitted objects
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