"If the very old will remember, the very
young will listen" ~ Chief Dan George
There are seven days to this story but the most important
ones took place at the La Joya Cemetery in New Mexico on September 21 and 22, 2012.
Ruben Griego, Gilbert Griego, and Robert Griego rode our bikes respectfully
from Cedar City Utah, Barstow and Three Rivers California. While we
traveled separately, together we had one common goal. We came there to
honor our grandfather Pablo Griego, and in the
case of Ruben, his great-grandfather. Pablo was born on January
25, 1841 and died in about 1915. We chose these days to coincide with the
La Joya Fiestas.
We know that our mom and dad and grandparents loved the Fiestas; this was the
perfect time for our celebration. Our
journey was supported by our sisters and brothers.

We are here to place a new headstone and plaque for Pablo Griego at the site
designated by Marcello Abeyta, the caretaker of the La Joya Cemetery. Marcello is also our next door neighbor, and is always welcoming us into us into his house for a short visit, but they usually last a bit longer. Our
grandmother, Alejandra Griego has her own headstone in the La Joya Cemetery.
The headstone is a 250 pound petrified tree which stands about 24 inches
tall, and riding with it on the back of my bike was a challenge. I made three trips for just the cement. The stone grains are thousands and thousands of years old. At
the base of the petrified tree is a metal plaque measuring 13" x 11"
with engraving that reads:
Pablo Griego, Nacio Jan. 25, 1841.....Murio 1915. It has the Zia
symbol in the center of the plaque representing the circle of life.
Our ceremony is simple. We each take turns sprinkling
water on the metal plaque which points East and West. We speak words
silently until we complete a full circle, passing the
water bottle to the next -- Robert Griego, then Gilbert Griego, then
Elva Esquibel, then Ruben Griego, then Robert Esquibel.
The Zia symbol has beneath it a
piece of rock from the original petrified tree and the grains point North and
South. We hope this small piece of wood from the original tree will graft
to the new tree before us.
Time will tell.
We honor Pablo Griego and all our families
with this ceremony. Our roots run deeply in La Joya.
Collectively, we traveled 5,395 miles.
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Elva and Robert Griego ~ "we honor Pablo Griego" |
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The La Joya Boys |
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Robert Griego ~ La Joya cemetery |
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Robert and Gilbert Griego ~ La Joya cementery |
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Gilbert and Ruben Griego ~ "we honor Pablo Griego" |
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Ruben and Robert Griego ~ La Joya cemetery |
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Gilbert and Robert Griego ~ La Joya cemetery |
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Ruben, Gilbert, Robert Griego, and Elva Esquibel |
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Proud to come from La Joya |
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Day ride out to Mountainair, New Mexico |
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Ruben, Robert, and Gilbert Griego's bikes ~ ~ Mountainair, New Mexico |
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