Worry Dolls- A Gift From Guatemala
Worry dolls are small, handcrafted dolls made in the highlands of Guatemala. In Guatemala they are known as ‘muñeca quitapena’ (doll who takes away worries). Pieces of wood are bound together or twisted together using wire to create the doll. The dolls are clothed in traditional Mayan attire made from scraps of traditional woven fabric. According to Mayan legend, if worrying is keeping you awake, you simply whisper your worries to the dolls, you place them under your pillow, and they allow you to sleep peacefully without worries through the night. In the morning, all your worries will be gone!
What is the legend?
If you like stories, we got one for you!
This story takes place a long, long time ago. In a small village in Guatemala, lived two children, their mother, and their grandfather. Disaster struck and the family was having a hard time making ends meet. It had stopped raining, so the crops didn’t grow and this caused the family to be hungry often. Even then, the family was happy, they had hope, and they had eachother.
In order to make up for it, the mother had been working very hard on her weaving to make beautiful cloth to sell in the market. The night before market day, the mother had all of her beautiful woven cloth ready to sell. But during the night, a thief came into their home and stole the beautiful cloth. The family woke up as they heard the thief leaving, but were not able to catch him. Now, not only did they not have anything left to eat, but they had nothing left to sell.
They were distraught and felt hopeless, but none as much as their mother. She became so depressed, that she fell ill and could not get out of bed. The grandfather was too old to work. The children realized they had to find a solution! They went to their mother’s cloth basket, but all that was left were a few scraps of fabric. The girl sent out her little brother to get twigs. They worked late into the night turning scraps and twigs into tiny little dolls.
When they finished, the girl picked up her favorite doll and whispered into its ear. She told her everything that worried her: the drought, the stolen weaving, their sick mom! She told her doll that she was worried and wished she could help. She set the doll under her pillow and went to sleep.
The next day, was market day! Mother was still sick in bed, so the children packed their tiny dolls and went to the market. They had been to the market before with their mother, but never alone. They were worried they wouldn’t know what to do, but that didn't stop them. They reached the market, chose a good shady spot next to a shoe seller and laid down their dolls in groups of six. All morning and afternoon passed, people came and went, but nobody bought their dolls. The children were heartbroken.
Just as they began to pack up, a tall man in a hat approached the children. He asked them what they were selling.
"Dolls," said the girl.
“Magic dolls!” said the little boy.
“Magic dolls? Well in that case, I must buy them all!”, said the man with the hat.
The children were so excited they forgot to even give him a price. They packed the dolls in their little bags and gave them to the man. They took the money the man gave them. Once the man was gone, the girl opened her hand and counted the money. She realized it was enough money for the family to live on for the entire year! She could not believe it and they started running back home. On their way home, rain began to fall softly, then heavily! When they got home, they realized their mother was no longer sick. They told their family what happened and no one could believe it! It seemed like a miracle!
At night, when the girl went to sleep, she felt something in her pocket. It was her favorite doll! The one she had told all her worries to. Somehow, it had not been sold with the others. She whispered thanks and slipped her under her pillow, so it would be there to listen to her worries!
Do they work?
Many people consider this to be just a superstitious tale, an amulet of sorts, but that is not quite true. They actually play a vital rode in modern pediatrics and psychiatry. According to many psychologists, this beautiful tradition promotes a very healthy psychological habit: releasing your mind of your preoccupations so you can sleep soundly. Physically transferring your worries and sorrows onto the doll one by one, can be a very useful way to manage your anxiety over your problems. The power of verbalization!
Worry dolls are great for personal use or as a gift for those we love to help them ease their worries. By buying from us at It's Cactus, a proud Fair Trade Federation member, you are guaranteed dolls made authentically and sustainably in Guatemala and, even more importantly, that our artists are being compensated fairly! By purchasing worry dolls from us, you can help ease families of THEIR worries. You can be for them what the man in the hat was for the children!
Shop our wide collections of worry dolls, here!
From Guatemala, with (love)!