Patrick Mosher visited Machu Picchu and asked a Quechua guide to translate "friend" and "thank you." She said Quechua has no words for either, instead using relational terms like "uncle." He connected this to Lakota phrases meaning "we are all related," suggesting cultures that see kinship and gratitude as inherent rather than labeled.
Chapters
In 2018, we went to Machu Picchu for my 2018 Wisdom Council. Every picture you see of Machu Picchu looks like it was taken by a professional photographer. I took this shot. Isn't it beautiful? Sunny day, clouds in these unique formations, velvety green mountains look like moss. And the sun came out, and you can see the people walking through the Machu Picchu structures down below. When you walk through, it's really quiet, like a cathedral. Machu Picchu is such a mystery. It was built in the 1400s, and the Incans had no metal, so they had to cut all the stones by rubbing stone to stone. And they hauled the stones for their structures up from the— down from way down below in the river. Ah, absolutely amazing how they finished the structure. It's a mystery why they were there and a mystery why they left. This ancient place is sacred. Whenever I traveled all over the world, For my corporate job, I always felt humbled because I didn't know the local language. To show my reverence, I would ask how to say two things in the local language. So in Machu Picchu, we had an Aboriginal guide, and I asked her how to say these two things in Quechua, the native language of the ancient Peruvian Incans. How do you say the word friend, and how do you say the phrase thank you? She looked at me puzzled and asked if she could call her father. So right there in the middle of the cathedral quiet place, she pulls out her cell phone and calls her father, and they're talking in Quechua. Now, from my work with Aboriginal cultures, when somebody says they're calling their dad about interpreting something, I see it as accessing the elders. She was accessing elder wisdoms to answer my question. So they're talking in Quechua, and she comes back and still has that puzzled look on her face. "Well, let's start with the word friend. We really don't have a direct translation of the word friend." in Catch-1, because that would mean we'd have a word for enemy, and we don't have either of those words. Wow, wisdom gem number 1. Imagine living in a culture where there's no word for friend or enemy. I asked her, then what would you call me? She said, oh, I would call you uncle. I shared with her that I studied with the Lakota people in Pine Ridge Reservation. Younger people there would call me uncle because that's a generational difference. It made me feel welcomed and a part of the family. I shared with her the Lakota phrase, "Mithakuye Oyasin," which means "we are all related." She thoroughly enjoyed the commonalities between our cultures. "Mom, now the second phrase you want me to translate for you into Quechua. 'Thank you.'" "This is really hard to explain in English," she said. Again, my wisdom indicator lights up. If something is difficult to explain in English, it probably means there's going to be a wisdom gem. She had a concerned look on her face. So, thank you. We didn't have that phrase either. She struggled to find the right words. If I had something to give you, it was already yours. Wisdom gem number 2. Can you imagine living in a culture where people gave each other what they had because that's what the other people needed? For example, if I was a healer, she said, and you needed healing, it really wasn't mine to give. It was already yours. What an amazing way to look at gratitude. Imagine living in a culture where gratitude was so thoroughly baked into the culture, in your family, in the neighborhood, that whatever you needed came your way. That was one of the many wisdom gems I gathered from our 2018 Wisdom Council. And from that moment, I promised to work hard not expecting thank-yous, because what I have is already yours. With that mindset, I learned to be more generous. And that's my Wisdom for Humanity challenge for you. Notice the thank-yous. That you receive and ask yourself, was that gift already theirs? Was it yours? The gift just moves through you to that person. The Lakota have a phrase, taku skan skan, which means the sacred movement of things, or more accurately, things that move in nature like water, wind, and breath. Is evidence of the Great Spirit. Be evidence of Spirit moving in the world. We are movers of sacred things in harmony with nature. So that's your simple challenge. Don't expect thank-yous. And that's my Wisdom for Humanity Wisdom Gem, and I hope it serves you. Live 100% empowered, learn deeply and continuously, and put your talent in the world where it shines boldly.
