Azoulai 1

Ariana Azoulai

Professor Batty

English 101

27 May 2017

Painting A Better World

Saint; a person who is kind-hearted, helpful, or patient. In the novel, Still Water Saints by

Alex Espinoza, the reader is taken on a journey through different lives within the Agua Mansa

community. While these people all bear saint-like qualities, there are still some challenges that

arise and need to be faced. One of these heroic characters is a rebellious teenager named Lluvia

Medina. Initially, I didnt believe Lluvia possessed kind qualities because of her cold attitude

towards everyone. Despite my initial thoughts, I came to see beyond her murky depths and

realize she was only protective of her mother. Towards the end of the chapter, Lluvias true

colors shine through and the reader is able to see her saint-like qualities in action when she

inspires empowerment, becomes her moms personal saint, and uses her gift to help the

community.

Woman empowerment is an important issue that lacks in most of the world today,

causing people like Lluvias mother to become a victim to this societal standard. Mrs.Medina is,

unfortunately, in an unfaithful relationship caused by her husband, Enrique Medina. In the

middle of the night, hell often leave and make an excuse about how he has work but Lluvia is

witness to what he truly does. Lluvia recalls a memory from childhood where Enrique had taken

her and her brother to his mistress's house, My father had one arm around [the mistresss] waist.
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His other hand was shoved inside her blouse, moving around under the tight black fabric

(Espinoza 217). While she didnt completely grasp what was happening at the time, she is now

able to see clearly that her father cheated, and continues to cheat, on her mother. Despite his

infidelity, he is the familys source of income and Lluvias mother is scared to let him go

because of the love and dependency she has on him. Having such a lack of empowerment can not

only destroy someone, but affect their integrity as well.

Mrs.Medinas kind of heartbreak does not apply only to fictional characters, infidelity

affects a vast amount of relationships in the real world, as well. Many people share the same fear

Mrs.Medina feels whenever Enrique leaves for business during the night; ...66% of men and

women said they worry about their significant other cheating while they're on a business trip

(Lake, Infidelity). This high number of fear within marriages shows how there is no trust

and/or power to confront, or leave, their partner. Many people lack empowerment and are fearful

of being alone. Sometimes people dont have a Lluvia present in their life, someone who helps

them gain back their joy and strength. Lluvias ability to give power back to her mom and allow

her the chance to be truly happy again, is life-changing. The capability of being able to

re-empower her mother is one of the many qualities that illustrates Lluvia as an everyday hero.

Mrs.Medina was stuck in a vicious cycle of denial regarding her husband, and the only

person who truly seemed to care, was Lluvia; her liberation. Deep down, Lluvias mother knew

Enrique was cheating on her, but she couldn't accept it. Even after discovering she has

gonorrhea, Mrs.Medina tried to rationalize the situation. When Lluvia made an attempt to tell her

Enrique transmitted the STD, she continued to defend him. Mrs.Medinas story is sadly not a

fictitious one. In our society, STDs are often transferred between partners because of infidelity;
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Brian and Anne Bercht (Affair Recovery Specialists) have discovered that in ...about 50% of

[their] cases of affair survivors...this is the case. In spite of all the education today, people are so

unaware of the epidemic of STDs. Everyone thinks it wont happen to them. (Bercht, How).

This astounding percentage of STDs transferred within marriage is only on the rise and displays

how real and common Mrs.Medinas situation is. Once it does happen to them, the denial takes

over. They get lost in their emotions and usually end up staying in the relationship like Lluvias

mother.

In the midst of Mrs.Medinas shocking news, Enrique was coming back that night and

Lluvia needed to snap her mom out of denial. She encourages her mother to go see a mural shed

been working on for the botnica; The Virgin of Guadalupe. Lluvia had been working tirelessly

on this mural because of the importance it held. It was Agua Mansa, beautifully painted on the

side of the botanica wall with the Virgin watching over the town, but in the Virgins place, was

Mrs.Medina. This image awoke something within Lluvias mother, a change, causing her to say,

Its me, Me...I don't want us to be there when [Enrique] comes home tonight. Lets go

(Espinoza 230). She was finally seeing herself the way her daughter always saw her, strong and

capable of being on her own. Lluvias mural paints her mother in a re-newed light. Mrs.Medina

had lost her spark, her confidence, her independence, but Lluvias mural had re-awoken these

within her. Lluvias action paints her in a new light as well, no longer seen as the troubled

teen, but instead a saint. Her mothers personal savior.

Lluvias passion for painting sparks her to make use of her talent by painting murals so

she can spread meaningful messages and beauty across Agua Mansa. Her first mural is done for

the Clnica Mujer with her old art teacher, Miss Lpez. Together, they created a picture of
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diversity where women are standing together, empowered. They hold a sign that reads Al

Futuro (To the Future). She creates another mural for Luckys Quick Mart of an eagle in front

of American and Mexican flags, the word UNITY is spelt on the bottom. By creating these

murals that hold importance, Lluvia has the chance to bring beauty and healing energy to her

community. Art has the potential to heal the human mind in various ways, ...engagement with

artistic activities...can enhance one's moods, emotions, and other psychological states as well as

have a salient impact on important physiological parameters (Stucky, The Connection). Using

her gift, Lluvia is able to help heal her community by creating new visuals that embody positive

messages which everyone can see. Her gift is what is able to physically heal the town, by

beautifying it, and mentally heal the people, by spreading creativity and important messages.

After completing other murals, Perla enquirers Lluvia paint a mural on the side of the

botnica. While this mural has meaning to Perla, it also contains significance to Lluvia that

pertains to her mother. Having sentimental value while representing a community through art is

something Miss Lpez had spoken to Lluvia about; Muralists...are artists of the people. Their

work is public art, art that needs to reflect the people, their hopes and desires (Espinoza 220).

Lluvia is able to connect to peoples aspirations and change peoples lives with her gift,

including her mothers. Painters in the real-world can relate with Lluvia and often use their work

to bring life back to broken-down buildings, paint influential messages for all to see, and uplift

and change people.

The word saint can have a different meaning for everyone, the interpretation depends

on who they are and what their view of light is. On the surface, Lluvia seems rude and

indifferent, but looking past her hard exterior, you see shes been through trials that causes her to
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be protective. While she isnt the perfect human being, she does have compassionate qualities

that stand out from the crowd; she encourages unity and liberation among women, she finally

liberates her mom, and she spreads important messages through her art to share with the

community. Without saints in the world, there would be no balance between good and bad. The

scales would tip and everything would be dark, creating hate, chaos, and destruction. Saints,

however, create and spread a positive energy that combats evil by bringing love, peace, and

creation. They surround us everyday in the form of average people who make big impacts. By

fighting for issues we believe in and striving for a better world, we can create and inspire

saint-like qualities in ourselves, as well as, others.

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Works Cited

Source 1:

Bercht, Anne. "How Can I Heal From an Affair, When My Husband Gave Me An STD." Brian

and Anne Bercht. N.p., 01 Feb. 2015. Web. 08 May 2017.

<http://beyondaffairs.com/affair-recovery/husband-gave-me-an-std/>.

Source 2:

Espinoza, Alex. Still Water Saints: A Novel. London: Picador, 2013. Print.

Source 3:

In, Jin. "What Is Women's Empowerment?" The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 08

Mar. 2016. Web. 01 May 2017.

<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jin-in/what-is-womens-empowerment_b_9399668.html

>.

Source 4:

Lake, Rebecca. "Infidelity Statistics: 23 Eye-Opening Truths." CreditDonkey. N.p., n.d. Web. 08

May 2017. <https://www.creditdonkey.com/infidelity-statistics.html>.

Source 5:

Stuckey, Heather L., and Jeremy Nobel. "The Connection Between Art, Healing, and Public

Health: A Review of Current Literature." American Journal of Public Health. American

Public Health Association, Feb. 2010. Web. 29 May 2017.