Esperanza’s name, which translates to “”Hope,”” suits her own story. This eloquent and joyful woman is keenly aware of the precious gift she carries within her—a gift that embodies her family’s secret to embracing old age with a radiant smile. She chuckles as she shares that the central characters of this story, she and her brothers, are all over sixty years old. Despite their gray hair, their vital spark remains intact. Their fountain of eternal youth, they discovered, flows from the world of craftsmanship.

The Meneses family’s journey into cow horn craftsmanship was a twist of fate, driven by the wanderings of their eldest brother, Eduardo. Now, they are wholeheartedly dedicated to creating exquisite cow horn pieces. At a young age, the eldest sibling, Eduardo, left home, made his way to Bogotá, and disappeared for more than twenty years. The rest of the family built their own lives around the void his absence left in their hearts. Esperanza, for instance, worked as a primary school teacher for several decades. Then, one day, they received a call from their long-lost brother—he needed their help.

Without hesitation, Esperanza and her brothers quickly packed their bags and set off for the capital. Upon reuniting, they discovered that Eduardo had been earning a livelihood through craftsmanship, crafting exceptional cow horn pieces among other things. They rescued him, and upon returning to their hometown, Bachalema, he, in turn, rescued them by teaching them the art of working with cow horn. Esperanza had already retired, and she made the request to her brother to pass on his craft. Their joy was boundless when he agreed.

Digging deeper, it’s evident that creativity runs in their blood. Esperanza fondly describes her father, Mr. Rafael María, as a man who knew how to provide for his large family, which included ten children. Faced with limited resources, he would fashion toys for the boys and accessories for the girls. He created necklaces and earrings from beads and transformed cow horns into toy shotguns by filling them with gunpowder. The family’s crafting legacy began with him, as he expertly polished horns with a piece of glass and used beef fat to give them a lustrous sheen. Additionally, he was renowned in town for crafting wedding rings, Christmas ornaments, and paper-mâché masks for the December holidays, meticulously creating them using clay molds. He was a truly remarkable man.

Although a young Esperanza did not initially have an affinity for craftsmanship, as an adult, she is now wholeheartedly devoted to it, a delightful irony she readily acknowledges. Days pass by, and she dedicates her hours to late-night work, occasionally forgetting to catch up on the evening news because her full attention is focused on crafting jewelry, all while working alongside Eduardo and her sisters, Consuelo and Jimena, who expertly weave ruanas and crochet knit. As they invest their present in their craft, they pay homage to their past.

Esperanza, a diligent student, quickly learned Eduardo’s technique and allowed him to lead the family’s creative orchestra. She speaks with authority about this labor-intensive craft that commences with cleaning the horns, followed by a drying period lasting two to three months, which is succeeded by fire heating and pressing. This is followed by meticulous polishing with sandpaper ranging from a coarse 60 caliber to a fine 400 caliber, culminating in the finishing touches using river rocks or crockery powder. All of this is carried out before they embark on the creation of pieces adhering to strict designs. She understands that every part of the horn is valuable, even the ends her father used to discard for filling. These can be transformed into rings or pendants. She takes immense pride in their work, and rightly so, as their jewelry pieces radiate immense beauty.

Whenever she contemplates retirement due to fatigue, her nephew Johnattan, affectionately known as Pepe, reminds her of the link between her health and the happiness her work brings. He convinces her to keep going. She is also comforted by the knowledge that he is the heir to the family’s business, ensuring that the Meneses’ creativity will continue to flow through history.