Our Story
The four of us were initiated in May of 2003 by our original teacher, don Lucio Campos de Elizalde, at his home altar in Nepopualco, Morelos, Mexico.
Don Lucio was a weather work maestro (master) in the Nahua tradition of the Central Highlands of Mexico. (See green highlight showing their native area.)
Pictured in 2021: Amy Haynes, Douglas Haynes, Erin Everett & Adam Laufer, the Asheville area Nahua-tradition quialtzques (weather workers) in don Lucio’s tradition.
Don Lucio Campos Elizalde’s altar, circa 2006, one year after his death. We were crowned in 2003 by don Lucio.
Our Calling
We were called to this lineage in the ways known to this tradition throughout the ages: lightning strikes, special illnesses or significant dreams, or by being married to a person who had the clear and direct calling. Married partners are also called to this path to support each other in this important work.
Our Initiation
In May 2003, the four of us Asheville-area weather workers were “crowned,” or initiated into the tradition by don Lucio Campos de Elizalde. This was the beginning of our traditional path and the work it entails.
Our Work
Each spring without fail, we return to our spiritual homeland in Morelos, Mexico to call the spring rains to that area of the Central Highlands. At that time, we go through a ceremony of “enflowering,” where we make abundant offerings to give thanks for, among other things, the blessings that the Weather Beings have brought to our land here in the Asheville, NC region. In addition, every time it rains or snows, at our homes in the Asheville area, we make traditional offerings to show our respect and thanks to Weather.
Watch this video about the ancient tradition the Asheville NC weather workers are a part of.
Learn even more about our tradition at weatherwork.org
In the early 1900s, when Lucio Campos Elizalde was young, ball-lightning struck him while he was farming in his field. He was in a coma for three years.
Our elders and tradition:
While in his coma, he traveled in the sky, learning from the ancient spiritual forces of Rain and Weather, the Animals, and the Seed People.
He received a vision. He saw that, in his lifetime, the Weather Beings would become agitated because the People would no longer perform the ancient ceremonies to strengthen the old relationships between human beings and Weather. He saw that he would become a granicero (weather worker, also known as quiatlzques) and that people from “the four corners of the world” would come to him. For each of them, a part of their soul would be Nahua, like him. He was to initiate them into the old ways, and then they would work to re-forge those ancient relationships between humans and Weather in their own lands.
In his 90s, after many decades of serving his region as a weather worker, healer, and communicator with the Popocatepetl volcano, this vision was fulfilled, and don Lucio initiated and trained many new quiatlzques (weather workers) from the four corners of the world.
Weather workers from across the world continue to be initiated into this tradition by don Lucio’s inheritor and our tradition elder, don David Wiley. He leads forward don Lucio’s vision, which is, in turn, the vision of this tradition’s legacy. Don David guides us in our work.
Read more of this story on our tradition’s main website.
Since our initiation in 2003, we have been learning, growing, practicing our work, and now we share the blessings of don Lucio’s legacy of abundant, balanced weather with our community.
That’s you!
Your participation completes the reciprocal cycle of giving and receiving that brings bounty to our Appalachian lands.
