Maya Descendants

Descendants of the Maya living in Mexico still sometimes refer to themselves as "the corn people." The phrase is not intended as a metaphor. Rather, it's meant to acknowledge their abiding dependence on this miraculous grass, the staple of their diet for almost 9,000 years. Forty percent of the calories a Mexican eats in a day comes directly from corn, most of it in the form of tortillas. So when a Mexican says I am maize or corn walking, it is simply a statement of fact: The very substance of the Mexican body is to a considerable extent a manifestation of this plant.