Sara’s childhood was full of sunshine. She remembers herself in farming fields under the sun, in the dry valleys of Bolivia. Many seasons had lacked rain which dried the soil and the air she breathed. The landscape became a palette of brown colours, intensifying the feeling of heat. Sara grew up planting seeds of different varieties of maize, every summer, in the furrows made with her father’s hoe. Although at times she became dispirited, she tenderly recalls the voice of her father saying, “Keep going Sara!” and, with that, helping her to remain focused and hopeful for a future colorful maize harvest. Sara’s family and her ancestors are those who had developed the rich maize landraces in Bolivia, making the Andes an important center of genetic diversity of this crop. I got to meet her through research carried out by myself and a colleague, interested in the social and ecological dynamics and roles of women around maize landraces. In peasant communities “maize is like a mother”, once I’ve been told. She dresses with bright colors to provide a generous source of nourishment. She transforms into many traditional foods. Maize provides means of work and income to many women. She also heals if you get to learn the secrets of grandmas on which parts are medicinal. She shelters wisdom that is kindly passed from women to women through generations. Now, Sara is 45 years old. She is a single mother of three. Every summer she still sows maize. It is not an easy task, but the challenge of cultivating by herself is balanced by the confidence she has that the different varieties of maize will guarantee food and nutrition to her family. When talking about her past, she recalls what she learned from her father at the field, and from her mother at the kitchen and backyard. She passes those memories and knowledge to her kids.