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How Did Cabeza Survive

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How NOT to die -
Cabeza de Vaca’s Top Tips on Survival

The year was 1527 when Cabeza de Vaca first sailed to the Americas heading to New Spain, or modern day Mexico. The skies were clear and the seas were calm, but out of nowhere, disaster struck. The ships crashed. 600 men became 4, among them was Cabeza De Vaca. No food, no ships, and no resources. How did Cabeza survive? A good combination of skill, healing powers, respect, and a whole lot of luck. With his incredible military background, Cabeza had a few tricks under his sleeve to help him throughout his journey. After escaping indian slave owners at 1534, even more torture laid ahead. He stored water in hollowed out horse legs, and ate basically anything that wasn’t toxic (including …show more content…
As Cabeza traveled, he would sometimes stay with different native american tribes, learning their culture and language. The natives considered Cabeza a healing god after miraculously taking an arrow out of a man’s chest. This gave Cabeza quite the reputation among the tribes, earning him respect, and a close bond with the natives. As the bond between Cabeza and the natives grew, it even saved Cabeza’s life at one point. Spanish slave hunters told the natives that they were lords, that Cabeza de Vaca was a worthless thief, and that they would take him. But the natives knew Cabeza, unlike the spaniards, they knew that Cabeza cared about them and that he saw them not as objects but as fellow human beings. The natives saw that Cabeza was a loyal, kind, good hearted man.
Overall, It wasn’t just skill that saved Cabeza de Vaca’s life, it was a combination of skill, loyalty, and respect. Cabeza would not have made it without his fellow native americans. He was different than the other explores because he knew that survival wasn’t all about him, that he needed to work side by side with his rivals, only then would he be able to survive against the misery that laid ahead of

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