"A new experience"

It is difficult for me to tell something of my early childhood because I do not remember myself of anything before my 8 years, and it was because I had a strange illness which I am not going to describe now because it does not come to the topic, and only I mention it because I must speak about the first impression towards something in my childhood and I will do it but of my puberty.

My early years at school I did it in a school where I had a lot of good experiences, but I did not manage to establish a belonging sense in him, and could not establish many important bonds of friendship either.

When my sixth grade end and because we are going to change of house, I asked my parents  to change school. It was not an easy decision, because I knew that these changes are not usually easy, but we decide to do it.

The first thing there was the election of the school, it have to be one that was close to the sector where we were living, it had several elections and after doing the necessary visits to each of them, we take the decision, We decided to take, the International School of Guatemala.

In November, 2006, I took the entrance examinations, and to sorrow that I had asked for the change of school myself, I did a few bad examinations thinking that if it was losing them it was going to be a justification not to change, I was a little afraid. In spite of these, it was not badly, I made good exams, so it had green light for my inscription.

I used these holidays to strike up friendship, across Messenger I began contacting to several of those who would be in my class and little by little I did some friends.

Already in January, the day came, my first day in a new school. It was not difficult as I believed, I had a good welcome, my partners received me better than I was waiting and it was not difficult to do to me of a group.

Today  I already do not have the same group that it had in the first year, little by little on having met any more people, I began joining with more related friends to me and today I can say that I have many and pretty friends.

We are a group of 6 friends that we take very well and sorrow that we not all are in the same section, we share in the playtime, join to do the homework’s together and all the social activities, many of the times with some other friends that are not in the same school but that are a part of our group.

All these years in this new school have been wonderful, because I have achieved many good things for my life. I was never a bad pupil, but since I am in this school I have high averages, I have always been of the honor picture and feel very at ease.

In addition to my academic classes I belong to the team of soccer of the school and also I have friends inside the team and enjoy much the friendly games that we have occasionally.

There are many pretty things that I can tell about of these years in this school, but the principal one is that now I have many friends, we all share a lot of tastes and we like to be together. A pretext is not missing to join, be already to do study works together or to see a movie, to go out to the movies, to the shopping center or to drink a coffee.

Also I feel that I have learned many good things in this school, I have very good teachers, who it is seen that they love his work and that they makes me feel motivated to study. Earlier I did not like the class of Social studies, but my teacher knows so much and gives such interesting classes, that today I enjoy many of the topics about which she speaks to us and no matter the homework, I enjoy it.

It has been an experience of very much growth having changed of school, what one day scared me, today it stay already behind, I feel my current partners, had been my  friends of the whole life. I am already next to graduated and it gives me a little of sadness to think that we are going to separate and take different ways, but I am sure that our friendship is stronger than the distance and we will keep on being friends and looking every day we want.

" I love snow"

Several years ago, my family and I went on a trip to Lake Tahoe.  It was the first time that we would go to a place where there would be snow, and that was very exciting for us.

The trip was planned many months in advance since it is not easy to find hotels located close to the ski resort.  Sometimes, there are no rooms available or they are too pricey.

Making arrangements was very amusing.  We bought all kinds of clothes that commonly we do not have at home, since the climate in Guatemala is nice, mild and does not allow us to wear it.

I was 11 years old then and was looking forward to see the snow, do ice-skating and especially to play with the snow making a snowman as I had seen in the movies.

First, we bought coats, thermal clothes, boots, gloves, caps and all the equipment we believed would be necessary for the cold weather so as not to freeze.

My parents also got in touch with people in the places that we would visit, since first we decided to go to San Francisco where we would join another family to drive by car towards the lake.

My mom checked every day the weather forecasts to find out the dates with more probability of snow, because we were eager to experience the snow.

It was August already, and we could hardly wait for November to come, as our trip was scheduled for that month.

My mom told me that they were expecting the first snow would fall in late October, and we were so thrilled since we would be coming into the lake in the beginnings of November, so the snow would be there.

In the twinkling of an eye, November came and we finally we went away on the trip. We came first to San Francisco where we spent a few days and where we joined our friends.

Being there, I felt a little disappointed because we were told that it had not snowed in Lake Tahoe.  I felt sad because we would be missing the snow.  We traveled around California during the next days.

Finally, the day came when we got up early in the morning, loaded the car and prepared for the trip that was going to be rather long, since we were 196 miles away from Heavenly Valley where our hotel was located.

When we arrived in Lake Tahoe, we found out that there has been no snowfall yet. We became very sad because we did not know if we were going to have the opportunity to see the snow, and worst of all, to ski.

We spend the first day visiting the town where there were shops, restaurants and an ice skating ring.  This is where I did ice skating for the first time and tried what this sport is about.  I was very happy to share the fun with my sisters and the Moreno’s daughters, the family we joined for the ride.

In the night I was tired and a little sad because we had planned to go skiing to Squaw Valley the following day but there was not enough snow in the valley.

After dinner, we got together in one of the hotel rooms to chat and play. We were very anxious because a waiter in the restaurant told us that they were expecting a big snowfall that night and we did not want to miss it.

Late that night, sleep defeated us.  It was midnight when we went to bed, and there was still no trace of snow.

The following morning, very early, about 6, mom woke us very satisfied for it had snowed indeed.

I felt impatient and was eager to go skiing, so we all got ready in a hurry and packed the winter clothes that we would be wearing in the ski resort.

On Squaw Valley, we had to rent some special ski equipment. There were many shops specializing in the sale and rental of this equipment, so it was not difficult to get it.

Dressed up with the equipment, we walked to the cable car that would take us up to the top of the ski center.

On the way up, the guide told us that Squaw Valley had hosted the winter Olympic Games in 1960 and that ever since that year the place had become a very famous site for skiing.

He also told us that there was a special school where some instructors helped the children with the first skiing lessons.  This made me happy because I had never skied before.

When we reached the top, we had to put on the clothes and the special boots.  We looked very funny like fat guys lined with layers and layers of clothes and we could hardly walk!  The boots were very heavy and forced us to walk bending our knees.

At last, we got there!  We were so happy... not only for the incredible place we were visiting but also for being so lucky to have enough snow with perfect conditions to ski.

There, we spend the happiest day.  At first, we believed that learning to ski was going to be a very difficult task.  Fall after fall we began to improve and by the end of the day, we had already achieved to ski.

I have never thought before this experience about the importance of having favorable conditions to practice skiing.  Snowfall made it possible for our family to enjoy this wonderful and unforgettable experience.

"A man of God"

I want to begin writing about a person who has played a very important role in my family. He is a priest of my parish, Papito (“Daddy” in Spanish).

Thirty years ago, Papito came from Spain, without imagining that Guatemala would become his home.

His first years in Guatemala, he lived in Las Verapaces, where he was mostly dedicated to render service to the natives in the midst of poverty and violence that were predominant during these years of civil war in the country.

The rest of his time, he has been devoted to work in the parish of San Martin de Porres located in Vista Hermosa, zone 15 of the capital.  This is where I met him.

Short of height, with a very dense beard, and elegant and serious visage no one has idea of what a wonderful person he is because of his great character and big generous heart.

Most of his service has been focused in social services promoting people in different places of the capital and in the rural areas of the country, mainly in Cahabon.

I met him several years ago, when with my family decided to adopt this parish as a second home.

Little by little I began growing fond of him.  It has not been difficult because when you encounter him for the first time and he gives you a hug, you are trapped by his charm as love at first sight.

The decision to write about him comes from my enthusiasm to listen to his anecdotes and stories. I am still amazed to hear of the ways how a person can be touched by the hand of God.

His vocation was born when he was a little boy.  Coming from a religious family, at the age of 5, he had already told his parents that he wanted to dedicate his entire life to serve God.

When he was 12, he entered the seminary and this is where his life adventure began.

He became a Dominican priest, and one of his tasks is to preach the Gospel as a missioner.  When he was 26, he was sent to America, and established in Guatemala.

He personally asked the Dominican authorities to be sent to Las Verapaces where he felt much identified with the people, as he told us:  “I fell in love with the land and its people.”

It was in Las Verapaces where he was ordained priest at the age of 29, and since that moment he has shared his life in the service going from here to there,  going back and forth from the capital to Cahabon, place he loves most dearly.

Since I was 6, I began participating in a special Eucharist celebration for children, on Sundays twice a month, and it was there where I met Papito.

I did not understand then what I was doing in church, I was very small, but I was pleased and felt happy when Papito came to us like a true friend and told us stories. I was amazed when he allowed us to get close to the altar and share with him the precious moment when he offers and raises the holy host.  It was very exciting.

Further, during my preparation for the sacrament of confirmation, I had the opportunity to know him better. 

Papito is very special with youngsters, he is always eager to join us in some activity.  He loves youth indeed.

It is very amusing to listen to Papito speaking, because he always tells good jokes and laughs a lot, also making fun of him.

I think Papito sets a good example for many people because he is always ready to serve and to help someone in need. When my great-grandmother died, he was celebrating Mass, and as soon as the celebration was finished, he called my parents to ask if they needed anything. He came to the funeral parlor and celebrated a beautiful mass as if he had been very close to my great-grandmother.

He likes to take part in a lot of activities as in the retreat for couples or the charity fair of the parish where he enjoys giving the blessing to pets people bring for the occasion.

He is usually very busy because he is responsible for and is in charge of many duties, always trying to provide for the needs of the parish.

It is not easy for people to find him in church, if you are lucky, you may find him praying the rosary in the garden, or walking along the parking lot with some of the sacristans looking after the church’s maintenance or seeing if there is something out of order, because of course, he likes everything to run smoothly and perfectly.

At present, I am working in the confirmation catechesis together with many other youngsters and have discovered the big treasure we have in church:  a man who decided to devote his life for the service of God and who could not be replaced easily if, for some reason, his mission takes him somewhere else.