An Extreme Change

I am mother of four children and my life was normal until one day I had to face a reality that changed all my life. It was March 2008, I was doing my chores when suddenly I sneezed and I felt pain in my right upper thigh. I did not pay attention, but the pain continued, so I sat and took a rest. After taking a rest, I did not feel any pain. I went outside because I wanted to take a walk around, but as I started to walk, the pain came back. This time I went home and took a pain killer, and it stopped the pain. During two more days the pain came back, but then, nothing reduced the discomfort. I decided to go to the doctor, and they did a lot of testing. Finally, I had the results of the test, but I did not like the results. I had tumors in my uterus and my ovaries, and they had to be removed as soon as possible because they could be malign. I had to get surgery. Before the surgery, the doctor told me that after the surgery my life would change because I was young for that kind of surgery, but in my case I had no option. I did not understand too much about that, but I wished that the surgery went well because I needed to recover soon in order to take care of my children. Everything was fine because I was still on time.

After the surgery my life changed completely because I started to experience many physical and psychological changes that come with an induced menopause. Sometimes I was in bad mood, and I shouted at my husband and children. I also was depressed, and I did not want to talk to anyone or go anywhere. Sometimes I did not want to do anything at home; I did my chores, but I felt tired as if I was working all day. I thought that nobody understood me, and I felt alone. I also started to gain weight, and it was something that killed me because I always took care of my body, exercised, and was active, but even though I continued my life normally, I gained more and more weight. One time I went to the doctor and asked him why I felt the way that I did and why I was gaining weight so fast. He told me that my hormones were altered due to the surgery because my body did not produce anymore estrogen without my uterus and ovaries. Then he said that he could not do anything for me because if he gave me medicine, it could affect me worse because the hormonal replacement treatment had secondary effects that could cause cancer. I did not like to accept my fate, but I could not do anything, so I decided to deal with it and change my life.

I decided that I had to change because my children needed me, and they needed a strong mother that was available to them. They did not need a sick person that was always sad or depressed. My husband needed a happy and active wife that shared with him and walked this life together. I learned that my worth comes from the person that I am, not what my body looks like. I decided to study because I always wanted to be a nurse, but I did not study because I was always taking care of my children or because I did not know this language very well, but I set a goal in my life, and I wanted to accomplish it. I had to have time for me because my children were no longer babies that needed me to stay with them all the time and I needed to do something for me because it is never too late to follow my dreams. Now, I am a strong person, and I have accomplished some of my goals, but I am not going to stop until I get all of them. I know that I have to walk a long way, and it is not easy, but I think that I can do it because I have taken the decision to one day become a nurse.

Nobody imagines that in one day your life could change totally, but it happens very often. The most important is to find the best of the worst because a bad experience could help to build a better person, a person that you never imagine that exists. 

Research Discoveries

I am going to write about effects of losing the night due to high pollution. I also want people to adopt or do the necessary to change their mind about nature and preserve the night sky and its beauty. The society has to react and see the beauty of night that we had before the society created all those kind of lights that we have now and which are affecting our planet along with its inhabitants.

When I watched the movie, I notice the reality that I am actually living because as the participant as The City Dark stated, I was living in a bubble where only my life, my children, and my family members were taken into consideration as important. After I watched the movie, I took conscience of a problem that is affecting our night sky, and nobody seems to notice. We as the inhabitants of the planet should try to solve this issue because it is our responsibility to take care of the place where we live and share it with other living things.

I am going to appeal to people’s emotions (pathos) because I think it is the best way to persuade people to take actions. We can have a lot of information from different sources that sometimes we do not pay attention or do not understand, but, if I present them in my paper, the same issues in simpler terms and with examples of actions that we can adopt in our everyday life, I am sure that the readers will see how easy and the different ways that we can help individually to stop this problem.

I am interested in persuading through moral credibility (ethos) by interviewing a catechist because I think that she could give me a religious perspective of light pollution and a major credibility to my essay because a catechist is a person that has been studying to teach the Catholic faith in children. They have good moral character and they are spiritual leaders for many people as well.

I like the commentary of Ian Cheney when he states, “Seeing the stars is like seeing the earth from space. You suddenly realize the uniqueness and the fragility of life in the planet, which is a reminder, as well, that it’s more than just humans who are losing the night” (City Dark). This phrase shows how important the earth and the sky are for him. He also reflects about the fact that we are an insignificant little piece in space, but we mistakenly believe that we are above everything. Too, he shows us the value of the night sky as well as the universe because they are unique and irreparable.

Cheney’s comment helps me understand that we do not appreciate everything that we have because we only think about ourselves instead of seeing our human fragility. I could figure out all that we can lose along with the night sky because we are not just losing the night, but part of ourselves and our humankind too. We have the capability to decide for those that do not know how to protect themselves what we do to the planet. We should protect them, but instead we are failing in doing so due to our neglect.

I have found articles about light pollution, reflections on the cosmos and man, and reclaim the night from religious perspectives. I found them at the databases of Lee College Library; some of them are academic search complete and books. I also want to interview to a catechist because such interview could help me to integrate new solutions to my essay from another point of view. All the researches are going to help me prove the accuracy of my ideas and support them. They also indicate that other people share concepts or think similarly to me.

The Night Fear

After I watch the movie The City Dark, I was thinking a lot about why we show fear for the night. Some ideas come to me as I try to figure out the answer to such a question. Roger Ekrich, Virginia Tech historian, says, “The early impetus, as recently as three (or) four hundred years ago, for public lighting was crime. Virtually every ancient civilization that has left clues or some sort, stone tablets or works of history, every civilization had a fear of the night” (qtd. In City Dark). It means that our ancestors through time have shown fear for the night, and it could be because they felt unprotected and threatened by savage animals. For example, during prehistoric times, men had to fight in order to stay alive. When they discovered fire, that became their first source of light in the dark, they noticed that they could see everything around them, and it was an advantage because they could warn animals that threatened them away. They discovered that many animals showed fear of fire or the light that the fire produced, so they used it as a protection tool. Also, they discovered that the fire produced heat that they needed for surviving in extreme cold weather and to finally cook their food. This discovery was useful because the light helped them feel strong and protected.

Now we continue showing such fear for the dark because we, like ancient men, still associate bad things with the night. For example, many criminals take advantage of the night to commit crimes because they can hide in the dark and nobody can identify them while they steal cars or assault a store. Illicit activities such as drugs, prostitution, and violence usually happen at night because the streets are alone and the majority of people are sleeping at that time except criminals.

People increases their fear of the dark when they make up all kind of horror stories about dark creatures that come alive during night, such as vampires that sleep in the day and wake up at night to kill people, stories about haunted houses that come alive during the night, and the dead coming out of their graves or zombies that eat and scare people.

I think that our society has passed on this fear, generation through generation, but we can have many good things happen in the dark. We need to see the night differently in order to stop perpetuating this fear of the dark. For instance, we can go on a date with our loved one under the moonlight. We do not have to pay anything for a nice night outing like this, or we could use candles for lighting at night instead of electricity, because it looks magical and anyone can enjoy it. We can also learn to appreciate nature and its power because the stars are magical and can bring two people together at night. If we gaze at the night sky for a long time, we experience peace, strength, and eagerness to move on because the night sky inspires us due to its incredible stars, constellations, and the moon.

Glancing at the sky is for me the hope for a better life, a relationship with God. I know that he is in a place that I have not seen, but I know for sure that he exists because nobody else could create something as perfect and as immense as the universe. 

A Great Loss

When I watched the movie The City Dark, I was in shock because this movie presents a reality that we are living now, and nobody seems to notice. We are adjusting to live our life without thinking about anyone else due to our selfishness. We are losing some species and the night sky, and those are very important parts of our universe.

The lights of the city and the pollution have played a major role in the extinction of many species. Those animals, as shown in the movie, have been dying every day due to confusion. For example, when the turtles hatch and see the city lights, they believe that the light is the light reflected in the water by the moon, and instead of going to the sea, they go the wrong way. Eventually, many of those animals die. Even though many people are trying to protect them by guiding them to the sea, their effort is not enough because many places do not have such protection and without it, the innocent animals are misguided and hopeless.

Every inhabitant of the earth should have the same rights to live here. We were created to share this place with the animals too, but we have forgotten that because we think that we are almighty, and we can do anything that we want to do here. We believe that we have the right to think and decide for others because animals cannot talk or think for themselves in such matters. Most of the time we do not consider them or if they will benefit from our decisions; we are failing in protect them and their habitats. We fail to consider these species as important as they really are or that we are all on the same planet, and that we all belong to, not only to the world, but to this immense universe.

If we continue acting in the same way, in a few years many of those animals will be extinct, and they will be part of ancient history like the way dinosaurs are. If our cities continue growing and creating more lights that affect those animals, they will continue this pattern and probably the future generations will see or know about those animals that once existed only through books. Now is the time to be aware and try to find a solution to this problem that is threatening these worthy creatures. We only think about how to make money, create the best buildings, and have the latest in technology, but we never think in creating a better world for all of the earth’s inhabitants, including its animals.

We are losing the night sky and its beauty because we are replacing it with city lights. When we see the city sky, we find a place without stars or the moonlight. We also seem to not notice that, and we do not pay any special attention to it. If we keep doing what we have done so far, maybe we will not be able to see the moonlight or the stars in the future, and it would be catastrophic for all human beings.        

Amazing Night Sky

I remember when I was a child that my father shared stories about the sky. Those fascinating stories were made up by my dad, but I believed everything he said. He said that the sky was a big animal that ate all the earth’s animals, and those animals became the stars. My dad told my sister and I to gaze at the sky, in order to try to figure out what animals’ shapes we could see in them. We thought that we could recognize most of those animals. For example, we saw rabbits, horses, lions, birds, elephants, dogs, cats and scorpions. Sometimes we argued about what their shapes were because my sister thought she saw one animal and I saw a different one in the same area, so we had to look at other things to decide what kind of animal it was. To do so, we had to find some features that made it a specific animal. For example, if it was an elephant, it must have had big ears and a long trunk. If we agreed, we ended the discussion. Then, we would name and adopt them as our imaginary pets.

Another thing we did was count the stars. When we saw big stars, we showed them to our dad, and the person who found the most of those big stars, was the winner. Even though there were a lot of stars, we never could finish counting all of them. I would be there for hours and hours looking the night sky because I enjoyed the shiny and bright stars and the moon that illuminated the night. The moon, in my child fantasies, was a cradle that rocked a child when he wanted to sleep, and I wanted the moon to rock me to sleep as well. When there was a full moon, I wanted to sleep in the backyard because it was beautiful, I did not need electricity to see all around, and I felt protected under the moonlight.

When I was a teenager, I associated the night sky with love. I liked to see my boyfriend at night because it was romantic to meet under the moonlight and stars. Everything was beautiful, and I felt more in love under the majestic moon. When I fought with my boyfriend, I cried and talked to the stars about my problems and fantasies as if they could hear me. Sometimes I wished on shooting stars for love, and I believed that my love conflicts could be solved by them. There is something magical about them because after doing so I felt better and in peace.

I do not know when I stopped watching the sky and its beauty. It is as if something happened in my life that made me forget it. One possible reason for that is that I am more interested in technology than in appreciating the beauty of a full moon or a full star night sky. I prefer to be at home watching television or in front of a computer. Unfortunately, I am teaching my children to do the same thing that I do instead of giving them examples of appreciating the night sky as my father did with me.

Cake and Coffee

When I read 180 More: Extraordinary Poems for Every Day by Billy Collins, some poems captured my attention. I did not know why I liked them, but when I continued reading, I found the reasons why I liked them, they are about love relationships that ended in separation. The poems “Ever After” by Joyce Sutphen is about a person that believed she was going to be in a love story that ends up in a divorce. The poem “Please Come Late” by Hugo Williams is about a man who suffers because of his broken relationship. Both poems are apparently different, but they have many similarities.

The first similarity is that both narrators still love their ex-lovers. In “Ever After” the narrator talks about her ex-husband in a sad tone. She questions how their relationship will be after their separate lives now. The narrator states, “Who are we to each other now that / there is no us…” (Sutphen 3-4). It means that she nostalgically thinks about him and the life that they shared, she deeply wishes to be with him, but she knows that it is almost impossible because many bad things happened during her marriage, and those things caused their separation. Additionally, she does not say anything bad about him. When a relationship ends, people regret having married or having been with this person, or speak ill of the other person, but in this case she does not have anything bad to say about him. She knows that they will not be together anymore, and it makes her sad.

Equally in “Please Come Late” the narrator continues loving his ex. The narrator sees her in every face that passes by. He says “glancing round the room, / thinking everyone is you” (Williams 3-4). The narrator is thinking in her all the time. He also states “Don’t come anywhere near me / until I have gone slightly mad for love of you” (29-30). The readers infer that even though he says that he does not want to see her again, he is still madly in love with her, and he would like to be with her again.

The second similarity is that both have broken relationships. The speaker of “Ever After” is suffering due to a divorce. She says “now that / there is no us…” (3-4), she feels unhappy because her life has to change a lot after her divorce. The narrator states “as when we once posed (so young and helpless)…” (11). She feels unprotected without him because they lived together a long time. She has a flashback of the time when they got married, full of love and dreams, but now they have taken different ways. It is hard when you have a life with a person that you think is your loved one, but suddenly something happens that changes all your life.

Similarly in “Please Come Late” the narrator is living the same situation. He is separated from his loved one. The speaker is “wondering what you are doing / on the other side of town”… (11-12), the narrator does not know where she is because they apparently had a fight, and they have not seen each other for a while, so he imagines many things. He imagines that she is possibly with someone else; this situation makes him feel jealous and depressed.

The last similarity is that both narrators remember their relationship using symbols. In “Ever After,” the narrator remembers her wedding and “the tall white cake” as symbols of love (13). The white cake represents the moment when she got married full of love and happiness, but then, she mentions “with our hands (yours, mine) clasped on the knife / that was sinking into the tall white cake” (12-13). This symbolized their eventual separation, so as the knife cut deeper, their relationship kept having problems, each layer of the cake until the knife finally hit the bottom.

Correspondingly, in “Please Come Late,” the narrator mentions “I’m on my second coffee by now, eating the little bits of sugar in my cup (18-19). This cup empty of sugar is symbolic of his love and how he feels; empty without love which does not have any chance of refill.

In fact, both poems “Ever After” and “Please Come Late” are similar in many ways because both are about broken relationships that have made the narrators suffer. They are also experiencing feelings of sadness and unhappiness because their love stories do not have their happily ever after they expected.

Confused Success

In the book 180 More Extraordinary Poems for Every Day by Billy Collins, a poem has captured my attention because of its repetitive words and sentences. The poem "Denial" by David Lehman, is about how the author denies the hangover he is experiencing. I do not understand the intentions behind the author’s reason to write this poem because it is confusing and exaggerated.

The poem “Denial” was written using the same words, but in many different ways. I think that the author wants the readers try to imagine how he feels a day after he drank a lot. The author says, “I am not hungover” (1). He cannot forget the experience of discomfort and sickness he feels when he drinks. He also pays emphasis on repetition because he does not want to repeat the same experience. By pretending he is not feeling hung over; he probably starts believing he is not hung over the longer he is in denial. He starts to believe his own lies. He may also want to remind himself that he is hung over so that he can say he is better than that.

I think that the poet exaggerates in the poem because he feels confused while he writes it. He wants to demonstrate to himself that he is not so sure about his hung over state because he does not how many beverages he ingested to put him in that way. Too, he is as any other drunk that know they drink a lot, but they pretend that nothing is happening. They say that they are right and that they can do many things that they should not. Many times when people are drunk, they behave stubbornly and talk a little too much.

The author creates the poem as a past time because he wants to write all the ways he can say the same thing in different syntax. He probably does this more so because he is trying to change the reality by saying the opposite of what he is really experiencing. When he does not admit he is hung over, he feels he is in control of his situation to lessen the feeling of being hung over because perception is reality.

The author wants to create something different than the conventional. This poem says a lot about his personality because he wants to be unique and spontaneous. He wants to be remembered for creating something different. The author also wants to capture the readers’ attention, and he gets it because his creation is unusual. He is not worried for other people criticizing his art. He might not sound like a professional poet, but he does not care. He is trying to connect with the audience even if it is controversial. He is being more human and easy to relate since his audience probably have experienced being hung over or have been in denial of the consequences of their actions.

I do not know why the author wrote the poem, but I think that he should have written more instead of being repetitive to the point where he begins to confuse me. He could have specified he was talking to a significant other, trying to behave as if he is not hung over. Maybe it was the first time in a long time in his life that he is actually not hung over and he is incredulous and proud of his accomplishment.

Painting Slowly

"Painting a Room" by Irina Kendall and "Slowly" by Donna Masini, are two poems that show readers the importance of changing their life to a positive attitude. The poem Painting a Room is about a person who is painting and getting rid of all her stuff and fears that have beset her for a long time, and she begins to change and feel free. Slowly is about a snake that is eating a rabbit slowly while the author sees everything. Apparently, both poems are different, but they have many similarities such as time, pain, and changes.

The first poem, "Painting A Room," states the time as a reference to past events that will lead the poet to her liberty. She is painting a room and getting rid of her old stuff. When she writes that it is because she thinks that doing so, she will be free and relieved of something that she carries. “All my furniture has been sold, or given away to bohemian friends (lines 4, 5).” It could suggest that the poet is trying to eliminate her sins and bad behavior that have consumed her for many years.

Second, the poet feels pain for something that persecutes her. The poet says, “I am free from regrets but not from pain” (line 13). The author feels sad and melancholy because it is not easy to escape from the past situations and guilt that she has been carrying during many years. Also, she is going to leave her apartment, belongings, and life for an uncertain future. The brush is used by the author representing an emotional inquietude because her heart throbs when she holds it.

Third, the poet starts experiencing changes. The author makes a reference to “Ten years of fears, unrequited loves, odd jobs, of night of phone calls. Now they’ve disconnected the line” (line 14, 15). Something important happens in her life that makes her realize that she has to see life in a different way. Now, she perceives things that she did not before. The poet decides to change and start a new life, changing and leaving everything negative to keep only good things.

The second poem "Slowly" uses time to make us see how time consumes the author. The poet remembers when she was in fourth grade and she went to the zoo. There, she saw a snake which was eating a rabbit slowly. The snake symbolizes a biblical reference to sins. The author sees how her sins are consuming her as slowly as the snake consumes the rabbit.

Next, the poet experiences pain as time progresses. The poet describes when the snake was eating the rabbit and the rabbit did not move or fight for its life. The author realizes that, “taking this in, slowly, taking it into my body: this grief” (lines 23, 24).It means that life progresses and stops for nobody and we do not feel ourselves slowly dying. She also realizes that as the rabbit, she did not do enough things in her life that she could have done and now realizes she does not have enough time to do them.

Additionally, the author thinks of the change. The poet realizes that time will never be back once it is gone. She knows that she can try to change now and begin a new life since she cannot change the past, but she can change the course of her future. 

Even though on the surface "Painting a Room" and "Slowly," are poems that seem very different, but they have many similarities. Both of them talk about time and how the poet wants to get rid of old things that will lead her to reach her freedom. Even with pain, she wants to change and become a better person. On the other hand, in the other poem, the author notices the time that consumes her slowly. She also feels pain because she has not accomplished all that she wants. She feels that it is late, but she knows that she can change and begins a new life because she cannot turn back time.

The Wedding Ring Poem

The poem "Wedding Ring" by Lynne McMahon is a poem that interested me because I thought it was a love story, but when I read it, I noticed that it was about a ring that was found by one person. The poem does not specify who found the ring, but I infer by the details that it was probably the author’s boyfriend or friend who found it and gave it to her. This poem also mentions Ireland and France. I do not know why the author mentions both of these countries; maybe she is from Ireland and lives in France or she is visiting one place or the other. Also, it seems as she does not know the culture because she is trying to remember the ring's specific name given by the Irish culture apparently, but I do not know if the poet is asking another person, or if she is asking herself that question in order to remember. Apparently, the ring is part of the Irish culture because it has specific name and characteristic known to be a ring given to a loved one.

I infer that the poem explains something about culture. When the poet writes, "by borrowed themes," line 20; it is because she does not understand or does not like the culture, but it is something significant to the people of that place. The author is also analyzing how the ring ended up between the cushions in the restaurant. How could a person forget something so important because that ring is something very special; it symbolizes love, it is to be given to a loved one. If a person buys that ring, it is because that person is going to find a way to deliver it to his loved one, not lose it in a cheap diner. It is hard to believe how a sentimental and material piece has been forgotten so easily because the person who lost it could have tried to recover it.

One thing the narrator does not explain is who gave her the ring. It could be her boyfriend, her friend, or parents, and the reasons why that person gave the writer the ring is also unknown. You could assume that if her boyfriend gave her the ring is may be because he wants to marry her or he loves her. If it was not him, why did that person not keep it for him or herself as a keepsake? Another thing is that the poet does not know who the ring belongs to, and does not specify what the person who found the ring was doing there in the first place. I do not understand when the poet writes “a momentary recognition that trash sent bowling dawn the street by sudden wind,” in line 13, 14, and 15. What is the meaning of the reference to the trash carried by the wind in the poem?

The narrator leaves out so much information and I cannot understand the poem. She does not give more information about this ring. It seems like she is in love with the idea of receiving a wedding ring. I do not know why the ring is important to her; I just know it is because otherwise why would she write a poem of that if it was not? It has to have a meaning, but she does not explain it. For me it is confusing to understand this poem because nothing in the poem helps me understand the importance of this ring, the poem is too vague as if she were trying to explain the importance of the ring but holds back, keeping it a secret only she knows.

Stitches: David's Memories

The book Stitches: A Memoir by David Small, is a sad book about a kid who has to deal with a family that never give him love and protection. His mother is a frustrated woman named Betty that never pays attention to her children. Ed, David's father, is always working and barely is at home, David's brother, Ted, is always playing the drums. David wants to have attention and love, but those seem impossible.Through imagination and dreams, David tries to cope with unfulfilled desires and unmet needs.

One thing that got my attention was how David expresses his imagination. One time he went to the hospital where his father works. David's mother told him that he could play, but not with the wheelchairs or close to the elevator. He deliberately disobeys her orders. He playes with the wheelchairs and uses the elevator. He goes to the fourth floor, a place where he has never gone, and he sees a fetus in a bottle. Suddenly, it transforms into a little man and follows David, who runs to where his mother was. This imagination symbolizes the fear that most children have because they are afraid to the unknown. He does not know what that strange little man is. Also nobody is working in that place and he is alone. That makes him create all kinds of crazy things in his imagination. In addition, he knows that he is doing something wrong because he disobeys his mother; he knows that he can be in trouble.

David loves the book Alice in Wonderland because it reflects all that he wants to have. He likes the rabbit that digs a hole, and the magic of Alice's hair that allows her to be in the land of talking animals as well as her interaction with characters who could be his friends, singing flowers, and the dancing teapot. Everything is symbolic because the hole is David's house because it is dark and silent place, and the other land is the place where he wants to go; a place with many happy people gathering, talking, and having fun.

My attention was captured when I saw the way David's mother acts. She is selfish and careless with her sons. She also acts as if she is against everything David does. On one occasion, she has a party in her house, and one of her friends discovers a growth in David's neck. David's mother does not worry for him. Instead, she makes comments about how David ruined the party because of his growth. I cannot understand how a mother, that is symbol of love, patient, and dedication to her children, is not concerned for her son's health. A mother always wants the best for her children. When there is something happening that is serious, a normal reaction is to worry, and trying to find help immediately, but she seems more worried about money than in her own son.

David had two surgeries in his neck because he had cancer. While he goes home after his surgery, David wants to see his neck. He is surprised of how big it is. Then, he goes to sleep and has a nightmare. It is about  a bat that is scared because he is under a thunderstorm. He is looking desperately for his mother's protection. He sees an umbrella and runs to hug it as if it was his mom. Then, he tries to open it, but when he does, he finds it is broken, so he continues without protection under the rain.This dream represents his need to feel safe under his mother care.The umbrella represents protections that he is looking for, but when it is broken, is that this protection does not exist, so he continues unprotected.

I enjoyed reading the book because it makes empathize with his feelings. I was also sad for him because he suffers a lot during his childhood. It is not easy to cope with a similar situation because all children want to have the love and protection of their families. David was only trying to find his mother's love, but he could not obtain. Even though, his imagination helps him deal with it, love cannot be replaced by anything and much less when it is a mother's love.

My Imagination

When I was a child, I played games where I pretended that my sisters were my patients. I was the perfect nurse because I took good care of them. When they had a "fever", I put a chair in the shower and bathed them. Then, I carried them to bed and checked their temperature, with the stick of a lollipop, to see if the fever was down. I also gave my patients medicine; it was sugar water or candy pills. 

We also created our own toys for playing. For example, if my mom bought corn, we created little dolls with them. We wrapped our baby corn in sheets, and we held it as if it was a real child. We also imagined that the baby cried, so we sang a song and our babies stopped crying. We combed the baby's hair, it was supposedly the corn's hair, and we put a colorful bow on it. My mom knew how to make dresses, so we  picked up the fabrics that she did not need to make dresses for the dolls. We created a catwalk fashion show, and then, everyone voted for the dress we liked the most. The winner could make more dresses for all the babies. We were so happy creating different clothes for our dolls.We also played with empty cans; they were our phones. First, we washed two empty cans and made a hole in the bottom of them. After, we put a long string and tied it tightly so it would not come loose. When it was ready, one of us stayed in the living room and the other in the next room and we talked. Then, we would go into another room, farther each time to see if it still worked. If we did not hear each other, we returned to where we could, and we kept talking. Sometimes the wire broke and we had to make another one.

I pretended to be the perfect mother that I wished I could have. I never understood why my mom set rules for me, so in my games, I pretended to be the best mom in the world. For example, sometimes I played with my imaginary children, and I let them to do what they wanted. They could go to sleep with their friends every night, I did not force my children to do homework, and they could be absent from school if they wanted. I also talked to them all the time, I understood their feelings, answered their questions, and I gave them the time they required to take from me. Everything was perfect in my world.

All those activities shaped my life because when I played to be a nurse, I reflected something that I wanted to be one day; I wanted to take care of people, and I unconsciously knew some of the responsibilities that it involved. My imagination was working while I created toys and invented new games because when we are children, our life is magical. We do not need to have money or have the best toys for fun. The innocence of a child cannot be bought with money because the best things of life are present even in the smallest details of it. My mom did not let me do what I wanted when I was a child, I understand now that we cannot raise children doing everything that they want because they must follow rules and have a good education. I also know that my mom was trying to protect me from many dangers I could have been exposed to as a child. Also my mom always gave me her time and listened to me, but I did not want to share her with my siblings. These experiences shaped my life. Thanks to them I am the way I am now, and I would not change anything that I have experienced.

My Memories

This picture was taken when I was five years old and my sister seven years old. We were wearing the Michoacán traditional Indian dress because it was Our Lady of Guadalupe day. Catholics around the world celebrate the day the Virgin of Guadalupe appeared to the Indian Juan Diego and told him that she wanted to build a temple for her in the place where she appeared. Since then, every December 12 is dedicated to her. It was a holiday my dad did not work, I remember that we went to church and at night we went to La Plaza and walked around. Then my mom bought me a balloon and my sister and I played with it. We were waiting for the time when the people started the fireworks that burned El Castillo, a structure that lit up with shapes that spun full of colors, followed by El Torito, a type of firework that was like a puppet that chased the people in La Plaza. I remember that it was fun and colorful.

When I was six years old, I remember my birthday party where my friends and I had fun. The children participated in different activities; some of them played soccer, others ate, and others hit the piñata. I felt like the most important person in the world because I was with my friends, sisters, and parents. I also was wearing a princess dress like one I've seen in a cartoon movie. I told my mom I wanted the dress to look like the one that princess had, so she made it and I wore it on that special day. What I liked most about the party was when my mom put the cake on the table. Then, she placed six lit candles on top of the cake, and I had to blow them while my friends and family clapped and sang "Feliz Cumpleaños." Finally, my mother gave everyone cake, and the party continued. I will never forget this party because it was one of my first memories, and it was very special to me.

I remember that my grandparents lived in a little town far from the city, and my sister and I always went to visit. I liked to go there because my grandparents had many animals, such as horses, chickens, pigs, and dogs. I did not have animals at home, so I enjoyed feeding, cleaning, and playing with them. My grandfather took me to ride a horse; it was something that I liked a lot. Sometimes I was a little afraid of falling down, but my grandfather hugged me and told me he would make sure that nothing bad happened to me. That place was very nice because I could get in touch with the nature. There I could find many fruit tree. My sister, cousins, and I climbed up the tree together to cut fruit and eat them. Then we made natural fruit cocktails with oranges, apples, and mangoes. We also made lemonade or tree leaves tea. At night, all the children slept together. We spent the night sharing horror stories. After that we were afraid because we thought that the ghost, dead, and monsters of those stories could be real and could appear at any moment. We covered ourselves with blankets and closed our eyes. We did not have notion of what time we fell asleep. The next day we woke up and did many things because the most important thing was to have fun.

My mother and father are the most important people in the world. I remember when they gave me advice because they always wanted the best for me and my siblings. Since I was a child, they told me that they wanted me to be a good person, and to fight for everything I wanted. Thanks to them I am the person that I am today. Now, I am a mother and I am fulfilling their desires because I become the person that they wanted me to be, and I hope to raise my children as they raised me. This is something that I will never forget and I will always thank God for giving me them as parents.

My memories are wonderful because they represent experiences that I had one day, and they became a part of my life through time. Even the life I live today reflects childhood events that shaped me into the person I am today, and those will prevail in my memory and heart forever.