What I Enjoy About My Neighborhood

I have live in my neighborhood since 2003. It is very quite and calm, when bad neigbors aren't around or close. I have on my right hand house a Cambodians. They are very nice and neighborly. We can't communicate with each other because the language. My neighbors are elderly and can't speak English well, and I don't either but we try to be nice each other. No body lives in my left hand house. A church is in front of my house and a Hispanic family lives behind my house, I don't know my other neighbors. People are busy in this country to meet their neighbors. My family doesn't lives close to my neighborhood.


And other thing I enjoy about my neighborhood is being near to many sites where I like to go, or need to go; like Children's Hospital and clinics, I need to bring my daughter to see her doctor. The libreries, where I come to read, to take English clases and used the computer or borrow movies and books. Groceries stores are also close people go there to buy food these stores are usually close to small malls with beaty shops in case you want have cut hair. A mexican store is near too, I visit it to buy tortillas and mexicans products.


Sometimes there are houses for rent near my house and when those are rented to not nice people my neighboorhood is not nice like it usually is. The last time when bad neighboors came to live there their children broke a lot of my plants, throw garbage in my yard, like cans and plastic bags. They made a lot noise almost all the time, and before they left they broke my windows. I like my neighborhoos besides the bad neighbors. Now they are not near anymore so my neighboorhood is calm and nice again, but for how long?.

MEXICO

I am from the beautiful land of the Aztecas, Mayas
Totonacas, Incas and Chichimecas,
from those great tribes where culture
means more than you can imagine,



From the land of Mariachis, Charros and Tequila.
I am from the good smells of my grandma's kitchen.
From the sharp sound of my grandpa's ax
cutting the old wood, trying to make a fire
to cook the food, and to warm us.




I am from my always busy mother
cleaning our house all the time;
from my strong father working hard
earning money to provide our necessities.




I am from the many noises
of children eating, playing, crying,
from brothers and sisters fighting
for the same toy or for our mother's attention



I am from the country with a lot beauty
nice and magical places to enjoy,
from the country where everything
can be possible or impossible
everything depends on you.

An Absent-minded Mother

An absent mother writting to her son....



Dear son I'm put this lines here to let you know I'm alive. I 'm writting slow because I know you can't read fast. If you got this letter is because you got , if not let me know and I can sent you it again. You father read about the accidents occur one kilometer of home, so we move very far away; you are not recognoze the house, the place is nice the house have laundry, but I not sure if it work, Yesterday I put some clothes and I pull the chain and I don't see the clothes anymore. The weather here is not to bad last week just rained two times, the first time for three days and the second time four days. We send your jacket but your uncle Pepe said if we send this with buttos can be very expensive so we took the buttons and put those on the pocket. Finally we bury your grandfather. We found his body when we moved, it was in the closet since the day when he won playing Hide and Seek.


Then other day was an explosion in the kitchen, you father and my fly away out home, I got so exited, tha was the first time that we go out in many years....The doctor came to our hause and put me small tub in my mouth also ask me to not open my mouth for ten minutes you father want to buy tha tub to the doctor. About your father , I'm pround, he have a nice jao, he have more than 500 people under him. He cut the grass opn the cementery. Your sister ana who get marry with her husband, had a baby, but I don't know if is boy aor girl, so i can't tell you if you are ant or uncle. If the baby is girl your sister is going to name her like me. I kdon't know why she want to name her daugther "MAMA". Your cousin Paco get marry and he pray to his wife every night because is 'virgen'..


We don' see your uncle Fredy any more, can be because he died last year. Ok son I can't put my adress in the letter because I don't know it. The family who were living here took it with they when they have move. to don't chanche their adress. Please said hi! to your ant Pera, if you see her if don't just ask her to writte me.


P>D> I would send you 100 dollars but alredy close the envelop.

My Little Princess Jaely.

I never gave much attention to children with special needs until my daughter was born. She is a special needs child with down sindrome. She was born premature , was a tiny baby and she weighed only 3 lb 4 onz. She was 30 weeks of gestation at the moment of her birth, she spent three months in NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) on Children's Hospital in St. Paul and when was just four months old she got an open heart surgeory in Fairview at the U of M. Things didn't go well during the surgeory, so she need to be conected to a "Bipass" machine for seven days. After that her heart didn't respond well and for that reason she got a pace maker implanted. She spent her first year running to one hospital to and other. She has had seven surgeries at the moment and she is a very fragil baby.

But she is still so pretty, playful, and nice little princess to me. She smile amost all the time, she throws kisses, can clap, makes gestures when she plays. She is learning sign language and she can say mom, dad, more, play, eat, water and other words. She is adorable, but some times she makes me crazy and when she knows I am mad at her she stars kissing me and smile to me. Maybe she tries to say: 'sorry mamy'. I enjoy everything that she does because she learns slower than other babies of her age because her down sindrome. She is my little princess and I love her a lot. And she loves me.

My House.

I like my house because is nice, warm and welcoming, it have two bedrooms but just one bathroom. Is big so we have lot space in our livinroom, the kitchen is large so I likeit because I have lot space to cook or bake when I need do this. And my house has nice windows they are big so light can come in easly. I have lot of plants inside and outside my house. The yard or garden where I live is big, and it already had plants but I planted more because a love plants. My neighboor always plant vegetables but I do just flowering plants so I always tell him my garden is more prettier then yours, or look my garden is so beautiful, and he responds but I'm going to have lot things to eat and your not. He is a good neighboor. I like my house because all the things I've mention and because it nice place to live in.

About Me

My name is Carmen. I'm from a small town or village named Atoyac in Jalisco, Mexico. I love our traditional food like birria, pozole, sopes, enchiladas, menudo, tamales etc. I've been in the United States about seven years. Before I came to Minnesota I was living in California. I liked it, and it is a very nice state but I prefer Minnesota because it has more jobs and opportunities, that is my opinion. I also like to live in Minnesota because of the snow. I have a big family. It consists of six sisters and three brothers, seventeen nieces, five nephews and a lot of cousins. Most of my family lives in California. My mother and older sister live in Mexico. They have a Visa card to come to the USA often to visit us. My dad died five years ago. I'm the youngest in my family. I have my sister Ana and two nephews in Minnesota. I'm studying English because I want to improve my vocabulary and learn more to take my GED and go to college and maybe be a nurse. But English is hard and dificult for me, because I have some problems with my hearing. I'm married and have a beautiful daughter. Her name is Jaely and she is my inspiration, my little princess, my angel. That is all about me. Thanks for your interest.

Religion and Bullfigthing Celebrations in Atoyac Jalisco.

I'm goin to talk about a part of my culture in my village, that is not in all Mexico just my town. My village in about one hour away from the city of Guadalajara, and every year we have two big celebration 'Fiestas patrias y eclasiaticas' this is ' Religion and Bullfithing Celebrations'. That happens during feburary and march every year. Religion Celebrations are around fourteen days, these ones are at the Catholic Church, the priest trade four services a day and sometimes five for special events, the times for the service is at 5:00am., 11:00am., 5:30pm., and 7:00pm. when the prist trade extra preaches ussually it is at noon. Most of the catholic people come to service everyday during celebrations because they offered God to go everyday. At night people can enjoy the fireworks we name those fireworks Castles becase they are maked like that, they have diferents forms, shapes, colors and times to be burned is when you can see bikes, bull, names, plants, etc. this is so beautiful. Also we burn a little bull, name like that because the shape is a small bull with a lot gumpowder, having 'crackers [fireworks]' those can burn you so it is dangerous but is very funny and exciting. There are some very spacial days for service one of the most importat is "The service in honor to the people who are living out our town' 'Misa de hijos ausentes' Other important day is 'Wenesday of Ashes' Thas is about Religion celebrations. Bullfighting celebrations are at the same time [date] we do 'recibimientos' that is welcomings, are at noon to 3:30pm. People come from other villages and cities we offer food, drinks and party with music to dance, [the goverment pays for that with our taxes]. After welcomings we have bullfigthings matches from 3:30pm. until 7 or 7:30pm. then we can go home to prepare to be ready for the big dance at nigth time,9:00pm. to 2:00am., this is every day for about two weeks or more. People have lots fun during this celebrations. Those are the most important traditions in my village and this is part of our culture, we enjoy that and have lot of fun.

The Most Beautiful Thing I Ever Saw

The most beautiful thing I have ever seen was a marble wonderful house. The sidewalk was built of sand and colorful rocks. Small water falls ran along small rivers to the pound. But the most beautiful thing was the huge garden with a big assortment of plants. The flowers were of all colors; white, red, blue, yellow, burgundy, pink, salmon, rose, orange and purple.

The sun shined close, the wind was calm. All the trees, shrubs and plants appeared magical. Butterflies and ladybugs flied from one to another flower. I saw early mornings of colors I never seen before. The wind blew close to my face and I felt the fragance of the roses. They were just pretty. Water was on the leaves like it had rainned the night before or it could have been dew.
It was early in the morning. The squirrels jumped on the trees, they played and ate happy, they could feel the harmony of nature like I was feeling. There were: pansies, rubequias, lilies, hostas, petunias, maringols, roses, peonies, early mornings, shrubs and trees. I took it all in peacefully.

The panorama was spectacular. I felt like I have never been in a place like this before. I stood in front of tha house whit its beatiful garden for a long time. I closed my eyes and thought 'How wonderful is God nature, and life.' I inhaled deeply to keep the fragance of the flowers with me. I wanted stay forever there, but I needed go back home. I left the house finally. I walked slow and turned often to see the garden again and again.

I thought 'next time I need to bring my camara to take pictures' but I forgot where the beatiful house with marvelous garden was. I never seen it again. I just remember how pretty was everything there. That is the most beautiful house and garden I have ever seen.



Carmen.