Thanks for remembering !

One day we went back to where the girls were in the first orphanage called Hogar Cuna -Home of the Cradle.

It was now a small hospital. The top floor where the children stayed was not being used. It was quiet and empty. We just looked around speechless. It was hard to imagine it being full of active children.

We went up a mountain that overlooked the city of Quezaltenago. This is a big city of about 500,000 people. They had these cement slides there that we had taken the girls on when we visited 13 years ago.

This picture overlooks Quezaltenago.

Later we went to see three of the "mamas" that took care of the girls at the orphanage. They are now retired.

Mama Elvira, Mama Carmen, and Mama Vicente. They were so happy to see the girls so grown up and happy. We had cafe, fruit, and cookies at Carmen's house. Vicki translated as the ladies reminisced about some of the children they took care of. They asked Carolina where her curly hair was-lol." She straightens it" I said. Curls are not a common attribute among Mayan children. When it was time to say good-bye the ladies thanked the girls for remembering them, told then to be good to their parents, and remember their roots in Guatemala. They expressed love and happiness that they are doing well in America. We were all crying. It is a moment I will never forget. 

One of the signs that your children are maturing is when they say something that makes you proud. Carolina said to me, "now I know why Mama Elvira was so hard on me when I was young, it was because she loved me."  That was priceless!