Planting Seeds of Love in Your Home

Sitting here, in my home, in company of the strange silence

of the afternoon that is left because of the absence of the happy children that are always present, I want to thank God for my life, for his existence, for mine, for my friends and enemies, because they are the reason why I continue going day by day.

Today I want to thank you, my reader, for having the patience to read my story, to share my happiness and my sufferings and primarily to share my dream of a better Colombia where children’s smiles shine and inspire. A Colombia where the absence of those smiles will bring us grief.

I give you this sac.

I was born in the town of Caldas.

I am the youngest of six. My parents’ marriage was an arranged marriage; my mom was given in exchange for a lot of land. Soon after, physical abuse and bad treatment began which was the reason why my mom left with an employee of a ranch. I was only 15 days old! My dad began giving away each one of his six children. I was given away to a man named Jaime who lived with Bertha and his stepdaughter Amparo. I don’t remember how long I was there but I do remember that most of the time I spent there was spent hiding under a table where I hid and cried scared

due to the constant fights among them and the bad treatment

towards me whenever I didn’t do what they pleased.



I was then brought to Pereira

when I was four years old. Dressed in long dresses (probably

the reason why they called me the lady of the priest) I was kept washing pants, arranging the kitchen and getting physical

abuse. Then I escaped. That’s right, I left to live in the streets and there I lifted myself

and became part of a street gang. Of course, a gang composed

of kids of the street like me. We met,

we told each others stories and of course we became friends. My very fist friends! Since I was the youngest one, I was the spoiled one; we slept in the streets with cardboard covered with newspapers. I learned to eat the leftovers from the restaurants

given to us in bags. I ...