My Story

Pasojoc is an area located high on the side of a mountain in the state of Quiche, Guatemala. Life in this area is very difficult and very isolated from the outside world. It is more than a two hour walk to the nearest market town of Zacualpa. Pasojoc is a farming area where corn and black beans, the staple elements in their diet, are the major corps. The Quiche Mayans who inhabit this area trace their ancestral roots to the ancient Mayan civilization. They normally speak a Mayan dialect called Quiche - however, Spanish is becoming more common. Very little money ever changes hands in this area as they live on a barter system.

Hello! My name is Ignacia Cayetana Argueta Morente. Please receive a cordial greeting, and I hope you and your loved ones are well. Today, I am writing you this letter so you can get to know me better. Fortunately, I am healthy, and I turned 7 years old on March 26^th. I am a 1^st grader this year, and I enjoy playing with my dolls for fun. My favorite animal is the sheep. I like pink, and what I love eating the most is fried chicken. It is a blessing for my brother and me to be part of the feeding program. We live 10 minutes away from it, and we walk to arrive. My cousins also go with us. I have two other brothers, but they are not part of the feeding program.  

Sadly, my father passed away some months ago due to body pain and because he used to take lots of pills to sleep. Now, my mother is struggling to cover our basic needs; she travels to the coast to pick coffee beans, and she also raises hens to sell them to support us economically. At home, we also have sheep. My mother is planning to continue traveling to the coast for the harvest season to improve our income to take us ahead since now she must raise us by herself. We need corn, groceries, clothes and shoes; we pray to God, and we trust He will help us to have the necessities. We are members of the Catholic Church. We live in my grandmother’s house, and my uncles also live here. The house consists of two rooms made of adobe and tin sheets walls, tin sheet roof and dirt floor; we have a separate kitchen that is made of tin sheets.  We have running water, but it is paid for only when something goes wrong; we also have electricity, and everyone contributes to pay for it every month. Thank you for taking the time to read my letter, and I want you to know that my mother provided this information for my enrollment. I wish you many blessings and I will be waiting to hear from you soon.

Many blessings,

Ignacia Cayetana Argueta Morente

Translated by: Luisa Reyes de Solis, A-A-C Secretary/Antigua