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 crops. 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.

This is Milton Alexis Gutierrez Ajqui and I was born in Pasojoc I, Zacualpa Quiche on September 22, 2015. I am 10 years old and I am a healthy boy. I like to play with balls. I love blue and rabbits. I prefer to eat fried chicken. Unfortunately, I am repeating the 1^st grade for the third time. I have three brothers and one sister and my brother Cristian Ronaldo is registered in the Feeding Center. I am happy for the privilege to belong to this project and we walk 15 minutes to attend. By the grace of God, my parents and family are doing fine and in good health. Unfortunately, we are not attending any church.

My parent`s names are Rolando Gutierrez Chivalan and Juana Ajqui Garcia. My mother takes care of me and does the housework while my father works as a farmer to provide for our family needs. Sometimes the money is not enough to cover every expense, so we are in need of groceries, corn and clothing. The house where I live belong to my parents and it has two rooms and one separated kitchen. The rooms are made of adobe, tile roof and dirt floors. We have electricity and my mother pays monthly for the service. We get water from a nearby river. We also have hens at home, but we would like to have some chicks because we have a small space in the house for them. I will say good bye to you for now and I hope you like to read my story. I send you all the best!

A bunch of hugs,

Milton Alexis Gutierrez Ajqui

Translated by: Gladys Chavez, AAC Secretary-Antigua