Another Time, Another World

PREFACE

The following stories are written by two English as a Second Language students, Lucelia Cevallos and Laura Vargas, taught by their ESL teacher, Carol Bowman, for over 10 years. Throughout the years both have struggled to learn correct English grammar and recently the class has progressed to the point that they were given the assignment to write a short story in English. They were coached on writing all types of stories –  informational, nonfiction, fiction, and even memoir. It is important for the English-speaking public living here in Mexico to understand how much Mexican adults want to learn this second language and how much effort they put into learning all aspects of it. Neither of these stories has been edited by the teacher. They are presented, as written, for you to enjoy, and marvel at the degree of competence each has achieved. If this preliminary offering is accepted by the reading public with enthusiasm, perhaps other students in the class will be motivated to share their stories with El Ojo readers in the future.  Carol Bowman

My grandmother went through very difficult times in her life, at a very early age she was orphaned by her father, her mother did not want to work, because she was not used to it, they lived quite well, her father had one of those stores that have everything in Ciudad Guzmán now again named Zapotlán el Grande and they lacked nothing, but with the Cristeros war, they lost everything and shortly after her father died. On that occasion she experienced very difficult times because sometimes they did not even have enough to eat. But they got ahead.

She eventually got married in the city of Colima but her marriage lasted just 18 years because my grandfather died of a heart attack. She was 39 years old with 5 children; the oldest was 16 years old and the youngest was 3. There were 3 women and 2 men; and a few days after my grandfather died, she decided to move to Guadalajara because her children would have greater opportunities for preparation.

And so she did it, they moved to a new and bigger city without knowing almost anyone. At first she sold fruit for milk to a bakery (sweet potato and pumpkin prepared with piloncillo) and she also made clothes for neighbors and friends who recommended her. They were very difficult times! My grandfather left nothing planned, no savings! So a single woman, with 5 children and in an unknown city, had to get ahead!

Shortly after, an acquaintance arranged for her to teach shorthand and typing classes at a school in the mornings and in the afternoons she taught sewing classes at another school, without leaving the garment making private, so she had little time to sleep.

She was a very strong, brave, intelligent and hard-working woman; At the same time, she got a better job as a prefect at the autonomous high school in Guadalajara, she managed to ensure that all of her children studied a career and that her children had a path to follow in life.

From a very young age I spent every weekend with her, she taught me how to knit, embroider, make clothes, she taught me how to conduct myself through life, how to go to God, she taught me to love Him and go to Him with the same faith that she had in Him, by the way, every Sunday we got up early to go to the 7:00 am mass

She suffered from Parkinson’s disease and diabetes for 10 years, finally on May 15 of 2011 in deepest sorrow, with gratitude in our hearts for the love and joy that gave us during her time on this earth, I told her: Godspeed!

She was an extraordinary person! She was very intelligent, wise, cheerful, extremely attentive, diligent, loving, she was my mother, my friend, she was the love of my life, my everything!