Cuatro Caminos "four roads", where your child lives, is an area located high on the side of a mountain in the state of Quiché, Guatemala. Life in this area is very difficult and very isolated from the outside world. It is a two hour walk to the nearest market town of Zacualpa. Cuatro Caminos 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 Quiché - however, Spanish is becoming more common. Very little money ever changes hands in this area as they live on a barter system. 

Hello! How are you? I hope you are doing well. My name is Eva Sofia Quino Chic. I am writing this letter to introduce myself. I am 6 years old, and my birthday is on June 25; I was born in 2018. I am in 1st grade this year, and I am in good health. In my free time, I like playing tag. My favorite dish is the fried chicken. I like the color blue, and I love hens. I attend Triune God Church with my family. I have three brothers and two sisters, and one of my sisters is also registered at the feeding program. My mother’s name is Petrona Chic Cux, and she raises domestic animals for selling. My father’s name is Manuel Quino Quino, and he works as a day laborer. The whole family goes to pick coffee beans at the coast from November to February to earn some extra money.  

We live in our own house, and we share it with my paternal grandmother. Our house is made of adobe with a tin sheet roof and dirt floor, and it has two rooms and a kitchen. We use a solar panel to have electricity at home, and we get water from a spring; it is located 10 minutes away from our house, so we use a hose to bring the water home. We have hens and a pig at home. We live a little far away from the program, so I walk for about 15 minutes to arrive there. I would like to end my letter asking you to pray for my parents so that God always provides them with the resources to have food, groceries and clothes at home. It was a little information about me, and I hope you like my letter. I pray God blesses you.  

Sincerely yours  

Eva Sofia Quino Chic 

Translated by: Loyda de Osorio, AAC Secretary-Antigua