My Story

Cuatro Caminos "four roads", where your child lives, 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 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 Quiche - however, Spanish is becoming more common. Very little money ever changes hands in this area as they live on a barter system. 

I am Selena Maricela Jimon Calachij, and I want to share with you a little about my life. I am 5 years old, and I was born on August 5, 2020. I am in good health, and I am in preschool this year. I enjoy playing dolls and coloring my drawings in my free time. My favorite color is blue, and I like cats. I enjoy eating fried chicken. I have two sisters, and one of them is also registered at the feeding program. She accompanies me to the program, and we usually walk for 20 minutes to arrive there. We are a humble family, and our frequent needs are groceries and clothes.

My father’s name is Julio Jimon Luis, and he works as a day laborer in our village. He also goes to clean coffee plantations at the coast for two months twice a year. My mother’s name is Maria Calachij Barrera, and she is a housewife. She also works as a day laborer and raises sheep for selling. My whole family is in good health, and we are attending Assembly of God Church. We live in my maternal grandmother’s house, and we share it with my aunts and uncles. The house has two rooms and a kitchen, and it is made of adobe with a tin sheet roof and dirt floor. We have electricity, and we get water from a river; it is 10 minutes away from our house and we use a hose to bring the water to the house. We have hens, sheep, a dog and a cat at home. Well, I say goodbye to you for now.

With much love

Selena Maricela Jimon Calachij

Translated by: Loyda de Osorio, AAC Secretary-Antigua