A Wonderful Day Reconnecting in Antigua

This morning I joined Doña Yolanda for breakfast. What an inspiring woman! We have always been fond of each other and it was an emotional get-together. At 96 she has undergone hip surgery on both sides and is quite frail. Since covid she doesn’t leave her home. But she is sharp as a whistle and wanted to hear all about her grandson Sebastian and my other children. I brought her an iPad, which I believe she will enjoy, because she is quite tech savvy, and uses Facetime. She also is an avid reader. 

Then Seb’s aunt Susy joined us. I met Rafaelito, Susy’s son, who I recall as a mischievous little boy. He runs a business repairing computers and cell phones out of a front room that opens on to the street. Then I met the two sons of Seb’s cousin Rocio (Susy’s daughter), another Sebastian (named after Seb) and Martin and his daughter Ivana. Rocio and her husband live in a house behind Yolanda’s house. So even though Yolanda does not leave her house, she sees her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren every day.

Since the volcano Fuego near Antigua was erupting, we took a drive to a lovely place called San Cayetano that had a restaurant and hotel to take some pictures. After a delicious lunch there we went to visit Susy’s other daughter Carolina, so I could see her home and meet her three children. She lives in a beautiful gated community just outside of Antigua called Antigua Gardens.

Later we went for dinner at The Bowl, a tiny restaurant with delicious food that is run by Lucy, the daughter of Seb’s other aunt, Anamaria. Lucy has studied Cultural Heritage in England and Italy, and works to preserve Mayan works of Art.

It was a wonderful day! Before going to sleep I started to sketch out the family tree to help Seb understand the various relationships of his aunts and uncle and cousins.



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