We rented our second place in Juárez, a townhouse that was across the street from the racetrack, El Hipódromo. We were not far from a place that sold the most delicious Gorditas and we would often go to eat there and also we would go to a place notorious for flautas, but also was the only place in Juárez we could find baked potatoes.

We celebrated Maria Elena’s first birthday in Mexico and by that time we could ask her in Spanish “How old are you?”, and she would hold up her little pointer finger to indicate that she was one year old.

We toured the Montessori School, and pondered enrolling her there. However, my job with the School District was too new and such a good benefits package that I could not afford to give it up.

As nice as it was to be near extended family, we decided we could not stay.

Victor’s family continued to ask about Maria Elena, so we made plans to bring her to meet her family in Mexico. We drove down and pulled up in front of his mother’s house. His little brother was playing outside and ran into the house saying “Hugo is here!”. In Mexico, it is common for people to refer to others with their middle name. So Victor Hugo, my husband, was called Hugo the whole time we stayed in Mexico. As I was newly employed with the School District, we decided to have Victor remain in Mexico and I would come frequently to visit with him and our daughter. We responded to an add from a doctor who was renting out her residence, and moved in to get settled. Mexico was a lot different than what I was used to. I had never learned how to do laundry by hand, but it didn’t phase Victor. He would scrub down the clothes on the washboard and hang them out to dry outdoors. We would take Maria Elena to the DIF pools and to the carnival that was happening nightly. The place where we had an apartment was very close to a trickle of raw sewage and it stunk so badly that we decided to move. The owner of the apartment refused to return the deposit we put down to secure the apartment and stated that we didn’t read the contract correctly. It was useless to argue; she was not giving us the money back.

Maria Elena celebrated her first birthday in Juárez.

This was the style of home we lived in so that my commute to work was reduced. My father continued to work for an alternative fuels agency as their senior Engineer.

I was able to find reliable childcare in a home setting where Amparo’s son was cared for. The lady who provided childcare was Spanish-speaking as were her 3 children. I was happy that Maria Elena would have exposure to Spanish as my father was monolingual in English, which was a blessing for Victor. English was still a struggle for him. Being immersed in an English speaking environment helped him immensely.

Victor and I discussed the baby and the first ultrasound was not very indicative. We were so young and I was a bit concerned because I had never had to consider things like child care before. Victor and I lived in a two bedroom apartment that we shared with my dad. I, for whatever reason, was nervous to tell my dad, but he was overjoyed. Victor and I talked about names and considered both male and female names. I was stuck on Evelyn, but Victor had trouble saying it. We agreed upon Maria Elena in honor of my Mom, Mary Ellen. I went for pre-natal visits each week. Midway through the pregnancy, I started bleeding and freaked out. I went to the hospital and had a transvaginal ultrasound. My little baby was doing flips inutero. I was delighted to see that she was okay. One day, the director of the Family Resource Center came to my office with an application for a job with the Washoe County School District. The application asked a lot about my teaching experience, and I was not hopeful that I would not be disqualified. I submitted the application, and started working for the school district in 2004. As a professional-technical status in the School District meant that I would be able to take 20 days of vacation, 2 sick days, and 2 administrative days. I was overjoyed with that setup, but I was nowhere near the school I would be working in.

My VISTA year was coming to an end and Victor had just started night school to earn his High School Diploma. I applied to work in the office of then-congressional representative, Heather Wilson. I was going to work on military issues, immigration issues, and small business issues. Representative Wilson was the first female veteran to serve in Congress. Most days, I was extremely busy. We had to write responses to inquiries, and put them in the mailbox for office manager, Julie Dreike to review and sign. I spent a lot of time with Victor and we started to look for houses. After lots of viewing, we decided on a two-floor condo in a good neighborhood.

Father Garcia knew of our desire to marry, so we attended pre-cana classes to understand what marriage was all about. He arranged for Victor to get all of his sacraments in one mass. The mass started with us outside the church and as we entered the church with our candles, it symbolized us bringing light into darkness

Father Garcia taught me more about the church then It had ever known before.

A few months into my work with Representative Wilson, I got into a bad funk. I would wake up, shower, and go back to bed. I couldn’t figure out how to move forward. I called my dad, and he came to get me. We drove back to Reno and I missed Victor intensely. We would talk for hours by phone, but it wasn’t the same

I was almost ready to change from being a VISTA to go to a new opportunity when we received an invitation to visit Beth in Morarity for the Fourth of July. Heading out to her house, I looked at my reflection in the rear-view mirror. I can remember thinking to myself that I looked a lot like my mom. We toured Beth’s new house and Victor took me aside to say that there were a lot of missed calls from Reno. We went to his car and called my house. It was my brother telling me that my mom was in the morgue. At first I thought ‘what the hell was she doing there?’ Having been a nurse, I could not imagine her down there walking about. Then my brother said ‘she died’

I was glad we were in the car, because I screamed. We drove from Moriarity to San Jose where we were just in time. Father Garcia was headed out, but stopped when he saw the car. He sat with us as we prayed and figured out what our next steps would be

Victor and I made the plan to drive to Reno. It took us about 19 hours to make it and I didn’t remember any of it. When we got to my house, where just months earlier my mom had run out of the house saying “my baby’s here!”, I felt numb. We walked into the house and my dad was at the kitchen table crying. I had never seen him cry before.

I saw Maya Angelou speak at Popejoy Hall shortly after. She kept the audience raptured for nearly two hours. She was fascinating. I had read ‘I know why the Caged Bird Sings” in addition to her other works, but that faded in comparison to seeing her in person. By then I was formally dating Victor, the man who put the rose on my windshield. Together we would spend time cooking, playing cards, playing pool, or hanging out with the kids that he was like a father to. We would take them to the zoo and other spots where they could have fun, and we also took them with us to San José Church. Father Garcia gave beautiful masses , but the music was my favorite part. One day the matriarch of the family that Victor was staying with died of diabetes complications. Her funeral was in Roswell. We went to her wake and her grandson, Miguel said “grandma wake up” I had to go to the restroom to cry. The poor baby only had his grandma to rely on, and now she was gone.

ACCION was a fascinating place to work. I met so many creative entrepreneurs who didn’t fear moving forward with their dreams.

My direct supervisor was Marisa Romero. She taught me how to interview potential clients. The marketing agent was Beth Chavez whose husband, Max, was a contractor. He was in the process of building a home in Moriarity for the family- they had two daughters.One day, I walked out to go to my car and noticed that there was a red rose on the windshield. The roots were carefully tucked in behind the wipers so as not to fly away. I knew EXACTLY who they were from. I drove to work with a smile on my face. I got to work and the mood was somber. Watching the TV, I could see the events of 9/11 unfold. I felt impotent as I saw what was happening. Anne said that if we needed to go home we could. I chose to go home and immediately called my family. I was concerned about my dad because he flew often and I wanted to make sure that he was safe. Thankfully everyone was okay.

I spent a lot of time with Victor and we started to look for houses. After lots of viewing, we decided on a two-floor condo in a good neighborhood.

Father Garcia knew of our desire to marry, so we attended pre-cana classes to understand what marriage was all about. He arranged for Victor to get all of his sacraments in one mass. The mass started with us outside the church and as we entered the church with our candles, it symbolized us bringing light into darkness

I worked for a year working for ACCION New Mexico as an Americorps VISTA volunteer. I would take back streets to and from ACCION, located downtown in the Civic Plaza building. I would park in the parking lot across the street and walk to the ACCION office. At the time, we were in the “clubhouse”, a common room for all of the VISTA interns.My job was to discuss the agency with prospective clients, secure collateral, and review closing documents to ensure that intending clients received their loans. ACCION was unique in that the agency would lend micoloans to those who were not able to get capital from traditional lenders for multiple reasons. I bonded with the other interns: Karla and Graciela in particular. We would go to areas all around the state for interviews with prospective clients and to close loans at banks around the state that partnered with ACCION. The agency’s was led by Anne Haines, a dynamic powerhouse of a woman. I was in awe of her leadership abilities.

talked over my job prospects, and asked for my parent’sadvice. I was drawn to the salary in New York, but my mother reminded me that in the Big Apple, that the salary wouldn’t go far. My dad told me that the decision was ultimately be up to me but to remember that “money isn’t everything “. With that advice, I made my decision to work at ACCION as I felt like my dismal salary would go further in New Mexico than in New York. I arrived in Albuquerque and went to a restaurant in the airport where I had the most delicious green chili stew and fry bread and I KNEW that I had made the right choice.

I searched for an apartment and decided on the Cinnamon Tree Apartments as I did not see anything else that I could afford. My dad came down to Albuquerque and co-signed for me to get my one-bedroom apartment, and helped me to buy MY FIRST CAR!!!

We went to a place that sold futons and got a futon, some end tables and lamps, and a television. I set about learning about my new life.I soon learned that I was living in the “war zone ” area of the city. I didn’t think about it too much as my apartment complex had security staff that would monitor anyone entering into the complex who didn’t have a Cinnamon Tree sticker on their vehicle.

I received a lot of attention from a young man who lived in the complex. I would notice him walking around the complex with children and I didn’t think that it would be wise to engage with someone who had kids. The lady whom I thought was his mother would spend a lot of time sitting outside and enjoying the fresh air. She was diabetic and had an amputated leg. She often called me over to talk to her, and I learned that the man I often saw walking the children was not her son and was walking with the children as their mothers didn’t often pay attention to their children.