Something I Love Doing

The pic above represents something I love doing. No, tonta/o not taking pictures with my amigas! But, hey aren't we all photogenic? Especially, that Shauna girl!

Community Activities - Volunteering. Being with people. Helping people. Smiling with people. Just loving life with people. Spreading that aura. People tell me I'm like a "glowing" light bulb that lights up a dark room as soon as I enter it.

Being part of the Latina Forum is important to me. It's important for me to try my best and help these young girls who need guidance. Make them laugh. Give them some advice. Relate my personal experiences. The feeling I receive from doing this is - priceless. Like someone handing me a million dollars - that's how fulfilled I feel.

I felt satisified when I met up this fifteen year old girl I had talked to last year at our first annual event "New School, New Year, New You." As an organization, the Latina Forum decided to host a program that would target incoming freshmen girls. Give them some guidance. Present successful role models. Let them have some fun. Only about fifteen girls showed up. This small number did not reflect our tremendous success. We've stayed in touch with these fifteen original girls, had them that Christmas Party back in December of 04. We show we care about what happens to them. We want to address any concerns they may have. We want to be there for them....

This one young girl I had talked is such a success now. I felt so proud of her when SHE gave advice to the freshman girls. She was there a year ago - who could better relate? Some advice she gave them stood out to me because I had given her similar advice previously. That advice I've taken myself, not always but tried my best to...you know smile through the tears. She told them "to always look ahead, don't look down. The world is in front of you. Smile." Wow, you'd think I was saying that. My version of this is "shoulders back, chin up, smiling." That's how I walk. With confidence. With a positive attitude. A face that says "Hello, nice to meet you." without even saying anything. I like to pass this on to people.

Myself and a good friend of mine always discusses people's character - that vibe they give us. We like people who are positive characters. We don't like negative people, you know the kind. The ones that are always gossiping about everyone else and they think they are perfect when they are far from it. The ones who talk down on someone just because he got locked up for driving without a license when they've been locked up for far worse acts like stealing.

I've noticed that by looking at people's character, we learn a lot about their personality. I felt glad that this fifteen year old girl is displaying a positive attitude already. She's matured so much in the past year. I am proud of her. I expect her to go far. She's a writer, too. No wonder we can relate so well. She says her last name in Spanish, the way it's supposed to be said. She's changed from quiet and withdrawn to outspoken and bubbly. Beautiful long hair. Beautiful smile. She's growing up. I'm proud of her. She's accomplished so much for herself. Her interest in drama and writing will continue to guide her in her endeavors. I know it. I cannot emphasize how PROUD I feel that I've been able to influence this young girl as she began high school a year ago.

These are my passions - teaching people, guiding people, leading people. Through my words as a writer, I hope to write POWERFUL stories that will touch people "right to the core." Thought I'd share that wonderful experience from today before I lay my head down and rest for the night. My feel my life has a purpose and that purpose is to help people through my creative abilities.

Last LEAD training, we talked about the different personalities we have. These "ideas" go back to Native American roles of leadership. I do not know the exact origin; I'll have to double-check.

North people like to take charge and do like to plan before acting; they prefer action. Usually, north people do not think before they act; they just do it.

South people are caring people who love to help people; they have BIG hearts. South people are often so concerned about other people that they do not think of their own needs. (That's my mama, always worried about everyone else and their needs)

West people are Math people; they like to anaylze and use numbers/statistics; they are realists.

East people like to use their creative abilities to help people. A vice of this is that we spend so much time "thinking/planning" what we are going to do that we do not accomplish much. We have an idealistic approach to life.

I am a mixture of a South and East person. I like to say I am more East since I'm such a dreamer, always daydreaming and thinking about that next story/poem I am going to write.

To the reader: What kind of "person" are you?