Abuelita is one of the strongest women I have had the pleasure to call friend. At the start of my mission, Abuelita was in our home each morning. Teaching us how to cook, knitting, sharing stories, practicing reading, telling me “Poco a poco vas a aprender.” Little by little you will learn (Spanish).

After a fall, this vibrant woman who once walked to our home each day became homebound in just an instant. She can practically do nothing for herself. But her mind is still 100% present. She remembers the smallest details about our lives and you can see it in her eyes that it hurts a bit each time she needs to ask for help. Her life is wrapped in constant moments of suffering. And yet, she has mastered humility, learning to accept her weaknesses and crosses with joy. Yes, she has her days when she complains a lot about the pain she is in, that she just wants God to take her already, but she is not angry at anyone. Nor at her family who only visits her about twice a year, nor at her husband who let his family take him to a home for the elderly and left her behind, nor at God who has allowed her to experience this suffering.

I can’t fully grasp all that my abuelita has taught me over the past year. She has taught me that it’s possible to love simply by being, she has shown me what it means to be vulnerable and to accept the help of others gracefully, she has taught me how to think of others in the midst of your own struggles.