Janet Perez Eckles's Blog – October 2007 Archive (12)

Got your mask on?

Halloween has never been a meaningful event for me. In Bolivia, my native country, there was no such thing. But in my efforts to embrace the American culture, I joined the tradition. My three little boys dashed out wearing their ugly masks, hunting for candy from house to house.…

Yes, it's almost Halloween, and since I don't celebrate it, I thought I'd share with you a different treat--the writing from a dear friend. She's awesome! And goodness; she's my right hand...and often she's my eyes too!

She writes:

Don’t move now!…

Hey…we’re never too old to play that silly game, or pluck each pedal from the flower!…

Maybe my granddaughter inherited my genes: always trying to have fun, causing a little trouble, and getting some action going.

But at her age - one-day old - could she have already…

Friday afternoon, with heart thumping and hands shaking, I dialed 911. As I related the information to the dispatcher telling her of the details of my mom’s condition—vomiting violently, weak, and dizzy, and disoriented, between sentences, I lifted desperate prayers to the Lord.…

Yes, she does…and not from an expensive pedicure. In fact, when I was Debbie’s age, unlike her, my focus was on my looks, the perfect hairstyle, being popular, having enough clothes to flatter my figure, and the guy who would be my next date.

But Debbie’s focus is on greater things---she visits public high schools in New York City, bringing the good news, the Gospel, to students who are hurting, angry, confused, in…

Okay, I love, love my job as an over-the-phone Spanish interpreter. But sometimes I wish I’d have someone to turn to and ask, "What’s he saying?"

Yes, it happens. For example, I’ll be interpreting along without much difficulty, when suddenly, I hear a phrase that makes my brain screech to a halt.

For instance: "I find the proof evident, and the presumption great that you…

"During our lunch break one day in college, a friend of mine sneezed.

"In my culture, if you sneeze once, that means someone is missing you," my Chinese friend Lin told her. "If you sneeze twice, someone's saying nasty things about you behind your back. And if you sneeze three times, someone is speaking kindly about…

Does the title, "I Did It My Way” ring a…