There are a number of World Racers that have January birthdays, so my team was on a mission to find a place that would bake some cakes to help us celebrate. We were directed by a woman at a bakery to go to a Pastelria, or cake store. The Pastelria had a wonderful aroma and it was painted pink, which made it even more delicious. A woman with kind eyes welcomed us into the store. We were thrilled to find out that she spoke English. Her name is Elizabeth and she learned English through her job as a flight attendant. We talked, tried some samples, ordered the cakes and said goodbye. (By the way, the tres leches cake was amazing…it tasted like a cross between vanilla tiramisu and crème brule.)
I have considered working as a flight attendant, so I decided to return to talk to Elizabeth the next day in order to complete my WR interview assignment. She was surprised to see me, but very willing to answer my questions. Her mother and father were both born in Mexico, but her father spent some time in Chicago. She spent the first 14 years of her life in the Chiapas and Tabasco area, and then went to school in the Yucatan area. Shortly after school she started work as a flight attendant. Elizabeth said the best part about flying was, “meeting people, seeing new cities, and traveling without spending money.” She recalled with a smile, “You see different personalities when you fly, lots of artists, and other characters.” Elizabeth has been to many islands, countries, and all through Mexico. She mentioned Japan as a favorite, but said that Victoria, Canada, “Is really something special.”
Elizabeth shared that around 1950 Tomas Garrido Canaval went through Tabasco destroying churches. I asked why he would do this and she said simply, “He was against Christians.” Because all of the churches were burned down or in rubble, her family could not go to church. Despite the anger and fear her family experienced from the attacks, Elizabeth finds hope in God. She expressed that God has helped her to be happy with herself, not to feel empty, and has comforted her.
Elizabeth now lives on a ranch in Palenque out in the lush green vegetation, “It is so beautiful.” She insisted anyone that comes to Palenque should really go for walks and see the waterfalls, “There are so many waterfalls.” She has two sons, one is in High School and the other is attending college to be an Engineer. As we were finishing our discussion her son Francisco walked in. Elizabeth encouraged her son to talk to me, “It will help your English.” Shy at first Francisco spoke quietly, but then he started to talk about the rodeo. He excitedly shared that last week at a Palenque celebration he rode a bull for the first time. While he was in the gate he fell of the bull three times. He was ready to give up, but they opened the gate and the bull took off. Francisco proudly shared that he was able to finish the ride without falling and the crowd went to their feet to applaud him. Elizabeth was very nervous, because he did not tell her he was going to ride. But she seemed proud of her sons dangerous, but courageous acheivement. Francisco is a true Mexican Caballero, which means Cowboy.
Upon leaving I gave Elizabeth a World Race card and asked her to check out the website. Elizabeth, if you are reading this… Thank you so much for time and for sharing about your life. I really enjoyed hearing your stories.
