Did you know that Puerto Rico has the largest “state” organization for American Mothers? They love their moms! I’d like to introduce you to Camille Guardiola-Lozada. She is the mother of three children, one of whom has Autism. Camille missed the last day of the American Mothers’s convention, including the gala dinner, because she had something far more important to do – attend her daughter’s first communion!
Camille answered a few questions about motherhood for me. You can tell from her answers that her children bring her a lot of joy!
Why is motherhood important to you? Did you always want to be a mother? Yes, motherhood is very important to me. I have always wanted to be a mother, I was always taking care of my cousins, brother, and any other babies I met. I truly believe that having a baby is a precious gift, and holding a new born baby is healing.
What is the biggest lesson your children have taught you? The biggest lesson my children have taught me is that although we are all different we all love in the same way. I have three children with three different personalities,gifts, and attributes. Each has taught me the value of patience, of speaking without words ( my middle child was diagnosed with Autism at age two and he is non-verbal), and of finding beauty in every aspect of life. I can proudly say that my children are empathetic, they see equality in all human beings, they are gentle, humble and above all they have learned the value of having faith.
What has given you the most joy as a mother? I can’t single out one event that has brought me the most joy because I have three children, and each birth brought joy to my life. I have to admit that having my children was and is the most joyous event in my life. I can’t remember the pain of childbirth, even though I know it hurt… All I remember is the first time I held them in my arms, and though it may sound strange I missed the pitter patter of little feet inside my belly. Nevertheless, the empty feeling inside me was immediately filled by the warm feeling growing inside my heart, because I was lost in love with my babies and my family. My husband and I continuously recall those times because through all the changes we were happy and complete.
Do you have any family traditions? Which one is your absolute favorite? Our favourite family traditions are during the Christmas holidays in Puerto Rico.The Christmas holiday celebration is filled with music, good food, spending time with the entire family and playing with our children. I like to explain each tradition to my children because I want them to teach their children how to make traditional holiday meals like tembleque, pasteles, rice pudding and other traditional meals. I also want them to enjoy the happinesses that we share during the holidays.
What is/was your favorite book to read to your children? The books I read to my children are the following: Flamboyan Amarillo ( I read this to my oldest- Chrsitian), and to Albrin and Mia I read the Pigeon stories ( I loved Mo’ Willems sarcastic sense of humour!).
We know kids can say or do the funniest things. What are some ‘funnies’ your kids have said or done? My children say and do funny things every day, but when translated to English they will loose their meaning, so I will share my favourite and most impacting story with my oldest son. When Mia was baptised (she is my youngest daughter), we held a family gathering afterwards, and we all took a turn sending good wishes for Mia, Christian’s wish ( he is my oldest son) was that Albrin would speak ( Albrin is our middle child and he had been diagnosed with Autism, and he is non-verbal). Every one in our family remembers that day, because although we knew Christian was a kind child with a great heart, we did not know how much he was affected by Albrin’s diagnosis.
Thank you, Camille!
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