by Constancia Gomez-
Amazing! It is really amazing to me, every day I hear the news and I feel the unhappiness. We should be happy!
When I think about how many pairs of sneakers I had when I was young, I laugh. At some point I had two: A blue pair and a green pair. I was so proud of them! Now when I see kids with so much, it makes me sad. And maybe they will not like to share. Many times I see how much some kids have here, and I see some that don’t have as much. I see how much we have, as individuals, how much we can have compared to other countries. And I see how much people want, and how many people do not share, even when they have so much.
I grew up in a family in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and when someone came at dinner time, they were of course invited and we ate less. I loved that; that is what I remember from my childhood. The people that came to my house and shared with us.
I have so many amazing people in my life from the United States, Spain, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru and many other places. They always share. They share their love, their family and their knowledge with me and my family and I am totally grateful for that. But when we want more, do we think as Americans that we deserve it? Do we share enough to have all the wealth that we have? What is the ultimate goal in life for us? Having the big dream house? Having a family? Having kids? Being happy? In this country, at schools, we really work on academics and we tell kids, that they need to be happy? Are we happy as a society? At least a little? Or a lot?
Well, the last time I went to the doctor, after having a kid in Vermont (with no family around) the doctor wanted to prescribe me a pill to make me happy and I said no. Then I wanted family, a community: My mom! But we expect students to figure it out. We expect them to feel the happines and what do we do. Do we dance with them? Do we hug them? Do we kiss them? Do we invite them for dinner with no TV? Do we tell them how much we love them? Do we tell them, “I love you, no matter what? It does not matter if you do not make it to Harvard.” Does going to Harvard guarantee happiness? I have many friends, that lost their kids because of drugs, suicide and other unfortunate incidents. But what are we waiting for to smile more? To connect. To accept them the way they are!! What do we need to enjoy the little things? I cannot wait anymore. My mother is already gone. So, let’s dance tomorrow!
Constancia Gomez is from Buenos Aires, Argentina. A Spanish teacher, the founder of Spanish Musical Kids and La Lu Farm, a dancer and writer and lives in Warren with her husband, daughter, goats and chickens.
