Milagros, a true “miracle”
Ever since I joined the Senior Care program, my mind has not stopped dreaming of the many possibilities to keep serving, improving and expanding it. There is so much to be done and so many ways to keep growing; all these thoughts clouded my heart's eyes.
Doña Milagros is 74 years old, and she is one of the abuelas, or grandmothers, in the program. She is also our neighbor: she lives two minutes away from the Plenitud PR farm. We pass by her house almost every day, and we usually see her outside working in her little garden. A couple of weeks ago, Seona - a member of our team - was passing by her house and saw Doña Milagros together with two other Abus, Doña Monsi and her husband Eduardo, painting the outside of her house in the blazing sun. Doña Milagros explained to Seona that she wants to give more attention to her house and although she can hardly move, she still wants to work.
Our neighbor and abuela in the Senior Care program, Doña Milagros.
Did you know that Milagros means miracle in Spanish?!
Doña Milagros, Doña Monsi and Eduardo working on painting the outside of the house when Seona first arrived. There was no stopping them!
We were immediately inspired by the way Milagros doesn't limit herself in what she wants to achieve, and we wanted to support her. Together, the Senior Care and Bioconstruction teams joined to plan a work party of love.
When we arrived back at the house, Milagros welcomed us with her typical smile and good humor, offering us the juices and snacks that every abuela has in their kitchen. She told us that although she wasn't sure how she was going to fix her house,
"God always sends me little angels. I have angels with me all the time.”
On the first day that we helped her paint, we also sang, laughed and told stories; some talked about broken hearts, and others told anecdotes of life. The other elders, Monsi and Eduardo, worked with us and while they took breaks, they delighted us with their stories and life experiences.
Together with Doña Milagros and our elder friends, we were able to pressure wash her home, driveway, and repaint the outside of the house and fencing around it!
There we learned that Doña Milagros was born in San Germán and that, when she was three years old, her father died, leaving her mother with four children and two other kids without families of their own to take care of. Doña Milagros bravely traveled to New York, where she grew up, got married, raised her three children and became a teacher. When she retired several years ago, she decided to return alone to her "beloved island." In the small town of Las Marías, in the Altosano neighborhood, she bought a house which she calls "her wilderness" and she told us: "When it is my turn, I want to die here, in the my wilderness."
Doña Milagros has survived several heart attacks, cancer, kidney failures and vertigo. But still, she acknowledges and gives thanks to God for all the blessings He has given her. Abu Milagros is a true miracle!
She is a strong woman, a warrior of love and a servant at heart. Thank you, Doña Milagros, for teaching us that the real heroes are our elders.
Our elders still have so much to share, so much to show and we still have so much to learn from them.
This video is from the summer of 2020 when we started our food delivery initiative in the Senior Care program. She has always maintained a strong faith in God.
I want to thank Seona, the Bioconstruction team, Edrick, Jimmy, Miguel, JD and the love of Migdalia and Natalia from the Senior Care program. Thank you for immediately uniting hearts, thank you for your willingness to help, and the effort you made by setting up the work party, visiting Doña Milagros and painting her house. This is the true power of joining together in loving service, and I am so grateful to be a part of it.
