Hello! I’m Manita Linda

Manita Linda, which means “cute little hand” in Spanish, is a unique little girl who eagerly explores the world around her with curiosity and excitement. Sometimes she encounters cruelty, and at other times she finds all the beauty the world has to offer.

 

Manita Linda was born different than other children. It is through her physical differences and her own personal experiences interacting with others that the world will view itself reflected in many positive and negative ways . Through it all, Manita Linda brings beauty, joy, laughter and happiness to everyone she encounters with her artistic creativity and courageous heart.

 

Manita Linda will speak to the world through her day to day life adventures. She will explain to others what it feels like to be different and how every individual’s differences make each one of us unique and special. She will also discover that we all have our difficulties, even the most “perfect” amongst us.

Manita Linda will find that she has more to contribute to the world than she could ever imagine. She will show the world that being “perfect” is not the solution to all of our problems. Everyone’s individual differences make each one of us unique in our own special way…So, if we work together to love and understand each other for who we are and not our physical makeup, together, we can achieve unimaginable goals and see all the wonders of the world through the eyes of others.

Yum, Yum… Ban Po Jung!

¡Hola! This weekend, I went to a Korean restaurant with my friend and photographer, Maria! The food was delicious! In Korean, “Hello” is pronounced An nyoung! An nyoung, my friends!!!

Check out all these yummy foods we ate! Kimchi, panchan, Yachaejeon and lots more. I also made some friends there…some nice kids who asked me a lot of questions! At first, they were surprised at how different I looked, but as we talked, we came to understand each other and they said I looked really cool in my green, pink and blue outfit. They asked me how I did everything with my unique shape, and I explained that I have taught myself how to do things the way I am, and I also get a lot of help from my family & friends!

What do you do when you feel different from the people around you? Do you try talking with the people around you? I think it’s a good idea to talk about our feelings. Maybe some people won’t be very nice, but most people will try to understand you.

I hope you enjoy these pics and maybe you’ll get to eat delicious Korean food someday soon.

La Cancion del Coqui / The Song of El Coqui

Last night, my Mom and I read from a book we got from the library. Abo, my Coquí friend, recommended the book! The story we read was: La Cancion del Coquí (in English: The Song of El Coquí). These are pics from the book and a photo of a coquí.

My Mom says the story is a Creation story. It starts with, “In the beginning, there was silence.” As the grass, trees and flowers grew, the island of Borikén blossomed. But, it was a lonely place. The god Juracán created a huge storm, after which he heard a beautiful sound! Coquí coquí (pronounced ko-key, ko-key)! Juracán did not know where the sound was coming from, but he searched and searched, and finally found a tiny coquí frog – the size of a finger nail, singing away!! Juracán laughed and sang along with the coquí, no longer feeling lonely. Soon, all the other animals of the skies, land, and waters, joined in song with the tiny Coquí!

This story is from the book, La Cancion del Coquí y otros cuentos de Puerto Rico (the English version is called: The Song of El Coquí and Other Tales of Puerto Rico), which was written and illustrated by: Nicholasa Mohr & Antonio Martorell, and which we got from the Humboldt Park branch of the Chicago Public Library. I was really happy to read this story, because I have loved the song of the Coquí frog since the first time I heard it! It reminds me of a light rain on a beautiful, hot day. One more reason that I love my dear friend, Abo.

What nature sounds do you like and why?

Bye for now!! 😉

My Pink Dress

Hi Everyone!  Here’s a pic of me in a ballerina outfit that my Mom put on me.  I call it the “Pink Poof” ha ha.  All my friends laughed when they saw me in it, but I still felt Pretty!!

Meet Amie

This is Amie.  She loves to play in the garden.

I always make friends with plants and animals.  The air we breathe is because of the plants and trees, and the animals teach us how to be good humans!  I see life as all interconnected.  When plants and animals suffer, I suffer, too.  And when people are sad, it’s like I feel it also, deep down inside.

Amie and my other friends teach me how to care for our planet. They say there is nothing more important than taking care of each other and our Earth.

Gardening With My Friend Dante

One of the things my friend Dante and I have in common is that we both enjoy gardening.  He likes to garden, and I like to watch!  Today, while digging up weeds, Dante found a piece of green sidewalk chalk.  I gave him shade while he took a break to draw on the sidewalk! 

 

When you allow yourself time to be creative, work can be a lot more fun.  What kind of creative activities do YOU enjoy?  Do you like skipping, humming, or coloring, for example?  When you feel stress, what do you do to feel better?  I hum, sing, or dance by myself…also, going and sitting under a tree for a while helps me, too. 

Fun With Friends

I like playing with my friends a lot, but I also miss the ones I’ve left behind.   “This year is going to be our year,” my mom says at the start of every year.  I like that she is so positive.

 

Here in Chicago, I’ve made some great friends – there’s ..Teresa (Red Flower), Kinu (Brown Monkey) & Dante the beaver (sitting in Kinu’s lap)….they’re really fun.  I like going on adventure hunts with them!

Manita Linda & The Garden

This is a special day. My friends, Teresa (red flower), Dante (Beaver) & Amie (Yellow/orange flower) joined me on my trip to the Garden.  Today, my friends and I met a group of Lilies!  Lilies grow all around Illinois.  Every year, many American lilies meet up in Iowa at the North American Lily Society.  They have a ball!  I can just imagine them – Lilies from all around, some from other parts of the world – getting together, dancing and laughing in a symphony of colors!  The Lilies told us they come in all sorts of colors, such as pink, yellow, shades of red, orange, white, and some are  two-colored!  Can’t you just see the rainbow ball!  The Lilies told us that we visited them at the right time because they’re in full bloom in the summer! (Although it was a hot day, we kept cool because a gentle giant Maple tree gave us wonderful shade!)

What are your favorite flowers? In what beautiful and vibrant colors do they bloom?

(Info about Lilies and Maples from: Illinois Gardener’s Guide by James A. Fizzell (Revised Edition) ©2002,  p.58 & 187)

Meet Puchito

This is Puchito, my grandma’s puppy. Puchito is Spanish slang for “buddy”.  I love to play with Puchito.  We are playing on my mom’s lap. When I was little I lived in Puerto Rico, an island in the Caribbean. Another name for Puerto Rico is Borikén. Borikén rhymes with friend. Will you be my friend?