@rodriguezpct

@rodriguezpct 18 September 2021

I Welcome my son @RDMoy to the read.cash commnuty. He has a lot os interesting things to tell, I recommend you all to follow his posts. From now, Welcome!

@rodriguezpct 17 September 2021

Allergy to Chemical Odors. I love being in nature, breathing fresh air, away from those smells that with time one can avoid. For many years certain chemical odors have caused symptoms in my person, even on two occasions I have had to go to a hospital emergency. After those health events, after a medical evaluation, I was diagnosed with allergic rhinitis, caused by some chemical products. When I am exposed to the smell of some chemicals, my nose starts to itch instantly, with mucus, nasal congestion, watery eyes, and burning, soon after with a sore throat to the point of being hoarse. But the most severe symptoms are the sudden rise in blood pressure and a severe headache, one of those that give you the feeling that it will burst and break you in two, those that are called migraines. Migraine makes me sensitive to light and sound. The pain is so sharp in the front of my head that I can't even think. After a strong analgesic, I have to lie down without moving, I put a towel over my eyes so as not to see any light and to be in absolute silence. I am going to tell you in which situations I have felt bad because of allergic rhinitis. **1.- Chlorine smell or any strong detergent:** I cannot clean using too much concentration of bleach. I use it with some caution. When I use it, it has to be in small quantity, diluted in water. I put the bleach on the surface to be cleaned and walk away as soon as possible. Then I return to remove it, but first I hold my breath for a while, holding my nose. If I breathe in the chlorine fumes, I instantly get allergy symptoms. I once put a clothespin in my nose, but I didn't like the idea because it hurts so much. My nose is very small. The same thing happens to me with powdered laundry detergents. In commercial establishments I can't pass by where there are big bags of detergent. **2.- New tires smell:** On one occasion I visited a hypermarket, one of those that sells items for vehicles. Without realizing it, I was walking down an aisle where they were displaying a variety of new tires. Innocent of me, I didn't walk away, but started to look at the prices. The smell of latex was very strong in that aisle. Almost instantly my nose started to get stuffy. When my nose started to itch I realized the mistake of going through that aisle and I quickly moved away from there, but I already had the symptoms of allergic rhinitis. **3.- Smelling oil paint:** On two separate occasions, but both at the facility where I worked, they painted the walls with oil paint. This was done during staff working hours. When they painted the environment was permeated with that strong smell of paint. And the result of inhaling those strong fumes was to go to the hospital as an emergency. On those two occasions I was taken almost fainting to the hospital. My blood pressure got so high that they put a pill under my tongue, the kind that lowers blood pressure, and my head was about to explode. Twice it happened to me with the smell of paint. That's where I was diagnosed with allergic rhinitis. Now when they paint with oil paint in any place where they are going to do it, I know that I should not be near that area until the paint dries completely. **4.- Smell of strong fragrance perfume or talcum powder with strong odors:** I cannot use perfume that has a strong odor, nor with a floral fragrance. I have tried to use it but I can't stand the allergy and I bathe immediately to eliminate the fragrance from my body. I use mild fragrances. My favorite fragrance, which I love, is soft and does not cause me allergy is the fragrance J'adore by Dior. Mild and special for me. I love it. I have tried not to take so much loratadine or any other allergy medications. I substitute it with medicinal plants from my own garden, when the allergic rhinitis is not too strong. I can prepare and drink peppermint tea, good herb tea. Sometimes I mix a little bit of ginger with honey. Also, turmeric is a spice in the preparation of some dishes. Also, green tea is very good. Once I was able to research the subject of chemical odor allergies and found out that allergies are hereditary. According to what I could read there is a higher probability of suffering from them if both parents suffer from it. Now if the mother is the one who suffers from the allergy, there is a greater probability that the children will suffer from it. And in my case, my mother was also allergic to strong smells. I remember when I was a child that on her birthday and on mothers' birthdays, she was always given scented talcum powder for her body and she could not use it. And she would let us, her daughters, use it. She always had a collection of scented powders in her personal closet. She could never wear perfume anyway. She also had symptoms with chlorine and gasoline, just like me. From her, I inherited my allergy to chemical odors. And you, are you allergic to any food, medication, or chemical smells? Thank you for always reading my posts, and to my dear sponsors and readers who always support my articles, you are the best!

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@rodriguezpct 16 September 2021

My Desire to Fly in Paragliding When I was a child, one of the family trips I remember was when my father would take us to El Morro Hill, in Lecheria. I remember he would take us all in his car and drive to Cerro El Morro. It was not far from home, about 20 minutes. At that time I was terrified just thinking about going to El Morro. Going to that place made me nervous. I didn't enjoy at all when my father drove his car and went up the hill. Turning around as if the hill was cylindrical. I was terrified to go up and see the cliff on the side of the road. When we got to the top I was afraid of that height, and coming back it was the same thing. I always thought that the brakes would fail and we would all go over the cliff. It was a childish thing, because when I grew up it was one of my favorite places. Especially when I was dating. And you will know why. Now I can better appreciate its beauty. Cerro El Morro is located in Lechería, Anzoátegui, Venezuela. It is a circular hill about 15 kilometers long. If you go up the hill on the left it leads to the Fortín de la Magdalena, which is a structure from the colonial era. But if you climb it from the right it takes you to the top of the hill. Most people climb it from the right. Once at the top you will have the most spectacular view of the area. You can enjoy an incredible view of the sea, of all the fullness of the bay of Pozuelos. From the distance, you can see the entire city of Puerto la Cruz. And also the city of Lechería.  The hill of escasavegetación and much sun has its main attraction for its spectacular scenery. Here my friends of read.cash photographers would come alive with their cameras. It is a charming place, with energy, where you can breathe a lot of peace. At night the lights of the cities in the distance resemble a postcard of natural beauty. Dreamy sunsets for romance. When I was dating I used to climb the hill a lot with my boyfriend. Its sunset landscapes invite romance. But when night fell we had to go down because it gets very dark, there is no street lighting. At least there was no street lighting at the top of the hill. All its beauty is until sunset. The days that most people go up the hill are holidays and weekends. Many people exercise, jog, mountain bike or hike. Over time, large residential complexes and hotels have been built around the hill, which allows for a more or less constant surveillance, giving a sense of security, although one cannot trust it, because it is still a relatively isolated place and you can run into all kinds of people. Here at the top of Cerro El Morro they practice paragliding. The hill lends itself to do so, both for the beauty of the scenery and the weather conditions with the right wind currents. Have you ever wanted to do something that you haven't done yet, but that desire is still latent in your thoughts? I have long wanted to launch myself from a high place, paragliding, and fly like an eagle. There has always been an obstacle that has prevented me from fulfilling that desire. But I'm not afraid, because I'm not afraid. That is to say, it may be that at the moment of launching myself from a hill I will be afraid, but it will be a different fear, an exciting fear. If you still don't know what it is to launch yourself from a paraglider, I will tell you that it is a sport where you launch yourself from a hill or you can also be towed from a boat, if you are at sea. One rises, for about 15 minutes, by a rectangular, flexible, and deployed parachute. I wouldn't jump alone, I'm not that crazy!... hahaha... I would do it with someone else who has the experience, with an instructor. I have never flown paragliding. I want to experience the feeling of being like an eagle, to spread my wings and soar through the sky, to see the landscape freely, from above, to be carried by the current, as if I had wings. And you, have you ever flown in paragliding? To end my story today, I give you a biblical passage, which at a specific moment in my life, touched my heart, and since then the eagle is my favorite bird, it is like an emblem for me... "*But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar (with) wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint*", **Isaiah 40:31**. Thanks to my dear sponsors and readers who follow me, for always stopping by and leaving your comments. To all of you, thank you.

@rodriguezpct 14 September 2021

When I met the Chinak-Meru Falls. Have you ever in your life been provoked to get out of your routine, but not with a simple activity, but with your own adventure, to go to a place where the memory of that moment will last a lifetime. Well, I did it. It was the month of August, but not in 2021. It has been 8 years ago, but it is one of those memories that you never forget. I was going through a very difficult time in my life. Of tribulation and sadness. But one morning, one of those mornings when you tell yourself that you don't want any more sadness, and you wash your face in front of the mirror, seeing your image, you ask yourself, what are you going to do now? Well, there is no better remedy to shake off the sadness than to travel. I had never been to the Gran Sabana. So I set out to visit Aponwao Falls. I was alone in Barinas, I packed my luggage and traveled 17 hours by road, in a transport unit, from Barinas to Puerto la Cruz in Anzoátegui state. There I was waiting for a tourist tour transport, one of those companies that offer tour packages to get to know Venezuela. I had contacted them a few days before. There, 28 other people were waiting for me, whom I did not know, who were also willing to visit the Gran Sabana. The tour lasted 7 days, leaving from Puerto la Cruz, Anzoátegui State, Venezuela, to the Brazilian border. 7 days of unforgettable adventures! Today I will tell you how I got to know the second largest waterfall in my country. A masterpiece of God in the middle of the jungle. The Aponwao Falls or also known as the Chinak-Meru Falls. All the way to the Gran Sabana we did it in the tour's transport, by paved road, specifically by the Troncal 10, which passes through Ciudad Guayana and reaches the border with Brazil. That's as far as I got, but I'll tell you about that adventure in Brazil another day. When we arrived at the first point and got off the transport we were attacked by mosquitoes, they eat you, what do I say they eat you, they devour you, literally. One of the things we were told to bring on the tour is a good mosquito repellent, and I understood why, it was impossible to survive there without repellent.  We took the road to Kavanayén, next to the airstrip, where tourists arrive to continue the trip by plane to Angel Falls. We were not going to this wonderful place. We had to continue about 40 kilometers more of dirt road and steep ruts, we needed to make the transfer to rustic 4x4 vehicles. We all got into a Jeep. Never in my life had I stuck my head to the roof so many times in a vehicle, we seemed to be stuck inside a blender, which almost took you out of the rustic, going up and down deep ruts, driving horizontally jumping. But it was also exciting. We all looked like children at that moment, laughing and shouting, hugging each other so as not to get thrown out of the car. After an hour and a half, we arrived at the community of Liwo_Riwo, almost worn out by so many jumps, but full of energy to continue the trip, but now in curiaras. The indigenous people of the community were dressed in their own clothes. The mosquitoes do not attack them, they do not use repellents. We are new blood to them. The curiaras are indigenous boats with outboard motors, guided by an indigenous person from the community. It is mandatory to wear a life jacket. Once we are in the curiara, we start the 25-minute trip on the Aponwao River. Wonderful the sound of the jungle, the air you breathe is a blessing, the tepuis that your eyes see is a pleasure. At the end of the trip we arrive at a dock where there is an indigenous camp. But there are still about 200 meters to reach the jump, you can not go without a Pemón guide. With the Pemón guide, we have to walk for about 45 minutes more, on a rocky path and downhill. At this point, I had my tongue out, like a tie, really. One of the tour companions helped me down. After about 10 minutes of walking we arrived at a viewpoint, from the top you can already see the greatness of God. A majestic waterfall. The incredible sound of its waters. The view was wonderful. We left the viewpoint and continued down, and in the end, it was all worth it. When you go down and you find it in front of you. You have in front of your eyes a madness of water overflowing, 110meters of foamy water in free fall, white, noisy, falling wildly in front of you. Its fall produces a resounding roar, you stand with your mouth open, silently observing the grandeur. A spectacle that I cannot describe in words. It is a unique experience. In the Salto Chinak-Merú or Salto Apowao you can not bathe, it is forbidden by the Park, because its waters have a lot of force and whirlpools that drag you. But you still get wet from head to toe, it's like a giant sprinkler. The waterfall is like a big sprinkler, and even to take pictures without getting wet you have to do it from far away. We all came back wet, again with the guide, to climb the mountain again. We had to go back to the hotel before, but with the energy and the force of nature in our minds. We had to get back to the hotel before nightfall. The next day we will travel to the border with Brazil. But that is another story. It was a great tour, it was worth the effort, all to see the most wonderful waterfall that my eyes had ever seen. Everything fills you with vitality, there are no words to describe the greatness and energy that you breathe here. it fills your soul and spirit. i feel proud to be Venezuelan. My beautiful Venezuela, my beloved homeland!

@rodriguezpct 13 September 2021

Celebrating my Forties... Five Times! I believe that every stage of life has its charm. Each year is marked by a happy or sad event in life, which will always remind us of it.  Looking back on my birthday celebrations, I don't remember many. There are a few that come to my mind that left their mark on me. For example, when I was a child, my birthday was celebrated with another child who also had the same date as mine and whose parents were my parents' best friends. A few days before my birthday we would travel to the city where they lived and those were days of celebration, especially for my father. Other dates that I remember, that stayed in my mind were when my children were born. On my birthday that year, my first son was barely 2 months old, and I did not have such a good time in those days as a first-timer. My son had had many health complications. In those days I had a lot of anguish. I was not in the mood to celebrate. Four years later, another date I remember is the birth of my second son. On my birthday, my son was only one month old. And he was also born with complications, not as many as my first son because both the doctors who assisted me and I were prepared. So I remember those birthday celebrations as days of medical attention, care and stress. Thank God my children are completely healthy people, but in those days I was in a time of anguish, especially I was affected psychologically, I was emotionally influenced by the fact of working as a specialist for children and adolescents with mental retardation.       The following years went by with normal birthday celebrations, without details that caused any special memories. Until I turned forty. The celebration of my first fortieth birthday (yes, you read that right, my first fortieth birthday) was nice, the traditional cake, my family and one or two guests. At that time I was still married. We celebrated as usual with the father of my children, my children and me. We never went to gatherings with many guests. The following year, I turned forty again, and I represented it on the cake by putting the number on the cake. On that birthday my oldest son said to me: Mom, wait a minute I think there is a mistake, it is 41. I put my index finger on his lips as a symbol of silence and he understood. The following year, the same thing happened. And my son told me: Mom, it's 42, and from me, there was only silence. And so were my next 40, placing the cake with the number, but my son didn't say anything, he just laughed as if he was part of my prank. Mom, someday you will have to move on, he told me when I repeated the 40th celebration for the fourth time. When my birthday came again, June 25, I was ready to have my 40th birthday for the fifth time. That day was normal, without any details in my family. No one said anything to me and I didn't remind them of the date either. And that's how I spent the whole day, in total abandonment... hahaha. In the evening, when the father of my children came home from work, nothing, not even a detail or cake. Then I got a little upset, but I didn't say it. Until he asked me: "What's the matter, since I got home from work you seem strange, as if you were in a bad mood, what did I do to bother you? I stared at him, like a tigress in heat, (only if you are a woman you will understand) and I asked him, with a lot of character: What date is today? He looked up at the ceiling and repeated: June 25th, June 25th, so? Already at that moment, like a tigress, I wanted to eat him, but I just said: "So, if you don't know what is celebrated in this house on June 25th, I'm not going to remind you either. And in that instant, as if his mind had been opened, he shivered almost with a shout: "Fuck, today is your birthday! And he ran out of the room to our children's room. From my room I could hear him telling the boys, because no one remembered that date. The next morning my two sons apologized to me for forgetting such an important date. But my oldest son, in his defense of forgetfulness, said to me: "Mom, we have already celebrated your 40th birthday so many times, so when you have a different birthday, I will celebrate it again. I replied with a smile on my lips: you are right son, next year I will celebrate my 40 and a half. As it is in June.   In the following years I began to repeat 50 years, that is, instead of saying 46, 47, 48, 49, I said 50. It was something that made me feel good at that time, when I heard people say to me with admiration: "50 years old, but how good you look for being 50". Since I celebrated my real 50th birthday I always tell my age. But with my read.cash friends I won't say it, because always my dear sister @gertu13 has told me not to say my age, so they won't guess hers... hahaha. The following birthday celebrations have been without many memories. With the exception of 2013. Two days before celebrating my birthday, on June 22, my sister calls me to give me the news of the passing of our beloved younger brother. A very heartbreaking news for my heart that I do not want to tell. I now have the maturity to accept my years. The living ones without ties of any kind, without complexes or fears. I accept each year as a thank you to God for every moment I live, that I breathe. In health above all things. With its moments of tribulations and my moments of joys. I always ask God in my prayers, for wisdom and knowledge of His Word, to guide me to His will and purpose in my life. As the biblical passage says: "Teach us to number our days aright, that our hearts may be wise", Psalm 90:12. This article is based on real events, the names of the protagonists were omitted. No person or animal was hurt during these events, meaning the father of my children ... The article is authentic, originally written by me, as a requirement to qualify for the raffle organized by my dear friend @LykeLyca. Based on the following biblical passage: "But consider well (this) from this day forward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth (month); from the day that the foundation of the temple of the Lord was laid, consider well" Haggai 2:18... I indicate as the date of celebration of its first year in read.cash from @LykeLyca.   (#24)@LykeLyca. If you are interested in participating here I give you details of the same.   Giveaway Mechanics: Write about "Celebration" or anything memorable you have celebrated in your life. The article must be at least 3 minutes of reading or more, authentic, originally written by you.  Guess My Anniversary Date: Choose only one number from 1 to 30.  Insert the number you choose at the end of your article, example (#25), then tag me @LykeLyca.  Only 1 article per writer. Giveaway will run for one week. (Ends September 19) Prizes: $1 sponsorship - for someone who can give the exact date (OR the closest number). Positive votes and random sponsorships for everyone who joins. So, let's have fun! Thanks to all my sponsors and readers who follow me for your valuable support by always stopping by - you guys rock!

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@rodriguezpct 12 September 2021

Harvesting Fruits on Dry Land. Those who have followed my posts know that the house where I live is not my own, that is, it is rented. I pay monthly rent. I will be five years living here in December. So today I will tell you about the yard. The backyard of the house has no perimeter walls. It has no walls built to keep out strangers, that is, animals and people. The soil in the backyard was dry and sandy. It had only brush and weeds that covered its entire length. Since I moved in, I have spent time cleaning it up and maintaining it as a planting area for aromatic plants and herbs. It is my favorite hobby and a natural stress reliever. It has kept me busy for many years and now in times of pandemic much more. For years all the organic material produced by eating food has been used to keep the natural nutrients in the soil. When I cut vegetables and vegetable shells I recycle them in my yard. Coffee grounds, eggshells, banana shells, everything is buried in the soil. I have been doing this for five years. And it also benefits me because it produces less garbage when the garbage truck arrives. It only takes empty containers, cardboard, paper and plastic.  Before, a lot of stray dogs would come into the yard. And sometimes people would come to look at what I have in the yard. To prevent people from trespassing I started to build perimeter walls with plants. I started planting. I have planted side by side 14 bushes of lemons, oranges and tangerines. They are still small, no more than a meter high. But they are blocking the way there. On the other side, I have bananas plants, and different kind of plantains plants. They have harvested from here and have already had other shoots that will be ready to bear fruit next year. Also on the same side are planted close to each other 9 papaya plants. At another end I set up a kind of mesh with wires with several bushes of passion fruits that are entangled in the mesh, giving the sensation of a vegetable gate. I have an extension with a lemon balm bush. I surrounded myself on all sides with the plants. Now people don't come in. Sometimes a dog passes by but my pet Amber makes him run very fast. Amber is like me, jealous of her yard, she protects her area, she doesn't even let a cat pass by... hahaha. The soil is not as dry as it was at the beginning, now I have sweet peppers, paprika and chives. I have spinach, white basil, purple basil, good weed, and oregano. I have prepared quite a bit of sweetened papaya from the papayas plants. I have already eaten several bunches of banana and plantain from my harvest. Last week we cut the last bunch of bananas of the season. And I have other new plants to bear fruit next year. From the aromatic plants, I have prepared hot tea and made some sauces or creams that are spectacular to accompany lunch with steamed potatoes or meats. Very tasty. I have harvested pumpkins, sweet potatoes, melon, cucumber, and sweet potatoes. They leave my yard with a lot of vines to remove at the end of their products but they are worth it. Sweet potatoes, and pumpkins are special for making cakes. Large cucumbers for salads. I have several hibiscus bushes. When they are in bloom we make juice. What a delight to drink cold hibiscus flower juice. I have cactus and succulents, of which I make landscape compositions in clay pots. I used to sell them by order but now this enterprise is paralyzed for the moment. But latent, someday I will take it up again. I have all that in my yard. God has been so generous with me that he has given me fruit on dry land. In conclusion and as a way of reflection, I will tell you the following, in the life of each one of us the same thing happens. Just as each one of us sows in good works, so too, in time, we will reap good fruits, in blessings.  "*He who sows sparingly will reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will reap bountifully*" **2 Corinthians 9:6.** I am always grateful for the time you spend reading my posts and to my sponsors and readers in general for your great support, thank you very much.

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@rodriguezpct 10 September 2021

An Angel from Heaven here on Earth. Before I begin to develop my post today, I want to thank that I woke up with a new sponsor, who joins my great team of sponsors who support me. This is @carolinacardoza, my friend of "blessed and creative hands". If you have read her posts you already know why she named her that. Thanks to all my sponsors and to all the people who stop to read what I write. I do it with love and respect for you. Writing in reas.cash is an honor for me. Today, early in the morning I read a very interesting article from a friend who has a lot of wisdom, he is @Fexonice1. I recommend his posts The good Samaritan, I copy the link in case you are interested in reading a teaching article of the Word of God. https://read.cash/@Fexonice1/the-good-samaritan-1f3d06c0. Not long ago, but long before the pandemic, I used to travel a lot to the east of my country, where my family lives. On one of those trips, there was a problem with the departure of the public transportation unit that was leaving for the Puerto La Cruz terminal. I was stranded for a few hours at the eastern terminal in Caracas, waiting for them to change my ticket for another bus. While waiting for several hours, I sat relaxed on the chairs provided for the public at the terminal. There, a few chairs away from me, was a young woman with three small children. It caught my attention because the woman was delegating the care of her 3-year-old brother, who was crying, to the little girl, who was about 5 years old, while she was feeding a baby in her arms who was only a few months old. I watched her for a while and realized that there was no other adult with her. After a few hours, we were called to begin boarding the transport unit. The young woman was ahead of me. She was carrying a lot of hand luggage, the 5-year-old girl was dragging a large blanket, and her 3-year-old brother, who was still crying. We all boarded the bus, and during the entire 7-hour trip I never saw them again. In fact, I didn't even remember them during the trip. I dedicated myself to my own thing, to look out the window at the scenery of the places we passed on the trip. When we arrived at the terminal of Puerto La Cruz, I got off the bus and went straight to the bathroom to wash my face and hands. Then, looking for the exit to take a cab to take me home, I passed through a hallway and saw the young woman with her three small children trying to buy another ticket to continue the trip to another city, another 6 hours away. The young woman was pleading with the salesman at the ticket counter. But the man told her that there were no buses leaving at that time. She had to wait until tomorrow. The young woman started to cry and I told her little girl that they were going to sleep on the floor of the terminal until the sun came up and she could continue her trip. Hearing that, I froze. Almost out of the hallway I walk back to where the woman is crying on the floor. I lean over to her and tell her that I heard everything. I invite her to spend the night at my house. The woman looks at me as if I am her salvation. And I accept. I told her that I just had to wait there a little longer because I had to go to my house first to get my car. When I got home I told my youngest son that I had to go back to the terminal to pick up a lady with three children. I explain to my son what happened. But he got a little upset because he said that I didn't know that woman and that she could be a bad person. I told him that I leave that in God's hands. My son accompanied me to the terminal. He did not want me to go alone. When we arrived at the terminal my son saw the scene of a woman on the ground with three children and his heart was also softened. We bought her dinner, because she and the children had not eaten, the 3-year-old did not eat much. There I learned that the child had a mouth full of ulcers in his gums that hurt him a lot and that is why he was crying so much. After dinner, I bought the children some compotes and ice cream. I offered them the bed in my room, and I went to sleep in my son's room. Early in the morning, I offered them breakfast, and since I knew they would be on another long trip until they reached their final destination, I prepared a stock of food for the trip. I took her back to the terminal. Before saying goodbye to her I called her attention, I told her never ever to travel like that again, alone with her children. Exposing her and the children to danger. That just as we crossed paths, she could also have crossed paths with bad people, that she should be more careful in the future and not risk her children like that. She agreed with me, gave me a big hug, and told me that she would not do it anymore, that it was a great lesson for her, that God took care of her by putting an angel in her path. I returned home with a feeling of happiness, with joy in my heart. At that moment without thinking I had become an angel for that young woman. What a great joy. To know that I was there to alleviate her anguish and that God allowed me to be her instrument to help her. I never heard from that young lady again, we never communicated again. She did not have a cell phone. I only hope she arrived safely. Thank you all for reading my true story.

@rodriguezpct 9 September 2021

Pilgrimage through Barinas Today I am going to tell you about the 6 residences where I have had to live since my arrival in Barinas state, Venezuela. I arrived in Barinas in July 2010, for a work matter. And since that year to date, I have had to move 6 times, I hope that the Sixth will be the last one! Let me tell you: Residence Number 1 (Hotel Alto Barinas): My first month in Barinas was in a hotel. The company that hired me to work in Barinas reserved my payment for a month in a hotel. Since I had no family or friends in Barinas, the company gave me a month to look for a residence. In Anzoátegui, where I lived before, I had a friend whose brother (a military officer) lived here near the hotel. She asked her brother if I could live in his house. Her brother accepted. Residence Number 2 (Drunk on the floor): In August 2010, after agreeing to pay two months' rent in advance, I move into my friend's brother's house. There the military officer introduced his wife to me and showed me my room. It was a spacious and comfortable room. The drawback was that the room had no bathroom and I had to go out to use the bathroom in the rest of the house. Another inconvenience was that the military man and his wife had meetings with their co-workers. They would drink liquor until late at night. When I came home from work I could not rest because of the party atmosphere in the house. One night, I woke up thirsty and went to the kitchen to get some water. I bumped into a drunk who was lying on the kitchen floor. The next week I moved out. I was only there for 3 months.     Residence Number 3 (my best friend). The owner of the residence is now my best friend. I lived in this residence for 3 years. It was a studio apartment. It was completely empty. The first month I slept on a mat on the floor. Then I went out to buy a fridge, stove, bed, table, chairs and all the kitchen utensils.  I turned it into a cozy space. Eventually, the owner of the residence divorced her husband and asked me for the residence. It gave me the time I needed to look for a place to go. I was looking for two months until I finally got it. It was the same residence where my son lived. He was going to give it to me but then he left it to me. I moved with a lot of feeling because I lived there for 3 happy years. And I continued to cultivate until today a beautiful friendship with the owner of that residence. Residence Number 4 (Overcrowding). In this residence, a small room with a bathroom, I lived the worst 9 months I could live. My son left me the residence with all his things, that is, refrigerator, kitchen, bed, washing machine and so on. And when I moved out I added my own things. Since he had left, I didn't think the overcrowding was bad because I was alone.  But after 15 days my son went back to Barinas because the petroleum company called to hire him for what is now his job. Now it was really uncomfortable. The space for two people was minimal. We could not even walk there. It was horrible what I lived there. We both went out to work, but when we got to the residence we were always in a very bad mood. We only lasted 9 months there. Residence Number 5 (spirits come out). Finally a full house for both of us. My best friend, the one in residence Number 3, was the one who made the contact for the house. It belonged to a friend of hers, co-workers. Here we installed everything, now we had two refrigerators, two kitchens, and everything else double. My son and I lived there comfortably. Well, until the spiritual entities appeared.  At night they wouldn't let me sleep. On one occasion a friend stayed for a weekend and she saw it. I never saw it, but I felt its presence. When they passed near me, the hairs on my skin stood up. My son and I lived in that house for 3 years, until the owner told us that she needed it for her son who got married and wanted to go live there with his wife. Residence Number 6 (I am still here). Another house, the owner has been generous with me and charges me a monthly rent that is practically symbolic of how little it is. A blessing, because we live in a good zone of Barinas and the rents are very expensive. The house is located on the same street as residence Number 5. The move was comfortable for us. It was not necessary to put anything in boxes to pack. In my car and on foot, filling the suitcases, was the move. It took a week. By the end of the month I delivered residence Number 5 with its spirits inside. My son lived in this house for a year before getting married and moving into his own space with his wife. I lived alone for 2 years, until last November when my son and his wife and daughter moved back in with me. And here I am, still paying rent, but I want to buy it. I have faith in God that this house will be mine. I declare it, in God's perfect time, mine. It will be the end of my pilgrimage through Barinas. Thanks to my sponsors and readers who follow me, you are the best. Greetings to all of you.

@rodriguezpct 7 September 2021

Closing a Door and Opening New Paths. This is a true story... Last Saturday, I was comforting a friend who was telling me very sad, that she got her divorce decree. She did not want to get divorced. She tried many times to reconcile, but her partner was willing to separate. Four years went by, until she herself finally started the legal divorce proceedings to close the cycle once and for all.  A divorce is never easy. But if there is no other way out, you have to close the cycle and move on.  She asked me for advice on how to close that part of her life. I told her to write a letter, a letter to give thanks and to be able to go on. To heal, and to close a cycle. She said yes, she will write it. And that she would give it to him too, because she doesn't want him to come to her house anymore. Which he still does, even though he doesn't want to continue with her. Below is the letter she wrote. "*I just received the sentence of our divorce.  Today culminates a great adventure that we started with love years ago. When we started it, we thought the affair would be until the end of our lives. But you see, it was not as we thought. Today we close a door and open separate paths. Although we will always cross moments of our lives because you are and will continue to be the father of our children. Children that cost us a lot and that at one time were so longed for and so sought after, that now they are a little piece of love that each one of us added to that mix. We cannot change that fact. And it never crossed my mind to change it either. You are the best father my children could have. I have no doubt about that.* *But there are situations that do have to change. And you know they do. But it seems you need me to tell you.  I want to close this cycle of my life once and for all. And as long as you keep coming to the house and staying, as if we were still having a normal coexistence, I don't think it's healthy or advisable to close the cycle. You know I am right.* *Your children will always be your children. You can come and get them as often as you want and take them to share as much time as you consider necessary. What needs to change is that you will greet them at the front door of the house. I no longer want you to come by and stay. I appreciate it. Don't come by the house anymore. I know you understand.* *With my heart in my hand, I tell you that I loved you with my soul and there were many days that I thanked God for my family, my home, and my husband. Today I thank you for leaving me the most beautiful thing I have in life (our children), for all the beautiful experiences we enjoyed together, the things and good times we shared. I was very happy. Thank you for having starred with me in this chapter of my life. It only remains for me to wish you that you find the love and happiness you are looking for and if you already found it, then enjoy it. These are my best wishes.* *As for me, I don't know what destiny has in store for me, but the time will come, in due time, when it will be my turn to start again a relationship with someone special in my life. I am preparing myself from now on, body and soul, for that moment. That is why I conclude as I began this letter: closing a door and opening paths. Thank you. End of chapter.* End of the letter. I told my friend that this process is difficult and painful. A divorce always leaves feelings of loss, defeat, grief, failure. She has to let go of those feelings. It is a slow process if she wants to face it, but it is liberating once she accepts it. Accept to move on. When I talk about accepting, I don't mean accepting her husband, I mean herself. She has to accept that a stage in her personal life is closing. She has to accept that a divorce is not a failure. It is a stage in life that did not work out and that comes to an end, to start another chapter in life.  "Life is like a book. Some chapters are happy and some are sad. But if you never turn the page, you will not know what awaits you in the next chapter", these phrases are not mine, they are phrases taken from the page Emotional Education, on facebook. I told my friend to take the letter and burn it as a symbol of liberation and to open new paths. She did so. She also sent a copy of the letter to her ex by WhatsApp... and then to celebrate. Celebrate a new stage. Celebrate a new chapter in the book of life.  And she, after burning the letter, went out to buy a case of beer. What would you advise my friend to do to close this stage of her life? Thank you for reading and following my posts, to my sponsors always my thanks for your support. Happy day/evening to all of you, you guys rock!

@rodriguezpct 4 September 2021

Daniel and the Rubik's Revenge. Daniel is a guest of our house. He will spend a month of vacation here, sharing with us. It is not the first time he stays here. He has done it before, but for a short time, when he has to hand in school activities he comes for a few days, and my son guides him to get them done. Especially in English homework. He finished his first year of high school with very good grades, so since he is preparing himself in some activities to successfully start his second year of school in October. From this last support received at home, my son made the proposal to let Daniel take a vacation to deepen his knowledge of the language. His parents gave their permission and now we can count on his pleasant company. Daniel is part of the family. He is my daughter-in-law's nephew. My son's nephew. And as Daniel affectionately calls me "modern grandmother", he has become my beloved grandson. I love the way Daniel is, he has a captivating personality, he invites you to talk, to share with him. In spite of being only 12 years old, he is a very mature young man, it is as if I was talking to an adult. He is very cooperative and attentive to any order or suggestion given at home. He radiates spiritual peace. He is a young man who is a student of God's Word. And he has a lot of wisdom in his speech. I recently asked him what made him stay at home to learn the English language. He says he is preparing for the future. He thinks that by mastering the English language he will be prepared for life where doors of opportunities are open to him. He thinks, in his words, that if God allows him to do so, as an adult he may have more options to travel to a country where he can comfortably function speaking English. Daniel reminded me of my son when as a child he started studying for his own motivation and I as a mother supported him. And now as an adult he is a professional translator of the language. Today Daniel reminds me of my son as a child.   Daniel used to play baseball before, children selection, but due to transportation problems, he was not able to continue. Daniel tells me that he doesn't regret not continuing to practice because he did it mainly to please his father, who loves that sport. He prefers walking, jogging, and cycling. He likes open spaces, nature, breathing fresh air. There in that natural environment, he meditates better. He likes to watch movies. Dancing, singing, reading the Bible, and... The Rubik's Cube! Knowing the Rubik's cube is a passion that attracted him since he was 7 years old when by chance he saw a person with a wooden Rubik's cube. Trying to put the puzzle together. Since that age he has been playing with the cube, do you know it? of course you do, it is the best selling puzzle in the world. The Rubik's cube is a three-dimensional puzzle, which has 6 faces of mixed colors: white, orange, green, red, blue, and yellow. Its faces rotate, mixing the colors. The puzzle is assembled when each face is in only one color. Daniel tells me that when he was 7 years old he asked an aunt who lives in Chile to give him a **3x3x3** cube, which is the easiest level. The one with the fixed white face. And to his surprise, his aunt gave it to him. Daniel started watching videos at that age to learn how to put the puzzle together. He studied, practiced and memorized it so hard that he succeeded. He does it with such speed and concentration that I am speechless. Excellent, what agility he has. While researching the game I learned that there are variations of levels. The initial one, the one Daniel started playing with, is the **3x3x3**, that is, the original Rubik's Cube. The next level is the **4x4x4**, called Rubik's Revenge. Then **5x5x5** The Professor's Cube. There are levels since 2008 of **6x6x6** and **7x7x7x7**. Since 2012 follow other more advanced levels, the **8x8x**8, **9x9x9** and **10x10x10**. ***Daniel has reached the "Rubik's Revenge" level, which he manages to assemble in just a few minutes.*** It is the **4x4x4** cube, they are cubes that do not have fixed pieces, the original **3x3x3** has a fixed white face. The faces can be moved to different positions. I have known about this puzzle for years but I have never been able to put it together in my life, for me it is a feat that Daniel, since he was a little boy, 7 years old, has been able to do it. Researching on the subject I discovered that 94% of the world's population has not been able to put the puzzle together even once. Only 5.8% of the population has assembled it at least once in their lives. And Daniel belongs to that 5.8% of the population that has succeeded (and much more than once). Isn't that wonderful? And He is right here in my house...hahahaha Have you ever tried to put together a Rubik's cube, have you ever succeeded? If you haven't, don't worry, welcome to the 94% group, who like me have never been able to. *Thanks to my dear sponsors and readers who follow me,* *I hope you will leave your comments about Daniel and Rubik's Revenge.*

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@rodriguezpct 4 September 2021

The world in miniature, a whole landscaping. In these times where we have to stay at home, we have to develop some passion in order not to go into total madness. I have a passion inherited from my mother. And it is the love for plants. And in times of pandemic I have dedicated more time to them. They have given me peace of mind and a job at home. Because thanks to them, I am at home in good mental health. To be honest, I have many years of dedication to plants. I give them special care. Every leaf, stem and flower is treated with great care. Because they are the protagonists of my arrangements. In them, everything has to be perfect. With them, I used to do landscaping. In clay pots, with good soil, colored stones, decorative details of miniature gardening objects, with my cactus and succulents. I make forests, paths, stone houses, and with my imagination and creativity, everything is a beautiful landscape. From the ground of my patio, I take small smooth stones and from those stones, when I paint them, I create the figures of frogs, turtles, ladybugs, colorful birds, and many animals of multiple colors, all of them are the characters of my landscape in the forest. With slightly larger stones I paint windows, doors and form the country houses. With their roofs decorated with branches that I find in the yard. A real country house. I always select the perfect cactus and succulents. They together with other plants form the set of elements that make up my composition. At the end you will see streams, bridges and stone paths. Giving the sensation of being in a forest. Long before the pandemic I sold them, by order. I came to have my virtual store and my clients. There in that virtual store are all the photos. I did not dare to publish those photos here for fear that people might think that they are not mine. So my article goes without photos of my works. So please, everyone to imagine... hahahaha One of the things I want to buy before the end of the year is a cell phone. My cell phone got damaged. In that cell phone, I had a whole gallery of photos from many years, of my family, of my travels, of my materos with landscaping. I am very sorry I don't have those photos. And not being able to publish the collection of photos with the clay pots and landscaping. I promise that when I have the new cell phone, before the end of the year, I will write a complete article with a beautiful miniature forest arrangement, so that you can relax too, just as I do every time I dedicate myself to a composition. Today I want to thank you all for your company, my dear sponsors and friends who follow me.... You are the best. Take care of yourselves. Bye.

@rodriguezpct 2 September 2021

May a Bolt of Lightning Split Me in Two We have had a lot of rain in the last few days. And last night's rain was lightning and thunder. Lightning rain.  From the window of my room, the sky is illuminated and I watch for a moment the lightning splitting in two at every instant. I like to watch the sky. I do it from my bed, every night before going to sleep, I watch the sky and make my prayer of gratitude to God. It is relaxing when it is starry. When you can see the stars. But last night the sky was twinkling. Menacing, but wonderfully beautiful. I remember when I was a very little girl, I thought lightning was attracted to mirrors. At that time it was talked about in adult conversations. At the time of my childhood, 1500 BC, adults lived under many beliefs and myths. In my house, my mom would put a big cloth that completely covered the mirror we had in the dining room. She would cover it every time we had a thundershower. At that time, I started to wear corrective lenses, and after many years I still wear them. At that time, I believed that the glass of my glasses would attract the lightning from the thundershowers and break me in two. Every time it rained with lightning and thunder I would take off my glasses and move them away from me. I didn't want any lightning to break me in two, who would want that, to be broken by a bolt of lightning!... Childhood innocence. Last night the thundershower was that strong. I closed the window because the strong breeze let the rainwater pass into my room. I didn't draw the curtain to continue watching the sky with its thundershower, until I fell asleep. Last night I laughed thinking about that episode of my childhood. How innocent I was. For me, it was not ignorance, but an overflowing imagination. A wonderful or frightening way of seeing things.  Children are imaginative and special like that, I say it now because of my granddaughter, where I have lived in her wonderful world of innocence. My 6-year-old granddaughter believes everything she is told. She is very imaginative. She is a very happy child. Her parents and I are looking out for her. On her upbringing. We let her live that special stage of her childhood. From her castles made with bedsheets, with her imaginary friends, and her family of dolls, the time will come for her to mature for life. We must not rush that stage of innocence of her 6 years.  Every human being's emotional and cognitive growth process has its stages and innocence is one of them. As long as my granddaughter lives in her childhood of innocence surrounded by people who guide, care for, and protect her, with lots of love, we will all be enjoying that wonderful process of every healthy and happy child. We will be watching the child who thinks he is grown up and the adolescent who thinks he is an adult. That's another world... quite a headache for responsible parents... hahaha... I hope today's story is taken with total innocence by all of you...hahaha. Thanks to my sponsors, followers, and general readers who support me day in and day out by reading and leaving comments.

@rodriguezpct 1 September 2021

Don't look back, move forward! Today the month begins and we start with new goals. Before I write down the goals I plan to accomplish in September, first I want to give thanks.  I thank God for every breath I take every day, every wake up and every night I have peace. I thank the two months on read.cash. To my dear sister @gertu13 , for her support and constant enthusiasm, her insistence to continue on this wonderful platform, despite all the difficulties I still have. Thank you sister. Special thanks to my dear sponsors, @Bloghound , @zolabundance2, @LykeLyca, @CoquiCoin, @ARTicLEE, @fantagira, @emily2u, @Momentswithmatt..., and the friends who follow me, to all who read my posts and leave comments. You guys rock.  And starting September I have the blessing of a new sponsor, thank you so much for your support @Janz, In August I set a goal to write 3 articles a week, I did it at the beginning but then, since two weeks ago, I publish daily, from Monday to Saturday, Sunday I leave it only for commenting. I consider that this part of my goal has been achieved. I proposed myself to make 5 to 10 comments a day, and I managed to make 10 comments a day! I congratulate myself. I proposed myself to read and understand terms that I did not know about the world of cryptocurrency and BCH. This is as I said "a world", it's very wide, it's like endless history. You always read something new. And that's what makes it interesting. At the end, "I only know that I know nothing": Sincerely Socrates... hahaha ... I published a children's story related to cryptocurrency. I read it to my 6 year old granddaughter and she liked it very much. I explained to her in simple terms what it means. She took the opportunity to do some research on google related to a hammerhead shark and electric eel. If you want to immerse your child in the world of cryptocurrency I leave you the link to the story: Swimming among sharks...  https://read.cash/@rodriguezpct/swimming-among-sharks-edcda51f Continuing with the achievements, I was able to raise money to buy a reorganized laptop. Thankfully, it will be delivered to me next week. With the laptop I will be able to make progress on the daily comments, I will be able to do them live and direct... hahaha... only @gertu13 understands this part. In general, I feel satisfied with my achievements in August, they were few because I know my limitations, but they were achieved with sweat and tears... (more sweat because of the summer heat hahaha)... For September it is logical that I can not slow down the pace I'm taking, that is, I have to overcome, having already the laptop operational, the 10 daily comments. Between 10 and 15 daily.  The publications are maintained in a publication every day, from Monday to Saturday. My goal for the month of September is to raise the money needed to fix the air conditioner in my room, no more sweat and tears... hahaha. Continue reading about the world of cryptocurrency, and BCH. Hand in hand with Socrates. When we are in the habit of planning objectives and setting goals, we can make an evaluation of what we have planned. If at the end we realize that we were able to achieve the objectives, we rejoice, it fills us with optimism to continue planning and improving the goals for the next month. But, what happens if at the end of the date you realize that you were not able to achieve it? To those who were not able to achieve what was planned, and have the Word of God as their guide, I offer this biblical passage as an encouragement so that they do not get discouraged: "Brethren, I myself do not consider that I have already attained; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead" Philippians 3:14. Persist. Don't be afraid to start over. In the end, you will see the fruits. Don't look back, keep going! Welcome September. Health, joy and happiness to all at read.cash.

@rodriguezpct 31 August 2021

Watching the dog I was home alone and a little bored. It was a normal Saturday, like any other day. I got up early and had already tasted my first coffee. I didn't feel like having breakfast alone, but I made myself something nice anyway.  As soon as I finished breakfast, there was a knock on my door. I looked out the window and saw that it was my neighbor Pedro. Strange, so early in the morning, was all I thought when I opened the door. My neighbor and I have a lot of trust in each other. We have a friendship of many years. And I know almost all of his family. Whenever I want to go shopping in my car, I ask him to come with me. I give him the keys to my car so he can drive it. I don't like to drive. I don't like to be aware of the road, other vehicles, pedestrians, and even the dogs that always want to cross the road when they see me behind the wheel. I prefer to go relaxed, watching and enjoying the ride. And since my neighbor Pedro doesn't have a car, he also benefits from driving mine, because he takes advantage of it and does his shopping. Sometimes, or most of the time, we are accompanied by his wife and daughter. They are very fond of me and so am I. When my neighbor Pedro came in and after offering me coffee he asked me if I wanted to go out with his family to his mother's house who was having her birthday and they were going to celebrate it with a beef and chicken stew, with their respective bottles of beer. I of course didn't expect him to repeat it. I immediately said yes, of course I wanted to go. It was a smart way for my neighbor to ask for the car so he could take his wife and daughter as well. My neighbor's mother's house is like a big neighborhood, it is a very big private space, with many trees, around it they built studio apartments, they have 22 apartments, and 6 of Mrs. Rosalia's children live there. The rest of the apartments are rented. When you arrive at the site you have to get out of the car to open a big gate, and in the center of all the apartments, they have a big patio where they park the cars. My neighbor Pedro drove to the house, opened the gate, and from a distance you could see the big pot on top of the woodstove to prepare the beef and chicken stew. All the daughters were chopping the vegetables and when they saw my car entering from afar they started waving with a beer in hand. The kids were all-around playing and jumping. It all looked very cheerful. My neighbor got out first. I sit in the passenger seat and open the car door to get out. I had not yet closed the car door, when a big, white dog running towards me has bitten me on one leg. I felt the fangs as they pierced my skin. I screamed loudly and everyone froze and watched. The only one who ran towards me was my neighbor. I didn't want to move my leg because I thought that with the fangs stuck in my leg I could tear myself more. It was the neighbor who grabbed the dog by the neck and pulled the dog. The dog loosened up a bit, but before I could get him off me he bit me again. It all happened so fast that my neighbor's sisters and mother didn't believe the dog had bitten me. They thought the dog was just tugging at the hem of my pants. I had to lift up the side of my pants so they could see my bitten leg. In total I had 8 holes in my leg. The first 4 were deep, from the first bite, and the other 4 barely penetrated the skin, but were still bleeding.  Now everybody was sorry for me and ran to give me assistance. My neighbor took me to an outpatient clinic. There, the doctor told me that I had to get the anti-rabies vaccine, but that they don't inject it at the clinic and that I would have to go to the main hospital in the city the following Monday to get it there. I asked the doctor if there was no problem to wait until Monday and she told me that there was no problem, that I had up to a week, but that it was better to go on Monday.  She recommended that I observe the dog and that we should keep an eye on it because if the dog had rabies we would have to put the dog down. That all the symptoms that the dog might have were for me to watch out for. A nurse cleaned me up and let me go.  The neighbor was very sorry, he said that he would buy the medicines that were prescribed for me. And that he would drive me back to my house. I answered almost with a shout: "What, back to my house, you're crazy, and lose the sancocho (soup) and the beers. No thanks. The only thing to do now is to watch the dog as the doctor said. Remember what the doctor said, that I can have the same symptoms as the dog".   We went back to Mrs. Rosalia's house. There that day everyone treated me like a queen. Even the dog from far away, tied with a thick chain, looked at me as if he wanted to bite me again, but he was calm. We were all watching the dog. That day I had the option of being sad, bitten, and back to my house or the option of having a good time, accompanied and celebrating, even though I was already bitten by the dog, I could not change that fact. But the rest I could. I chose the option of having a good time. I really enjoyed it. The next day my neighbor Pedro called my cell phone. He had stayed that Sunday at his mom's. He called to ask how I was feeling, if I wasn't feeling weird. I told him I felt fine.   Sore in my leg but fine. He answered: neighbor, do you remember the doctor said we had to observe the dog. That whatever the dog felt, you could feel it. Well, we let him out today and he went to his girlfriend and.... now he's making love.... Hahaha... we both laughed out loud. This story is already several years old, and we always remember it when we meet at Mrs. Rosalia's house, and we laugh a lot, especially because of what the doctor said, that we had to watch the dog.   Thank you for reading my stories, thank you to my sponsors and friends who follow me. Thanks to all of you.

@rodriguezpct 30 August 2021

Traveling with a light suitcase. We have reached the end of the month, tomorrow is the last day of August. Thankful to God for having health above all things. To be here in read.cash sharing with new friends, I am infinitely grateful to my dear sponsors and to the people who follow me. To all of you thank you very much for your company. Time goes by so fast that I am surprised. These days I have been reading articles about Christmas. I am surprised that in some countries as early as September they start preparing and planning for Christmas. In my country, I remember as a child that in September and October they began to hear Christmas songs, the bagpipes. I remember that the facades of the houses were decorated from October with Christmas lights, it was like a competition of who decorated more beautiful. And the streets and squares were covered with Christmas lights. Everything was so special because Christmas was already in the air since September.  I started to think about the traditions of my country, which we have as a custom to await the arrival of the New Year, and that even in times of pandemic are still in force. We have many traditions, but the one I want to mention today is a very special tradition because I want to reflect on it. Later on, in other articles, I will continue to deal with other traditions. Today I will talk about the tradition of the suitcase. In Venezuela, we have a custom or tradition when a year ends. At the sounding of the 12 bells announcing that the old year ends and a new year begins people take out a suitcase and go out to the street to walk, according to the belief the farther you walk with the suitcase the longer the trip you will possibly make during the year, or it can be several trips, you never know, it all goes on the faith of the person who goes out with the suitcase. So at that time of the new year, you can see neighbors leaving their homes with suitcases. It is a tradition that many people say has worked for them, that if they have gone on a trip. It is not known what they carry inside the suitcases. There are people who put everything in a suitcase, they can put a lot of clothes, coats, even a lot of shoes. And so they want to take a trip to change their environment, to find new opportunities in quality of life or simply for the adventure. People think about traveling, and that's why they do this ritual. They spend years repeating the ritual, but they are always the same people, with the same habits and customs. They do not change. They are people who also put their fears, grudges and bad memories in their suitcases. There the suitcase becomes heavy in their journey through life. People that even passing one and another year, they become adults, old and remain the same. They live with fears of traumas they have not been able to overcome. Traumas that marked their childhood and they still live it in their adult life. They live with fears that do not allow them to prosper, to advance. They are afraid of failure, of what others will say, of other people's opinion. They do not take flight for fear of falling. They have a suitcase full of fears. They also fill it with resentment. That feeling of hatred binds a person in such a way that does not let him reach peace. That peace nourishes the soul and the spirit. They carry a suitcase full of resentment, with a broken and wounded heart for lack of forgiveness. They have not forgiven themselves and live without forgiving. The bad memories they have lived do not let them move forward. They do not let their journey through life go smoothly. They have years divorced, separated and still feed their soul and spirit by remembering those bad times. They live an adult life full of childhood traumas. They feed their soul and spirit with those memories. How many people do not live happily because they are tied to sad memories of the past. They carry a heavy suitcase with bad memories. That is why I always say, what good is it if you fill your suitcase with fine clothes, with elegant coats, with brand name shoes and you want to start a new year, to travel, to start a new experience in another city or country. What good is that if you also take your fears, your grudges and bad memories with you. Your journey wherever life takes you will not be one of peace and tranquility, you will not have a free life, with joy and happiness. Your journey will not be light. Free yourself from everything that binds you, that makes your life heavy, free yourself from those feelings and emotions that do not let you be free, that do not let your journey through life be one of happiness, peace, tranquility and joy. Start with forgiveness. Open your heart. May your suitcase be light, may you go far.  If you had to travel before the end of the year, what would you pack in your suitcase? I thank all my sponsors for the support they give me. To my followers and friends who always read and comment, you are the best!

@rodriguezpct 28 August 2021

The Aroma of Coffee Awakens the Senses. Son, we don't have any coffee for tomorrow!... that sentence rings in my son's ears as if it were the worst news a mother could give her son. He puts both hands on his head and says: "It can't be! and rushes off to the grocery store near the house to buy coffee. Does this scene sound familiar to you?, does the same thing happen in your house? In the mornings, every day whoever gets up first prepares the coffee. And we have a play on words that we always say. When we make coffee we ask those who drink coffee at home, my son and my granddaughter, if they want coffee. And we always answer "silly question", of course we want it. It's a game we play because here at home ***if you don't drink coffee there is no life.***.. hahaha... literally, it changes our daily routine, we start to get headaches, we get hungry faster and even our mood changes. My son and I in the mornings, each with our respective cups, start talking about the events of the previous day, it's like a family report. Sometimes, we spend a long time in that conversation and if we run out of coffee in the cups we refill them. After a while, when my granddaughter gets up, I also ask her the routine question: "do you want coffee?", and she answers: "grandma, silly question, of course!" My son, after chatting with me for a while, goes to his daily activities, goes to his office, that is, to his room, and starts his daily routine as an English translator. He has had several online engagements, and with his cup of coffee, it is like being in his environment, because it keeps him active. The same thing happens to me, I retire to my office, that is, my room with my cup of coffee. How many people now have their rooms as their office, I would say that many people now with their cups of coffee do their work routine at home. It is a change in lifestyle that this pandemic has left us, or it is leaving us now. Going back to the coffee topic. I started drinking coffee since I started studying at the university in the evenings. Because during the day I worked. I started working when I was 19 years old. And I studied at night. To keep me active, so that I wouldn't fall asleep in class, I drank coffee until late at night, because my last class was almost always until 10 or 11 o'clock at night. As the years went by and after several postgraduate studies, I began to work in several universities as a professor in undergraduate research projects. I had to read, correct, and advise undergraduate and graduate work of many university students, there were many, and to keep me active I resorted to coffee. Sometimes I would leave the university late, no longer as a student, but as a professor. Here in Barinas, I started working as a coordinator in a training program for a refinery staff, and I was in the field all day. Full work, from morning until late afternoon. The break was just for lunch, and coffee was what kept me going all day. Now in this new time, on the read.cash platform, every time I write, comment on an article I read or respond to one of the comments made to me, guess who accompanies me...., oh yes, my cup of coffee. from unsplashDon't think that I'm overdoing it with coffee, no, not at all. It's just part of my routine. But the headache thing, if I stop drinking it for two days, it's true. Sometimes, the headache comes after one day without drinking coffee. Am I like the alcoholic who doesn't recognize his or her addiction?. In the afternoons I only drink a cup of coffee. After 3 o'clock in the afternoon I don't drink any coffee until the next day. And it doesn't keep me awake at all. I sleep my normal 8 hours peacefully, with no insomnia problems or anything like that. My son is the same, he sleeps peacefully at night, as if nothing happened. We are addicted to coffee. It's at the top of our shopping list, it's a staple. Is it the same for you, does the aroma of coffee awaken your senses? Thanks again to my sponsors and friends who follow me, to all of you who stop by with a cup of coffee to read my articles, to all of you, cheers, let's toast to life. Thank you.

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@rodriguezpct 27 August 2021

I got vaccinated, finally! All my friends, most of my neighbors, and even my son had received the text message notifying them of the place and day to go for the vaccine against the virus. In a way, I was waiting for that message. Because I wanted to get out of that health commitment I had with myself and the people around me. A very important health commitment for me.  I received the message last week, so from that day on I started to plan how to go to the place where I was vaccinated. It seems unbelievable that now to go out to a place near the neighborhood I have to think about how to do it. It's not easy, many times you have to walk long distances, but I did't want to walk to get a vaccine. So first I had to secure a car to get to the place of the appointment. Here in my country, we are suffering from another kind of virus, besides the pandemic, we are suffering from a pandemic of bad government, it is a very serious and destructive virus, which we have endured for 21 years. That virus has destroyed many things. And one of them is to ensure the supply of gasoline to the whole country. As a consequence of the lack of gasoline we now have no public transportation. In order to move from one place to another you have to plan days in advance. So to go to get the vaccine I had to ask and search among my contacts who could take me. Thank God my son's mother-in-law was scheduled for the same day, she is due for her second dose. Her car had enough gas to pick me up and then return home. With transportation already secured I just had to wait for the week of free circulation, here it is 7x7. One week you can go out taking security measures and the next week you can't go out, it's confinement. If you circulate with your car during the week of confinement, there are security agencies that are in charge of stopping the car and ask for the safe-conduct to the driver of the vehicle. If you do not have it, the car will be retained. Most of the time with 5 dollars you solve the problem and they let you continue. But this only happens to those who drive. Citizens who go out on foot are not stopped. Yesterday was the day, my son's mother-in-law arrived at the agreed time and so I took my cell phone and my identity card, which are the two requirements they ask for prior to the application of the vaccine.  When we left the car parked, we walked a short distance until we got to where the queues were, in an open but roofed space, there were people standing in two long lines. An official applied alcohol to our hands with an atomizer. He told us which queue we had to stand in. Here my mother-in-law and I separated. She was in line for the second dose and I was in line for the first.  In the line, I waited for a while, about half an hour, for a national guard to arrive who verified with your ID card and cell phone if you had really received the text message. Once verified, he gives you a card with a number, I got the number 61. Once the card was given to you, we went to the part where the medical staff and the assistants are. The national guard guided us. We walked under the open sky, and in the pouring rain, to the place where we had to wait again, but this time we were all sitting indoors with card in hand, waiting for an official to call the numbers. When she said 61 I went to where she told me to go. Again sitting in front of a health official. Here everything went quickly. They asked me for my identity card and my personal data, he wrote it down in his register, one of the indications he said when I got vaccinated, was that I should not get wet in the rain. Ironic indication, since a light drizzle was falling outside and when we went in we had already gotten a little wet.  Then he told me to go to where the nurse was. I finally made it to the finish line. I told the nurse to give me the injection in my right arm because I am left-handed. She did. I was vaccinated with the Sinopharm vaccine, the one they make in China. Nothing, I felt nothing. If I had not watched the nurse when she injected me, I would have thought nothing happened. But I did see her when she injected me and passed the liquid, what a good hand that nurse has, and I told her so. She thanked me for the compliment with a smile. An official showed me out and when I arrived at the exit my son's mother-in-law was also ready and waiting for me. We went back to my house. I invited her to lunch. At home, we shared a delicious lunch.   On the card they gave me for the vaccine control, it indicates that the second dose is due on September 15. My son's mother-in-law has already told me that if her car has gas she will take me again. So on that date, I will start again with my odyssey to get to the second dose. I will let you know how it went. I feel fine, the vaccine did not cause me any reaction, no fever or discomfort, I just feel a slight heaviness in my arm, no discomfort in general.   Thank you for reading my story of what it was like to get the first dose of the Sinopharm vaccine. Thanks to God and to my sponsors, who together with my followers make me write every day about my experiences in this beautiful and beloved country called Venezuela. Quite an odyssey!

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@rodriguezpct 26 August 2021

The Meaning of Pursuing Happiness In the previous article that I shared with you, I referred that for me eating a delicious soup is happiness. After writing that article I thought about what it means to be happy, there are people who always have a smile on their face, are they happy, then I thought, happiness can be searched, how do I get it? The first thing to know is that we can get to feel happy by doing daily routines, we can do them to stimulate the chemicals in our brain that make us feel happy. By doing certain daily routines the hormones: dopamine, oxytocin, endorphin, and serotonin, are released naturally, stimulating our brain. It is like going to a gym, but instead of strengthening our muscles, we strengthen our brain in a natural way. Let's start with daily routines. How do we release dopamine? Well, one natural way is by sleeping.  I like to sleep a lot, I can say that I sleep between 7 or 8 hours, and on this side, I am doing well, because by sleeping well and for several hours I am releasing small doses of dopamine. No wonder I wake up happy in the mornings! I go for a walk, for an hour, close to home. Doing physical exercises or going for a walk is a good routine, so more dopamine is released. In the mornings I have a routine plan that makes me achieve small daily accomplishments, did you know that by celebrating small daily accomplishments you release dopamine. Well on this platform we all release dopamine, how do we do it? by going to the read.cash platform, by observing how much progress you have made and how many friends have read you and how many BCH you have achieved. Those little achievements release dopamine in our brain, and that's why we feel happy every time we see our fruits. How many of you have done the same?   We continue with the routine of exercises to release happiness hormones, now we will know how to release oxytocin. How many of you pray or meditate in the mornings? Every morning when I wake up I do it, I have a moment of prayer. Praying or meditating is a natural way to release oxytocin. A person with a good dose of oxytocin builds healthy relationships, with strong emotional bonds. A good exercise to create bonds of friendship is when we comment on the posts we read daily. By interacting in an effective way and performing acts of generosity, i.e. giving tips, we generate a pleasant feeling of pleasure.  When we receive a gift, or are given a tip, oxytocin levels increase. A negative point to release oxytocin is in these times of pandemic, for fear of contagion we have distanced ourselves from people. Now there are no hugs when we are among friends. In those moments that we do not hug we do not release the hormone oxytocin, she is the champion of the hug. Hug someone and you will feel happy. It is a good exercise of a natural oxytocin release routine.     A few days ago I read an interesting post. The writer said that he used to laugh a lot. Laughing out loud. That sometimes he does it at inappropriate times and places. When I was reading the article I just imagined the writer full of endorphin. Yes, the laughter hormone. It is an easy way to release endorphin. A good exercise is to watch comedy shows or movies, attend a comedy show. I also read another article where a girl went to a street dance marathon in London.  Dancing and singing, two full endorphin releasing acts. No wonder her feet didn't hurt when she got home the next day after dancing all night. She was radiant with happiness, as she ends up telling in her article. Let's continue doing liberating exercises, do you have a hobby? If you have hobbies or practice an activity that you enjoy doing, you know why you feel so happy when you do that hobby, you are releasing endorphins. So my dear friends, let's dance, sing, laugh and do some hobbies as a routine exercise for happiness.   Now we will see what daily exercises we can do to release serotonin. One of the most pleasurable ways is to be grateful, to give thanks, as I mentioned before. And it is also pleasurable to practice self-gratitude. Self-gratitude is a good exercise. It releases serotonin. recently read an article where a young writer gave herself a jewel (a necklace), she gave it to herself with the first BCH earned for her writing achievements. She looked happy in the photo she published in her post. Serotonin flows when we feel important or valuable. Another daily exercise to let the serotonin flow is to look at photos or write about past experiences, reliving significant achievements from the past, the graduation of a loved one, our marriage, the birth of a child, a birthday. When we see photos or write about those accomplishments we release happiness. At read.cash we practice daily the release of emotions by remembering important events in our lives. Read.cash makes us feel happy, doesn't it! To conclude I will tell you, happiness is achieved in the small details of life, dancing, singing, laughing, giving a hug, giving small details, enjoying nature, going for a walk, remembering happy moments lived in the past. And above all, thank God for the life we have. With our family and loved ones, with our friends.  Life is beautiful. Enjoy it. Be happy. Friends, I hope we can continue doing these exercises that release the hormones of happiness. Let's be happy. We deserve it... what do you think? It's time to thank God and my dear sponsors and friends who follow me to read my posts, thank you, you are the best. You make me feel happy.

@rodriguezpct 25 August 2021

Happiness in a bowl of soup The pabellon criollo is the traditional Venezuelan dish. Very tasty, the dish has black beans, shredded meat, white rice and fried plantain slices. But today I don't want to eat pabellon criollo, today I want a delicious and nutritious soup. Soup is my favorite dish. In Venezuela soup can also be called sancocho, and if the main ingredient is fish or chicken it is called *hervido* (boiled). Soup in Venezuela has many versions in its recipe. It can be a sancocho of chicken, beef, *mondongo* or fish *hervido*.  I enjoy any version, but I want the soup to be served in a big bowl and to be allowed to repeat.   In the eastern part of the country, as it is a coastal area, it is very common that the soup is a fish *hervido*. But the soup or *hervido* that they prepare in the east has the characteristic that the vegetables and meats, whether beef, chicken or fish, are cut into large chunks. You can see big chunks of potato, celery, pumpkin, ocumo, yucca, yam and green plantain, sticking out deliciously from the surface of the steaming broth. The broth is not that thick. If the soup is not fish soup, it can be beef soup, with its big pieces of meat, if it is rib or tripe soup, or whole pieces of thigh or other parts of the chicken, everything is big! But that doesn't detract from the flavor, and if it's made in a wood fire it gives it a very special smoky flavor. It is the best if you are with your family or friends at the shore of a river, or at the beach, that soup will taste like glory. It is always accompanied with cassava or arepa made in the same stove, next to the big pot where the soup is made. What more can you ask from life, say if that is not happiness? *From unsplash* In the west of the country, in Barinas, where I currently live, the soup is also popular, thank God for that. Here the typical soup is called "picadillo llanero", guess why? All the vegetables are cut in small square pieces, almost all of the same shape and size. The same is done with the beef, picadillo with all the ingredients. Their broth is thicker. Here the Barinés People add rice to everything, no lie, no exaggeration, seriously, they add rice to everything, so the Barinés people accompany the soup with a bowl of rice so that you can add the rice to your soup yourself. I have never really understood that, because in the end it is not soup what they eat, but a cream of rice. I don't add rice, it's not my habit. I prefer a good arepa or toasted bread next to the bowl.   Another very delicious soup that I love is *sopa de mondongo* (Tripe soup). It is a thick soup that is prepared with beef belly, pig's feet, and various vegetables, the same as in the beef or chicken soup. It is a soup that requires more preparation time, because you have to clean the beef belly and the pig's feet very very well and do a previous cooking, that is, the beef belly and the pig's feet are prepared a day before making the soup. I remember two years ago, on December 31, I wanted to end the year eating something tasty, and I prepared a tremendous tripe soup. I started to prepare it a day before, that is, on the 30th. For me those two days were special. I ended the year with something that I love and that makes me happy. *From unsplash* The soup in Venezuela is prepared to gather the family, it is usually made on weekends, or on special occasions, in a river, or a beach, or simply at the backyard of a home, in a firewood stove. In every Venezuelan home, there is always a huge pot for a big soup. It is common that the day after a big celebration where a lot of liquor has been drunk, a big soup is prepared to remove "*el ratón*" or hangover. It restores the soul to the most fallen. If the soup were called happiness, I would fill my bowl with happiness and.... let me repeat.   Reader friend, how is the soup in the area where you live... Is it your favorite food? Thank you all for following me here, reading and commenting on my posts, special thanks to my sponsors and readers who follow me, for all a bowl full of happiness.

@rodriguezpct 23 August 2021

Home School Activities, who does them? I remember many years ago, when a co-worker of mine in the mental retardation area used to give homework to a child with Down Syndrome. She didn't like doing that part of her job, saying it was a waste of time. Every day she would give homework and the next day, when she checked the notebook, the homework had not been done by the child but by someone else. That's why she said it was a waste of time. Now in confinement time, the same thing happens. With the modality of "Every family is a school", where everything is at a distance, through social networks. The teachers, of all subjects, and of all levels of education, send the activities by messages from a cell phone. The student receives, or rather, the parent receives a lot of activities that their child has to do in a limited time. If they have several school-age children, the situation is more complicated for parents.  For real, who does the school activities? *From unsplash* Last month when I went to visit a neighbor, I saw her busy doing the activities for her son, who is in his first year of high school. They were the last activities assigned by the teachers as a requirement to complete the last academic term. I ask her why her son does not do the activities himself. She says that they assign him too much homework and that he doesn't have time to do it on his own, that she has to do some of them, because she has to deliver them in soon. It's the last chance to deliver them because the school year is ending. I am convinced that this scene is repeated in many homes. What do you think? *From unsplash* In truth, as my co-worker at the beginning of my story said, time is wasted in teaching. I would say that time and the purpose of any learning process are lost. If parents are doing school activities, they are interrupting a very important part of their children's learning. In Venezuela, the 2020-2021 school year ended last month, all students at all levels were promoted, I imagine that those who were not promoted were dropouts, that is, they did not complete the academic year, they did not submit activities. Most likely they are in another country with their parents. Here, in my country, many families have migrated in search of a better quality of life for their families. Next October, the new school year 2021-2022 should begin. I imagine that we will continue, because of the confinement, under the distance modality, "Each family is a school". We must be clear from now on, that children alone, without support, cannot face a distance learning without the guidance of an adult at home. It is very difficult for them. But the adult should only motivate, monitor, support, solve doubts, and supervise that the children comply with the school activities. But never, never do the activities for your children.   Keep in mind for a happy new school year 2021-2022, that they should start without tension, stop the fights, which only produce conflict between parents and children, generating stress in the family. **And above all, remember that the activities are for your child to do. Not you.**   *From unsplash* Parents, recharge your emotional batteries now in the school vacations, take a deep breath and arm yourselves with a lot of patience, I wish you good luck in the next school year 2021-2022! This is the time to thank, as always many thanks to my sponsors and my dear friends who follow me. Grateful to God and to you.

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@rodriguezpct 20 August 2021

The Spoiled Child. Hello reader friend, I recently took my 6-year-old granddaughter to a playground near my house. She took one of those brightly colored balls with her. There in the park, several children were playing. They are all neighbors of the same street where we live. There was also Isabel, a 5-year-old girl, she and my granddaughter have played on other occasions. But we always have problems because of Isabel's tantrums.   In the park, everyone wanted to play with my granddaughter. She is happy, because she always likes to be surrounded by other children to play with. The thing was that Isabel when the ball was thrown to her, she didn't want to throw the ball again. She only wanted it for herself. When my granddaughter took the ball away from her she started to cry and scream so much that my granddaughter gave the ball back to her. This is not the first time Isabel has exhibited tantrum behavior in public. Her mother on several occasions when she goes to the park has said that Isabel has a difficult temper almost all the time, is disobedient, throws tantrums, generally misbehaves.  The mother says that always, at home or in public, Isabel makes her cranky. She has often chosen not to go out to the park, because she is embarrassed by other children's parents. *From unsplash* Isabel has all the characteristics of a spoiled child. You may ask, dear reader, how can you identify a spoiled child?  Let's analyze Isabel's behavior, and then you will know if at home you also observe these behaviors in your young children. Sometimes, without realizing it, we as parents are the ones who encourage spoiled behavior in children, when they receive everything they want, without limits, either because we are busy with household chores or because we have no patience in creating habits and responsibilities in the child. And for the easy thing, we grant everything the child wants, without limits.     Let's go back to Isabel, I have observed that whenever she goes to the park she always has problems to play, she does not share the toys she takes with her and she wants to take other children's toys, she throws tantrums when she does not get what she wants. Her mother has to ask her several times to share or return other children's toys, but Isabel ignores her, she does not listen to her mother. Isabel, through her crying, controls her mother, and it is obvious that she is embarrassed at these moments, and she almost always takes the child back home because of this behavior. The mother is in a bad mood and the child is crying, screaming. Now reader friend, if you have thought that with your children at home they have something similar to Isabel's behavior, you may ask yourself, how can I correct it? Remember that you, as a parent, are the person in charge of the upbringing and education of your children. When that education is not done well, is done without limits, the consequences are to have spoiled children. We must be clear on this point, the child is not born spoiled, the child becomes spoiled at home.   *From unsplash* The first thing we must do is to identify the spoiled behaviors in the child, as we did with Isabel. It is important not to label the child as spoiled, avoid doing that, neither at home nor in public, and much less say it in front of the child. You must begin to apply changes in your child's behavior at home, apply firm, coherent rules and norms, appropriate to the child's age, that have consequences if they are broken by them. You have to be firm with those rules from an authority, but above all from love. Never forget that when you apply behavioral changes you must do it with patience, behavioral changes take time, and explain to your child that what he is doing is not right.  If your child throws tantrums at home or in public, do not give in to that behavior, do not let yourself be manipulated, ignore the tantrum, he will get tired of doing it, and will realize with time that he has lost that power over you. Do not overprotect your child, let him face the small difficulties that are normal for every child when playing or sharing with others. You must always remember that you must educate from authority, with love and affection, you must give him an education rich in values and responsibilities. The word in God is clear about the spoiled child.  "The rod and correction give wisdom, but a spoiled child puts his mother to shame". Do not allow this to happen in your home, do not allow your child to manipulate, do not allow yourself to be embarrassed in public, remember, educate with authority, above all with wisdom, educate with love. As always a special thanks to my sponsors, and to my friends who always follow me, I appreciate your support. I look forward to your comments, thank you very much for reading my posts.

@rodriguezpct 18 August 2021

My Beautiful Barinas ***My Beautiful Barinas, the beautiful things I'll always remember.*** Hello reader friends. In the last few days, I have been nostalgic for the city of my childhood and adult life. I have been nostalgic to see my siblings, nephews and especially my youngest son, who is 32 years old, and my two grandchildren. I miss the eastern beaches. From my house, I could see the sea, hear the waves at night, smell the characteristic aroma of the sea. How I miss those sunsets with a colorful sky.  It has been more than four years since I enjoyed my family and the beautiful beaches of the state of Anzoátegui, in the east of Venezuela. But today I am not going to remember the state of Anzoátegui. I have been living in Barinas for 11 years. It is a Venezuelan state located in the west of the country. Before I lived in the eastern part of Venezuela, in a state called Anzoátegui, I lived in front of the sea. I came to Barinas for two reasons, the first one, after my divorce, I wanted to start over, in every sense. I wanted to change my lifestyle. So in those days, I was offered a good full-time job opportunity in Barinas. That was my second reason for moving. A good opportunity to start over, new job, new city. God heard my prayers. I didn't think twice. I packed my bags. I packed my luggage and my computer in my truck, and I set out on an adventure. By road, driving my truck from Anzoátegui to Barinas, to give you an idea of the distance between the two states, it was 640 kilometers traveled in more than 11 hours, because I made stops to eat and go to the bathroom. In Barinas, I had no family. I spent the first 18 months alone, working full time. Then my eldest son, who is an engineer, came to Barinas to work here in the same company. And I was his boss. The first thing I told him when he came to the office was not to call me mom... hahaha.   My work contract was supposed to be for one year only, but then they renewed it for two more years. After working for three years, I had concluded my obligations with the company in 2013. I had to return to my hometown in Anzoátegui. I thought about it a lot, I did not want to go back to what I had been doing before, and I stayed. They kept renewing my son's contract until they gave him a permanent position in the company.  I also stayed in Barinas because I didn't want to leave my son alone.   But I still fell in love with Barinas. Its people, the people of Barinas, are kind, enterprising, consistent with me. I am in the capital city of the state, which has the same name, that is to say, I am in Barinas, the capital of Barinas state. Barinas is recognized as the cattle capital of the nation.  You, my reader friends, would delight in eating the best carne en brasa in Venezuela and the world. How tasty it is to eat carne en brasa, with llanero cheese. A delight. And with papelón water. *from unsplash*  It is a llanero state where typical customs of the area are highlighted, they are very traditional in their fairs and festivals, and music with his four, harp and maracas, with his joropo as typical dance. I have never danced joropo llanero (the traditional dance here), my thing is salsa and merengue. The handicrafts and the llanero and international gastronomy are also outstanding, a delight! Barinas has a great river, the Santo Domingo, which crosses it for 220 kilometers, is born in the lagoon of Mucubaji, in Merida, and flows into the Apure River. When the people from Barinas are on vacation or on weekends, they take the whole family to the river. The Santo Domingo is full of people, it looks like a beach of people. But with the pandemic, the number of people visiting the river has dropped. I have never bathed in that river. I am faithful to my eastern beaches. I remember with nostalgia the first three years in Barinas. For my work, I had to go to a town called La Luz, an hour and a half's drive from the city. I used to travel that route in a company transport. I traveled it from Monday to Friday, every day of the week for three years. I crossed plains, I was delighted with so much natural beauty, seeing farms producing cheese and milk, seeing so many cattle. Seeing cattle grazing on the vast plains was the best to me. I drove through a farm that cultivated sunflower plants. You can't imagine seeing an immense plain of sunflowers, as far as the eye could see, it was like seeing a sea, but of sunflowers. I don't want to say it, but now all that is lost. There are few cattle left, and the sea of sunflowers no longer exists. Everything is left in my mind, in my memories. This Venezuelan government destroyed everything. That is all I will say so as not to cry with sadness. Today I will only remember how it was before, my beautiful Barnas. *from unsplash* Thanks again to my dear sponsors and my people who always follow me. To all of you, thank you for sharing with joy the memories in my beautiful Barinas.

@rodriguezpct 16 August 2021

Self-reflection... Hello reader friends, I recently read an interesting post from my dear sponsor @ARTicLEE. At the end of my post, I will place the link for you to enjoy it too, as I told you, it is very interesting.  I take this opportunity to thank all my dear sponsors for their valuable support, thank you.   And to those who follow me, equally grateful, for being aware of my posts, thank you all for your comments. As I was saying, @ARTicLEE raises two interesting questions at the end of his article. I will be addressing aspects related only to the last question. Many of us have seen an image where a small cat is standing in front of a big mirror and the image reflected is of a big lion, with beautiful hair. Or an ugly duck while a beautiful swan is reflected. Why do we see in the mirror an image different from what we really are? Well, it all depends on the self-perception we have of ourselves. What we think of ourselves in terms of our image is what we see. *From unsplash* The mirror is the best way of critical self-judgment. When we see ourselves in the mirror, not only do we see our image, but thoughts and emotions immediately come to us in relation to the image we have in front of us.   When you look in the mirror, my friend reader, what do you see, where do you direct your thoughts, towards your defects or on the contrary towards your attributes? When you look in the mirror, do you have positive or negative feelings?   When we take for granted that we have good attributes, or beauty because of some part of our body, we immediately focus on what we don't like about ourselves.  For example. We know we have nice eyes, beautiful hair, but we focus on the mouth, too big. We become negative critics in relation to our mouths. It is an example. The society, the culture of the country where you live, the fashion, the artificial beauty implanted by the society of consumerism, are many factors that have made us use the mirror to evaluate ourselves. And many times we become our own enemies. We are very cruel to ourselves in front of a mirror. Has this happened to you? *From unsplash* Dear reader, how you feel emotionally will depend on the image you will see in front of a mirror. If we have low self-esteem we evaluate what makes us feel bad, we see our greasy face, if we are fat, the scar on our neck, the big nose.  We will overevaluate and keep looking for more defects without mercy, how cruel we are, aren't we? What if the neck with wrinkles, what if acne, what if the wrinkles in the eyes, what if the spots on the skin, what if with these glasses I look horrible.  And I stopped counting. If we hate that we are fat, we run away from a mirror. We hate our body. We don't want to see it in a mirror.  All because of the self-esteem we have at that moment of our life. Be careful here with captotrophilia, yes, captotrophilia, which has nothing to do with cryptocurrencies, I am reading many posts about cryptocurrency.. hahaha... captotrophilia is a disorder that reaffirms low self-esteem, it drives us to constantly see our defects in front of the mirror, defects increased precisely by low self-esteem. *From unsplash* On the contrary, if we have high self-esteem, we will see ourselves more satisfied, we will see ourselves beautiful, precious, healthy, with good appearance, we will be happy with the image we see. We will be like the cat and the duck in front of the mirror, a great lion or a beautiful swan.    I tell you something, a short time ago I went out for a while to visit a great friend, whom I had not seen for a long time because she was confined at home. When I arrived at her house, she invited me to enter her living room. As I passed in front of a large mirror, when I saw my reflection I blew a kiss to the image in front of me and said: Hello beautiful. I have had this habit for years, I can't see a mirror that I blow a kiss, even the one in my bathroom, when I get up in the morning! My friend laughs and immediately tells me that why don't I paint my hair so that I look younger, and I can find a boyfriend. For those who don't know me in person, I will tell you that I stopped painting my hair years ago, I used to be blonde, now I am white grey... hahaha.... I love my hair, I am fashionable, how many young girls have I seen with white hair! I have a lot of volume in my hair, I look like Mafalda. For those who don't know Mafalda, I will tell you that she is a very famous Argentinean cartoon created by Joaquín Lavado, better known as Quino. Well, in the mornings, when I wake up, I'm like Mafalda but with gray hair... hahaha.... I try to use products that reduce the volume of my hair, but I do it to tame the untameable, not to feel bad or ugly because of it.  Going back to my friend, she tells me to color my hair and I say no, I feel good like this. Then, a man who is there in my friend's house, looking at me, tells me in a very calm way: I don't like women with white hair. And then he goes on to say: "Have you resigned yourself to having it like that?  I stare at him and notice that he has thinning hair, almost bald. I answer him: it is not that I have resigned myself to having my hair unpainted, but quite the contrary, I accept my white hair, with gray hair, I accept my body with the age that is showing it to me. I accept it, that's how I love myself, I love and respect myself.  The important thing is how I feel, not how I have to please others, so that others feel good about me. And then I said to him, looking at the few hairs he had: when your hair falls out and you are completely bald, what will you do, will you accept it or will you wear a toupee so that other people will appreciate you with hair? If I were like you, I would tell you that I don't like bald men. My friend couldn't stop laughing at what happened and agreed with me.  What I want to convey with this story to you, my reader friends, is not to let other people's opinions change the way you see yourself in the mirror. See yourself in a positive way. Look beyond the physical. Accept your body and love it as age presents it to you. Do not accept for any reason that the physical changes your happiness, your life, your way of being. Be you, live a healthy life, surround yourself with positive people is important, always keep a smile on your face and when you see yourself in a mirror, throw yourself a kiss, even if they call you crazy!   My fellow readers, here is the promised link. Thanks for reading. It was great to be with you again. I look forward to your comments.  https://read.cash/@ARTicLEE/mirror-mirror-on-the-wall-cbdbced7

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@rodriguezpct 14 August 2021

The Young Man with Asperger Syndrome Hello friend reader, in life it doesn't matter what profession you have, what career you graduated from college, or if you have any specialization in any area. Or if you work for a company. When at the end of the month you do not have the budget to buy the basic necessities, you always have to look for alternatives to solve the economic crisis, regardless of the country where you live, it is always like that. We cannot stand idly by while the world falls apart. In this way of thinking, my eldest son is like me.   My eldest son is an engineer and an English translator. For years he has been working as an engineer in a company, and teaches in his spare time as an English instructor. In these times of confinement, he works from home in his two professions. In fact, he has had more participants to give them English lessons. *From* *unsplash* A month ago he received at home, by appointment by cell phone, a man who lives in the same neighborhood where we are. The neighbor, that's what we call him, tells my son that he wants him to give English lessons to his 24-year-old son, who has the characteristic of being a young man with Asperger's syndrome.   My son did not know what to say to him at that moment because he has never had such a case. But since he knows that I have had them, he calls me to be with them at their meeting. The neighbor and I exchanged details about the young man and my son felt more confident and agreed to be the young man's instructor. We discussed the schedule, the payment system for the course and at my suggestion it was determined that the young man's house would be the place to give the classes, explaining to my son that people with Asperger's syndrome work better, without anxiety or stress, in their usual area. When the neighbor left, my son asked me for guidance on how he could provide English classes to the young man. I gave him several recommendations, but the most important ones I remember were, first, don't give English classes on the first day, first observe and evaluate. Strengthen the approach first, let the youngster relax, let him know what you are there for, since people with Asperger's tend to become rigid if they feel their space is invaded. When you talk to him use exact language, no subliminal or ambiguous messages, he will not understand. Give him specific instructions, don't dwell on details. Find out what his tastes are, what he prefers to do in his free time, what sports he plays, what music he listens to, so that when you give him conversations in English they are about those tastes, this way you will motivate him to talk about those topics that he dominates. Avoid making negative comments if he doesn't do the conversation well, he will feel better this way, since criticism will only make him nervous and in a bad mood.  And then they don't want to participate in conversations anymore. And above all, try to maintain eye contact with him. Constantly repeat the lessons on the most relevant points, as he will learn faster by repeating patterns.   *From* *unsplash* Well, it's been a month since his first English classes with the young man. Today I asked him how he has been doing. My son feels very comfortable working with him. He has made a lot of progress, since the young man had previous knowledge of the language. What he lacked was a fluent conversation with another person to guide him. The young man is a very kind person, with a good heart, he behaves like a child, always at the end of his class, he gives something to my son, a piece of fruit, a piece of cake. The parents are very responsible in his education and the important thing I notice is that they are teaching him to be an independent individual, regardless of his Asperger's condition, they are preparing him for life.             As always I take the opportunity, at the end of my articles, to thank my sponsors and friends who follow me, for always being aware of my publications, thank you very much to all.

@rodriguezpct 13 August 2021

To Be a Good Citizen You Don't Need Talent. Hello reader friend, a few days ago there was an incident in the neighborhood where my house is located. Here we are approximately 400 families, we could be more because there are 600 houses, but many families have left the country, leaving their homes alone, looking for a better quality of life for their families. Well, as I said before, there was a problem with the hydraulic pump that supplies water to the whole neighborhood. It got damaged. A new pump has to be purchased and installed. Big problem. There is a neighbor who has been maintaining the pump for years, he does it to collaborate, but this time it got damaged. All the street leaders called by WhatsApp for a general assembly of neighbors to deal with the problem as soon as possible, since we had run out of the vital liquid. The meeting was scheduled, as a matter of urgency, for the same day of the meeting, in the evening, when the sun went down, at 6:30 pm. Already at 6 pm, I was getting ready to leave and arrive before the scheduled time. I have always been punctual when it comes to commitments, both neighborhood, and at work. Those who know me know that. It was 6:30 pm, 7 pm, 7:15 pm, and no neighbors were arriving. They were arriving little by little. With so much disinterest and disconsolation that it was worrying. With only a few neighbors, after 7:15 pm the problem began to be dealt with. And the fight began. The big problem that I observe when I attend one of these assemblies is the lack of education that some neighbors have when addressing another neighbor. They raise their voices, they shout, they threaten, they use rude words, we almost always leave the assemblies upset. At the end of the assembly and after hearing so many rude words and so many bad manners from some neighbors, it was agreed to buy a new pump among all the neighbors. *From unsplash* When I got home, reflecting, I began to think about what the home of those rude neighbors, who arrived late to the meeting, will be like, and what their children will be like in the future as citizens. It is difficult for some people to say good morning, good afternoon, to have a smile on their lips when they pass another person on the street. How difficult it is for some people to treat their fellow man politely, to fulfill their commitments at home or in the neighborhood, to recognize the efforts of other people, at home with their partner, the efforts of older people, it is difficult to give words of thanks to those who fulfill a job, to those who collaborate for the benefit of all the neighbors, to those who finish an obligation at home. It is difficult for some people not to litter in the street, in your neighborhood, for some people littering is easier. It is difficult for some people to understand that if they change these things, we would all be better citizens, better neighbors, better parents, and an example for better children. To change all these things does not require talent, just better citizens. Happy and grateful citizens with life, with family, with neighbors, and with nature. So many things would change just by being a good citizen. *From unsplash* Speaking of being grateful, I want to thank the gesture of support that my sponsors give me. What a joy to know that some people like my posts. Thank you to my sponsors and my followers for being there, for reading my posts, really, thank you very much.

@rodriguezpct 12 August 2021

Swimming among sharks. Friends, I have little time in this part of the ocean, I'm just starting to swim around here. I'm not like Nemo, I'm more like Dory (for those who have seen the famous Pixar animated movie). Dory, Not because I have a short-term memory, but because of my optimistic, cheerful character and how restless I am. When I think of something I don't know well, I get restless. And I start swimming back and forth. It's like going from one reef to another. Inquiring. Investigating. I tell you: in this wide and majestic ocean, there is everything, beautiful corals, lots of marine species, especially fish of different shapes and sizes. Too many shoals. I am still small. Recently I saw an interesting fish, a little bigger than me. I circled it several times, as Dory usually does. And I followed it. Against the current, of course, he was in a hurry, he was carrying colored stones in his mouth, I was very curious. I'm curious too! Here many fish follow other fish. My fish friend notices that I'm following him, but he doesn't get upset about it, on the contrary, he likes me to follow him, he's an expert swimmer. The more fish follow others the better, here in this ocean it is like that, I think it is to make yourself known faster, here being popular is synonymous with success, talking and commenting among everyone is even more important. Here nobody eats anybody, so, just like Dory following Nemo, I go after my fish friend, towards an incredible ocean adventure. Swimming against the current, we have passed many coral reefs. They are communities with a great variety of marine life species. Everyone goes in and out of the communities. There are no limits, the longer you swim around here, the farther you can go. *from unsplash* Instantly I noticed that we all swim in the same direction, we all go, school of fish, no matter their size or species, we all go towards an underwater mountain, where a treasure of rare minerals is hidden. It is a marine diamond, an immense precious stone of incalculable value, formed by tens of thousands of stones. Many fish buy little pieces of these stones, precious stones called satoshis or sats! Curious name, very similar to that of a famous Japanese shark. They say that this marine diamond was formed in 2009, by hammerhead sharks, popularly called "miners", because they are dedicated to chop diamond pieces and send pieces of precious stones to all parts of the ocean. I asked my friend: How do they do it? My fish friend stopped for a moment and staring at me he said: Floating in air bubbles, of course, there is no other way to do it. I told him: ah, sure, very ingenious. Then I comment again: I was told over there, that something has to do with that, a few million electric eels stuck to the diamond. Is that true? My friend now, without pausing, answers quickly, as if to calm my curiosity, he tells me: Millions of eels are lined up producing energy, they look like a powerful electric battery. They operate through a blockchain network that makes it powerful. And it works incredibly well. You'll see them when we get there, they're all linked and secured using cryptographic algae. You're going to like that a lot, you'll see. *From unsplash* And he went on to say: Now all the fish can send little pieces of sats inside colorful bubbles to other oceans. For many years sending bubbles to other oceans was slow. A big problem. Before it was done by the biggest turtles of the sea, they collaborated in that task, very slowly, but always ready to lend a hand, or rather a flipper. Now the little pieces of sats arrive faster, by a kind of bubble exchanges, unique, special for that. I was so excited that I moved my body very fast and stood in front of him, telling him almost in a shout: Everything you tell me is incredible, wonderful. I want to get there already! At the end, by some marine paths, there was the big mountain, and the mining community, a huge reef, it is incredible to see so many hammerhead sharks chopping little pieces of stones and mining bubbles of different colors, ah, I forgot to mention that the stones that my fish friend brought inside his mouth, I change them for sats stones, wrapped in colored bubbles. Now I understand my friend's joy, when we were on our way back to our reef. He was so happy that he couldn't stop singing and jumping among the corals. Next time I visit the mining community I will also bring my colored stones. Of course, I will find out more about the Japanese shark, and the best way to swim among the sharks... I'm leaving in a hurry to look for my colored stones. Bye, friends. Don't stop swimming with me.

@rodriguezpct 11 August 2021

If things don't look right, go left. Hello reader friend. I don't know why today I remembered my mother, when as a child she told me that the left hand was not good for anything, not even to clean the.. (here she mentioned a certain part of the body, which I will not say). That's how it was at that time, the criterion of right-handed people, they saw everything straight. If you lived your childhood in the 60s, 70s, you will understand me. And even more so if you are left-handed. If you are a young writer, then I will tell you that left-handed people, like me, did not have a good time at that time. As a child, I was considered incapable and clumsy for using my left hand when I did my homework. Mom compared me to my other siblings, because they used their right hand, which was the logical, the normal, the right thing to do. Using the left hand at that time was like having a disease. It was of the devil. Can you imagine such a comparison? I am referring to this part of my childhood not because I have some kind of emotional trauma or anything like that today. No sir, not at all. I just want to describe some of the inconveniences I had to deal with being left-handed. The first inconvenience as I mentioned before was my mother, she followed a pattern of reference from her own childhood, she simply repeated the same concept that most people of her time had, that left-handed people were no good! And since she wanted me to be useful, she forced me to use my right hand. Using a very effective audio-visual educational strategy, which is still used today by some parents, she would angrily yell at me, showing me a leash! *From unsplash* As an obedient child, and to avoid being punished, I started to write with my right hand, but I was always more agile with my left hand. So, when I went to school I wrote with my left hand to do everything faster and when I did my homework at home I used my right hand, so my mother wouldn't hit me. I did them slowly, but that way I avoided punishment. My mother was beautiful, she did everything out of love so that I would be useful in life... hahahaha. We, left-handed people, are a minority in relation to the number of right-handed people in the world. This has brought us numerous disadvantages. All hand tools were created and designed with right-handed people in mind. From scissors, knives, and an endless number of objects. As left-handed people, we have had to adapt them to our left hand. It was slow and clumsy to manipulate the tools in manual work, but there was no other option. Over time I acquired a little more agility with my right hand. For example, as an adult, I never had a problem driving a synchronous vehicle, with its shift control on the driver's right side. I use the mouse on my computer without any problem with my right hand. I use my forks correctly to eat, although I drink beverages using my left hand. Even though I am a specialist in the area, I have never taken a complete laterality test, I do not think I am ambidextrous, because there are few activities that I do with my right hand. My left hand is still dominant. In my childhood, I became very popular at school because of my creative side. One advantage of being left-handed is that you have drawing skills, because that aspect of creativity is developed in the right hemisphere of the brain. In school as a child, the teacher would tell me to draw pictures on the blackboard, pictures of maps, animals, or other objects. I became popular in drawing. At home, I was the one who did the drawings for my siblings. Now as an adult, I enjoy it, drawing is a pleasure, with oil paints, watercolors, crayons. With any material, I can be creative. Imagination is the limit! *From unsplash* Left-handed people are very ingenious and creative. We usually, if not always, look for creative ideas when faced with a problem. We are curious, persistent and most of the time we have goodwill, positive thoughts. We transform difficulties into opportunities to solve certain problems in a creative way, generating new solutions. We have more facility for divergent thinking, another advantage of being left-handed. All that discrimination against left-handed people is, thank God, in the past. Today the daily life of a left-handed person goes by without any criticism or comparisons. Although the creation and design of hand tools made for right-handed people have not yet been overcome, the left-handed person adapts to them, without any discrimination. My reader friend, are you right-handed, if you are right-handed I dare you, yes, after you have read my article, of course! I dare you to use your left hand for the rest of the day. I dare you to write, to use scissors, to change the position of your knife, fork, and spoon when eating, and all the things you are used to in your daily routine, oh, your computer mouse! do it today with your left hand. Besides exercising your brain, you will put yourself for a while in the hat of a left-handed person. I look forward, my reader friend, to reading about your experience after the challenge. Thanks for taking the time to read my post.

@rodriguezpct 10 August 2021

Invisible Friend. Hello reader friends, a few days ago I read my sister @gertu13's post about friendship, and It's very interesting what she refers there. I recommend it if you haven't read it yet. At the end of my story, I will put the link for you to read it. I am going to tell you about a very dear friend that I never got to see. 12 years ago when I was checking my Facebook, I saw the name, without a photo, of a person very dear to me. We had done a specialization in Human Rights together and at that time we became very good friends. But later on, I don't know why we lost contact. At that time, when I saw his name in "people you might know" I was very happy and immediately sent him a friend request. The next day he accepted it. I started chatting with the enthusiasm that everyone can show when they find a friend they thought they had lost. *From unsplash* But after a short time of exchanging words, I noticed that he was not showing any emotion, and I hesitated. Either he was not the person I thought he was, or he no longer cared about my friendship. To clarify my doubt, I asked him a key question, and yes, he was definitely not the person I thought. oh, I was wrong, and I let him know it. I didn't want to cut him off right then and there, because he wasn't to blame for my mistake. I told him he had the same name as a friend. And to my surprise, they turned out to be close cousins. My friend was the son of his uncle. They both had the same first and last name. We never severed the friendship, because I didn't know him in person I started calling him an invisible friend. We could not make an appointment because we lived in very distant cities, he to the east and I to the west of the country. *From unsplash* We had many things in common, he would send me pictures of when he went on vacation with his family. I did the same. On one occasion he asked me to locate some medicines, because he could not find them in the city where he lived. So I did. He sent me the money for the medicines because I was able to locate them for him. He had a heart condition for years, he used a pacemaker, permanent control for his heart problem. But he was very active, he still worked for a company. Twelve years of communication passed, not daily, but constant in a month. In January of this year 2021, we greeted each other as usual and he told me that he was going to the clinic because they had to do some evaluations because he was not feeling well. I wished him the best of luck in those evaluations and medical tests. That was our last conversation. He passed away a few days later. How did I know? I was writing him as usual, for several days, to know about his health, without getting an answer. Until he answered me, but not him, it was his daughter, and she told me that she noticed that I insisted on saying hello, and there she informed me that her father had passed away due to heart problems. I felt sadness, pain for the loss, crying, and a feeling of guilt for not having met him in person, after so many years. It seems incredible but sometimes I need to write to him. For me, he was a great friend. Like this story I told you, there will be many that you will also have, good virtual friendships. Virtual links are becoming more and more common through social networks, where you meet people with the same interests, and establish permanent bonds of friendship. My fellow readers, if you meet someone and feel that you have support, understanding, affinity in tastes, and common topics in conversations, that is more than enough for you to start a virtual friendship relationship. Here many of us, including myself, use at the beginning of our posts the phrase "reader friend", because here we have related with people who have similar tastes, creating bonds of exchange of ideas, culture, respecting free thought. This ReadCash platform has contributed to the emergence of this type of virtual relationship, where no one knows each other in person, but we are all friends. What do you think, reader friends, what would Aristotle say about this kind of friendship? To answer my question you have to first read the post I refer you to above, at the beginning of my story. https://read.cash/@gertu13/a-sincere-friend-dfac4d2b, I would like to read your comments. Thank you.

@rodriguezpct 8 August 2021

Adopted with Love... My name is Valentina. I was adopted when I was very young and I don't remember my biological parents anymore. I have lived with my adoptive mother all my life. And in the last few months, my brother and his family have also been with us: wife and two children. Even at my age, I am still my mother's spoiled brat. She knows more about me than anyone else, and we have a special connection, to the point that she understands me just by looking at my eyes.  My brother was my best friend for many years. Since I was a child he played with me, taught me many interesting things. We spent a lot of time together and even slept in the same bed after watching movies until late. When he got married and left home I suffered a lot, because up to that moment we were like a team, a system, a single machine composed of three parts, and suddenly, overnight, it was just my mother and me.  I repeat: I suffered a lot, for some reason my mind interpreted my brother's departure as permanent as if he had died. I became so depressed and anguished that I lost weight, my hair fell out and I didn't want to get out of bed. Then, I understood that it was a change of life, since my brother came to visit us constantly and I was always happy to see him. My favorite part of my house is the backyard. My mother has a natural talent with plants: several of them are aromatic spices (those are my favorites). I have learned to distinguish their smells better than anyone else; to the point that when my mother is in the garden I can tell what tea or spice she is going to prepare before she enters the house. My mother has always been amazed at the power of my olfactory sense. *From unsplash* Years later, my brother came back to live in the house. Adjusting to this process was also difficult. I don't like change. And it was a lot of changes in a very short time. I had to start sleeping in my mother's room, to give up my old bedroom to my nephews. Another very dramatic change was when my youngest nephew suddenly got sick. He was bitten by some kind of animal, and neither the doctors nor the medicines could do anything to make him better. He died on the fourth day, leaving my brother and his family devastated: that little boy was their spoiled child.  Of all the members of this household, my nephew was the most different from me in character and the most like me physically. His personality was outgoing, cheerful, agile, and he adapted to change at once, and on those points I am quite the opposite. He was extremely trusting of all people, I have only learned to trust my family.   Although younger than me in age, my nephew was twice my size (I have always been small although I don't mind, my mommy loves me just the same). Both my nephew and I had the same hair color and the same sense of smell. I understand it's something particular to my species. Oh, I forgot to tell you, I am not a human. My mother, my brother, and my older nephews are, but I am not. Both my deceased nephew and I are what doctors call "canines" and the rest of the people call dogs. But regardless of the difference in species and breeds, my family treats me as an equal, just another member who gets love, respect, food, and a roof over my head. And that's the most important thing I want to tell you today: in the last few years I have seen many pets on the street, full of sadness and anxiety. On one occasion I asked one of these canine friends, what was the reason for his state of mind and his answer surprised me, he said: "my family abandoned me weeks ago, they all left my house and left me on the street. They were planning to leave since a long time ago, because of something called Venezuela". In my house, I have heard that word several times, with a mixture of joy and sadness in my family's eyes. Always "Venezuela" comes mixed with another word "Crisis". If someday I learn to read, I will look them up in the dictionary. And this is the most important thing I want to express to you, my human friend: your pet is part of your family. We eat and defecate like you, we get sick like you, we feel sadness and anguish like you, and most of all we express affection, love and gratitude like you. But unlike some humans, we dogs would never abandon you, we are famous for being man's best friend.  If you have a member of your household called "pet", I hope my doggy words have helped you to be a better human… thank you for your human attention! *From unsplash*  PS: My name is Ambar Valentina and my mother wrote about me in her previous article "What if my dog could talk" (https://read.cash/@rodriguezpct/what-if-my-dog-could-talk-f6e21fbc)

@rodriguezpct 7 August 2021

What if my dog could talk? This story is a love story, it begins four years ago, at the end of May 2017. I remember back then we were living in confinement here at home for a few days, not because the health crisis started. Necessarily we had to protect our physical integrity. There were confrontations against the community by government agencies, from Venezuela. Near my home, they burned tires and placed barricades so that the supposed security agencies could not get to where we were. Those were sad days, many people died, many situations changed. You will say: and where is the love story in this? Here it begins. My eldest son in those days asked me: "Mom, do you want to adopt a puppy? And he showed me a picture that was published of 4 puppies that were being put up for adoption. I did not like the idea very much, I was not in the mood, I felt very sad in those days. My son encouraged me, he felt that somehow having a puppy would brighten up the atmosphere at home. And he was not wrong! She is a mixed breed dog, a terrier with poddle. When I saw her for the first time I fell in love with her, I chose her among her 3 other siblings, she was only one month old. Many people thought she was ugly, and they still do, because her head has long hairs and her body is covered with short hair. Her beauty is rare. However, for me, from the beginning she is like a semi-precious stone, she is like an Amber. Ambar is her name, she is cheerful, playful and a fast learner. She has all her vaccinations and has been sterilized since she was 8 months old. In 2017 it was still possible to have these expenses, because the economic crisis was not yet hitting the Venezuelan's pocket so hard. A few months ago I let her out alone, as I always do in the mornings. She likes to walk along the street where we live. But she doesn't like to be outside for a long time, after a few minutes she always comes back and goes to her corner where she has her sleeping basket. That day Amber came back strange, I noticed immediately that a hind paw was lifting her when she walked. I lifted her up and checked her but I didn't notice anything broken. It only hurt when I touched her. *From unsplash* This part of my story is sad, because I could never take her to a vet. Here in Venezuela everything is dollarized, but the salary of a public employee is not. I asked for an estimate of costs and I cried a lot. I did not have the money to pay a veterinarian or to buy her medicine. I still cry, just remembering that time of pain that Ambar had to overcome. It was several months of mood swings, not eating, and even hair loss. I cried many times, and to this day I apologize to her for not giving her the medical care she needed. She has been walking ever since without fixing her hind leg very much, and it still hurts when I open her toes on that leg. And always, always, she has had an up and down movement, even in her sleep she doesn't stop moving her paw, like a nervous tic. I never knew what happened to her that day in the street. A car, a bicycle, or a hit given by some bad person, are the possible causes, but in reality, the only one who knows is Ambar. Ambar wants to tell her doggy life, but it will be another time, with other stories. That's why I say: What if my dog could talk?