We did it! We did it! Today was a very good day in our lives. Our friend Aldo (to whom we owe a great deal) brought us to San Cosme y Damian and within 20 minutes of being here we located our family! As we turned off Ruta 1 to make the 30 km drive to San Cosme a new excitement grew within. We were so close to Crissy’s birthplace, something we thought we would not see until we were much older. We drove into San Cosme and Aldo talked to a friend of his. We learned that there were no Zarzas in San Cosme but that they lived in Lomas Valentinas (a 5 km drive). This distance translates to about a one hour hike that Crissy’s mother took, while pregnant, to get her the help she needed. We took a left when the road forked and there were two women waiting on a bus. Aldo asked them if they knew Crissy’s mother, and they did not. We drove about ¼ mile to a house and he asked an older lady if she knew them. She told him how to get to their house. We followed the red clay road for about ½ a mile and came to a house with a man in the front yard. Aldo asked the man if he knew Candido Almoa (Crissy’s Father) and the man said yes he is in the house. We got out of the van and as we approached the house a man in sandals, pants rolled up below the knee, and a shirt buttoned only half way comes toward us with a very straight face. Aldo tells him who we are and what we are doing there. The straightness on his face turned into a huge smile and he immediately grabbed Crissy and said “Norma, Norma, she came back!” Crissy finally met her Dad after 27 years! The two exchanged a long awaited hug and everyone there was wearing a smile. We quickly learned that the man in the yard when we first drove up was Crissy’s brother Manuel, who is only 1 year older than her. Manuel started calling the rest of his family right away. There was happiness in his voice when he talked to his siblings and all I could understand was Norma. Spanish is difficult for me but they all speak Guarani which is impossible. Also, there at this time was Crissy’s sister in law and two of her children, a little boy the same age as Avanee and a one month old baby that is very cute. After a few minutes of conversation we learned that Crissy’s mother had passed away in January of 2010. This was something that we dreaded but had no control over. Her mother had been sick for the past 4 years and could not walk the last three of those years. Apparently she had arthritis and that she also suffered from diabetes the last two years. This news was very sad, but shortly after we learned that her Grandparents on her mother’s side of the family were still alive and lived across the street. As I looked across the yard to the street an elderly woman with glasses, a skirt, and a very big smile was walking toward us. She began saying “She came back, she came back, I can’t believe it.” She gave Crissy the best hug I have ever seen one person give another. At this point there was no chance of holding back the tears and I don’t know if there was a dry eye in the place. Crissy’s grandfather came up and did the same, he kept telling her “ I am your Grandfather” (I like her Grandpa a lot, he likes to talk and he seems to really like me) We learned that Crissy has a total of 13 brothers and sisters and a 14th child passed away shortly after it was born in 2006. We wrote down all of their names and ages and also how many children they have. In total she has 22 nieces and nephews. We meet another brother, Marisio who is younger than Crissy. We also met a couple of cousins while we were there.
With Manuel in tow, we drove into San Cosme to the Cemetery to see her mother’s grave. It was under a huge shade tree and the plot where her mother was buried was encased in cement with box shaped compartment and a glass door which opened to store candles, pictures, flowers, etc. While we were at the cemetery we met Crissy’s youngest sister, 17 year old Jessica. We all went to a restaurant and ate a traditional Paraguayan meal of carne y huevos. Next, we went to the Jesuit ruins for a nice tour. It was the first time that Crissy’s siblings had seen the inside of the ruins, and they had lived near them their entire lives. While on the tour we learned that there was presently a Peace Corp volunteer living there. We thought this was great because we had tried to make contact via Peace Corp and could not locate anyone in that area. His name is Zack and he met us at the ruins. He was very friendly and told us that he was the first Peace Corp volunteer in San Cosme in 27 years. The last members were an elderly couple that adopted a baby from there. We told him that Crissy was the baby and we had returned to find her family. He was surprised that we had come during his time of service, and stated that Crissy’s parents were somewhat of a legend. According to Zack people there still talk about them and they were very influential in the Peace Corp. During their time in San Cosme the mortality rate of children decrease by 40% in part because of the things her parents taught them about hygiene and first aid.
San Cosme has a planetarium and observatory which is the only one in the country. At the observatory we got the chance to see Saturn rings and all. We took Manuel and Jessica back to their house and upon arrival learned her eldest brother Juan Alberto was there. He told us that he remembered Crissy and her parents from when he was younger. He works a good distance away, but he was able to come to see his little sister again, unfortunately he could not stay he had to return to work very early in the morning. We were told that more of Crissy’s siblings would be showing later that night and that we should come early the next morning to visit them. We agreed and said goodnight feeling very relieved that we had made contact with our family.
When we returned to San Cosme we met up with Zach and he wanted us to meet someone who knew her Parents. Edgar Villanueva is a very charming and fun loving fellow. He welcomed us into his home and showed us certificates that he received when he was 13 years old. The certificates were signed Norman and Jewel Reynolds (Crissy’s parents). We visited with Edgar and his family for a while and he introduced us to Norma Gonzalez. Edgar and Norma watched Crissy when Norman and Jewel were busy; I guess you could say they were her babysitters. Babysitters that worked for sweets that Mrs. Reynolds made. Edgar also showed us the house where her parents stayed when they lived there. We said our goodbyes and grabbed some empanadas on the way back to the hotel. We got back and crashed with smiles on our faces. We finally got to do what Crissy has wanted her entire life. I couldn’t stop smiling and all I could say is “TODAY IS A VERY GOOD DAY!”
Picture summary: The man in the red shirt is Aldo he helped us translate. One picture is when Crissy first met her dad.
Crissy and her brother Manuel
Crissy first meets her Grandmother
Crissy with Grandma and Grandpa
Crissy and her Papa
The house that Crissy was born in
With Manuel in tow, we drove into San Cosme to the Cemetery to see her mother’s grave. It was under a huge shade tree and the plot where her mother was buried was encased in cement with box shaped compartment and a glass door which opened to store candles, pictures, flowers, etc. While we were at the cemetery we met Crissy’s youngest sister, 17 year old Jessica. We all went to a restaurant and ate a traditional Paraguayan meal of carne y huevos. Next, we went to the Jesuit ruins for a nice tour. It was the first time that Crissy’s siblings had seen the inside of the ruins, and they had lived near them their entire lives. While on the tour we learned that there was presently a Peace Corp volunteer living there. We thought this was great because we had tried to make contact via Peace Corp and could not locate anyone in that area. His name is Zack and he met us at the ruins. He was very friendly and told us that he was the first Peace Corp volunteer in San Cosme in 27 years. The last members were an elderly couple that adopted a baby from there. We told him that Crissy was the baby and we had returned to find her family. He was surprised that we had come during his time of service, and stated that Crissy’s parents were somewhat of a legend. According to Zack people there still talk about them and they were very influential in the Peace Corp. During their time in San Cosme the mortality rate of children decrease by 40% in part because of the things her parents taught them about hygiene and first aid.
San Cosme has a planetarium and observatory which is the only one in the country. At the observatory we got the chance to see Saturn rings and all. We took Manuel and Jessica back to their house and upon arrival learned her eldest brother Juan Alberto was there. He told us that he remembered Crissy and her parents from when he was younger. He works a good distance away, but he was able to come to see his little sister again, unfortunately he could not stay he had to return to work very early in the morning. We were told that more of Crissy’s siblings would be showing later that night and that we should come early the next morning to visit them. We agreed and said goodnight feeling very relieved that we had made contact with our family.
When we returned to San Cosme we met up with Zach and he wanted us to meet someone who knew her Parents. Edgar Villanueva is a very charming and fun loving fellow. He welcomed us into his home and showed us certificates that he received when he was 13 years old. The certificates were signed Norman and Jewel Reynolds (Crissy’s parents). We visited with Edgar and his family for a while and he introduced us to Norma Gonzalez. Edgar and Norma watched Crissy when Norman and Jewel were busy; I guess you could say they were her babysitters. Babysitters that worked for sweets that Mrs. Reynolds made. Edgar also showed us the house where her parents stayed when they lived there. We said our goodbyes and grabbed some empanadas on the way back to the hotel. We got back and crashed with smiles on our faces. We finally got to do what Crissy has wanted her entire life. I couldn’t stop smiling and all I could say is “TODAY IS A VERY GOOD DAY!”
Picture summary: The man in the red shirt is Aldo he helped us translate. One picture is when Crissy first met her dad.
Crissy and her brother Manuel
Crissy first meets her Grandmother
Crissy with Grandma and Grandpa
Crissy and her Papa
The house that Crissy was born in
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