Caracas May28 to June 10, 2001

For years now I have made a trip to Caracas in the Spring. This years Spring trip to Caracas was a family affair because this was no ordinary trip. My little girl, Barbarita, and my God-daughter, Nohely, were having their First Communions.

A First Communion in South America is a very special time and the whole family turns out for the occasion. This would be no different. My Mother and Sister also came to Caracas from Kansas City to watch their Grand Daughter / Niece receive her First Communion. My Mother and Sister flew from Kansas City to Dallas where I joined them and we flew together to Caracas. It was their first trip to Caracas. They were excited to see Marjorie, Krisbell, Lisbeth, and Sheila again. We arrived at 9 PM on Monday, May 28th. When we walked out of customs we were immediately swarmed by Lisbeth, Sheila, Barbarita, Marjorie, and the parents of Sheila and Lisbeth. Barbara came straight for me and I picked her up and introduced her to her Grandmother and Aunt. They have talked on the phone for years, but they had never seen each other before. Barbara said "I love you Grandma" in her best english. Grandma fell in love with her instantly. I put Barbara down and turned around to find a big smile and two bright brown eyes waiting for me. It was Lisbeth, my precious 13 year old God-daughter. After a big hug and a kiss Lisbeth went to my Mother and Sister. Lisbeth knows them very well. To my Mother, Lisbeth is a very loving grand-daughter. Then Sheila who had already been giving my Mother and Sister hugs and kisses came over to welcome me. It was quite a welcome. After a long reunion at the airport, we headed for Montalban. Lisbeth and Sheila needed to get home because they had school the next morning. It was sad to leave them after such a short time, but they needed their rest.

We learned that the next day would be very busy. We were going to Venevision to watch Marjorie and Barbarita make a "Cuanto Vale El Show" program and Barbarita needed to have her First Confession too. So we went right to bed to be rested for the big day.

Tuesday, May 29th

Barbara was happy. She did not have to go to school today because she had to be at Venevision. She got dressed and was ready to go early. She stayed with her Grandma and Aunt Sue all morning. They could not talk to each other, but all three pretended that they could. My Mother did what a lot of North Americans do. If Barbara didn't understand her, she spoke louder. I don't know why North Americans do that but I have seen it a lot. Apparently many of us think that if we speak English loud enough the other person will understand. But they got along great in spite of the language barrier. Very soon, Barbara would just say "Yes" to whatever my Mother said. My Mother actually thought that Barbara was understanding her. So I asked Barbara "Is that wall blue ?" and pointed at a green wall. Barbara said "Yes". I should have quit when I was ahead, because then I asked "Will you give me a million dollars ?" Barbara recognized the words "million" and "dollars" because they are very simular in Spanish, and said "No".

Barbara's bed and toys

My Mother felt right at home very quickly when Marjorie's dog "Queeny" wanted to sit with my Mother all the time. Sometimes she would have Queeny on one side and Manchi on the other. Manchi is Marjorie's other dog. He looks like Queenie except that he is black.

My Mother and Queeny

We went to Venevision in the morning. First, Marjorie and the Gran Ballet De Venevision needed to get their makeup on. When we arrived, Krisbell was in the chair being made up. Marjorie signaled the makeup artist who had been clued in that Krisbell's Padrino, Abuela, and Tia were arriving this day from the U.S. and he told Krisbell to turn around. Krisbell screamed when she saw my Mother, Sister, and me. She jumped from the chair and ran to us and began to hug and kiss us all. Krisbell had not seen my Mother and Sister for 2 years.

Krisbell in her makeup

Barbara waiting at Venevision

After waiting and watching for a couple of hours while Marjorie, Krisbell, and the Gran Ballet got their makeup on, we learned that Barbara's shoot was not scheduled to take place until 4 PM. This was a probelm since she needed to be at her First Confession at 2:30 PM. So my Mother and Sister stayed with Marjorie and Krisbell, and I took a taxi to the church with Barbara. You have no doubt noticed that Marjorie and I are calling her Barbara now, more than Barbarita. She will be 9 years old in July and she's not really a little girl anymore, so she gets called Barbara because she is older and more responsible now. We still call her Barbarita quite often as a name of affection.

Barbara and I got to the church and of course, the Priest was 45 minutes late. I had spoken to her teacher and he had agreed to put Barbara first in line for confession. They are used to her having to leave at a moments notice for a TV show. When the Priest arrived, he then wanted to give the kids a 20 minute lecture. Barbara looked at me with concern, because she was aware of the time. But I signaled her that it was OK and not to worry. Finally, the Priest began the confessions. By this time I had gone to the nearby hotel and picked up Brian and Ricky. Brian and Ricky had flown in 3 days before and are big fans of the Ballet. They would go back to Venevision with us. Barbara went first as planned. Confession in Venezuela is different than in the U.S. Barbara was not in a booth where she could not see the Father. Instead, she was at a table looking at the Father face to face. Barbara finished her confession and said her prayer and we shot out of there at the speed of light. It was now almost 4 PM. But Venevision is very predictable. As normal, they were behind schedule. Not far, but enough. When we arrived Marjorie was waiting. She took Barbara to wardrobe right away and got her dressed and her hair done. In a very short time Barbara was in front of the cameras with about 5 or 6 other children who had been past winners on the show. They sang a song about "Cuanto Vale El Show". I know that I am a little prejudice, but I believe Barbara was by far the best. She was the only profesional in the group. After Barbara's shoot we had a break and went to the cafeteria for a bite to eat.

Ricky, Krisbell, and Brian in the Venevision cafeteria

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