The Original Authors: A Story of High Alps and Open Plains
To truly see life through my lens, you must first understand the two worlds that collided to create it.
My story begins in 1978 with a young woman from the vast plains of Venezuela. A Llanera pura with an unquenchable thirst for life and literature, she was granted a wish to travel to England to learn English. She was determined to broaden her horizons through a second language, but she had no way of knowing that this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity would become the prologue to the rest of her life.
On the other side of the world, a young alpine daredevil from Austria was roaring toward the same destination. A mechanical engineer by trade, he traded the peaks of the Alps for a motorbike and a journey to England, intent on perfecting his English to thrive professionally.
Fate wore a leather jacket and rode on two wheels. My mother, the free-spirited Llanera, first fell in love with the motorbike her classmate was riding. Once she convinced him to give her a ride, she never truly got off. Little did the Austrian boy know that this, too, was the beginning of the rest of his life.
5,600 Miles of Patience
After a year of shared memories and international friendships, reality called them back to their respective corners of the globe. A "goodbye forever" seemed imminent and unavoidable.
Separated by 5,600 miles, they professed their love through the slow, steady rhythm of the 1970s postal service. In an age before instant connection, they relied on handwritten letters and cassette recordings sent by mail. Imagine the gut-wrenching patience required to wait three to eight weeks just to hear a loved one's voice. That is the definition of true love.
During one of these exchanges, a life-changing invitation arrived. My father had been offered a position at an Austrian company in Puerto Rico. He invited the young Venezuelan and her mother to visit him there. After a year of living through ink and magnetic tape, they finally met face-to-face on the island.
The spark was so intense that one evening, while eating supper at a Burger King, the "Alpine Boy" asked the Venezuelan mother for her daughter's hand in marriage. Three months later, they stood at an altar in Venezuela, and their true life together began.
The Legacy of the Lens
I am the youngest of two daughters born from that union, raised in a countryside home in Puerto Rico. While my sister and I may see life through slightly different lenses, we were both forged by the same values.
My parents had the monumental task of raising us in a new country and a different culture while holding tight to our heritage. They did this through the three pillars that now define my own brand: Language, Food, and Tradition.
How lucky I am to have grown up with such a rich, diverse knowledge of the world. Please meet my parents: the biggest blessing of my life and the original authors of my story.
