Lizard's story

I have heard that in this place different species can talk about their stories. So it is my time. First I want to say thank you to the woman who is allowed to use this place for us and find a moment for our needs to express our feelings.

I am a lizard (in my mother tongue I am a Iguana). I am very old, big, and I am very same as a dinosaur, that last one feature is my way to protect myself because still when I am very passive, all people feel fear of me, well not all people, almost all people.

I have had a very well education, my elected mother have been very strong and warm with me. Then I am very respectful and I hope respect of all.

I was very scared because my mother was very violent and she just gave me food but she was not loving and never was good rapport toward me. For that reason, I went to walk alone. I was a young lizard at that moment. I saw a lot of people and at that moment I was cute and they didn't feel fear of me, and a lot of them wanted to catch me. I was absolutely afraid and walking quickly.

During those moments, I thought about all of lizards around me saying that go out to looking for a better life was an absolutely madness, because we were a close specie and we needed to keep our tradition still when we were not feeling well with it, because we should be together. I remembered all of them advancing to me don't take a different way in my life because I will be dead soon. I asked them if they were happy with their live, and their answers were weird because they said yes, but they would like to have a different life; for example, I found answers like this: I love to be a lizard, and it is the best thing that someone could be in the life, but the floor is very hot and sometimes I feel pain in my tummy, or we are so ugly and for this reason anybody want to hug us as a dog; well be a lizard is wonderful, but our life is not fair, etc.

On those days I was very confuse. But still I thought: well, to be a lizard is not good, but I cannot change it, anyway I can select a new kind of life; this family is very different from me. I don't like this kind of life (it was my thought) and I need to investigate if I could find a different one.

Finally I started my new way. I was scared. The floor was very hat and my tummy was not ready for it, I was looking for a tree quickly to avoid burn my tummy, in my road I found a lot of dogs, people and a very weird kind of people whose have wheels. I tried to run quickly and not be trapped. Suddenly, a lot of people saw me. All of them were interesting about me, I was absolutely scared! I had heard that humans were the worst species of all. I thought that I will die soon.

A young woman was different, she was encouraged to take me, in the beginning I felt fear, but she was strong and warm (as usually) and took me. I thought very quickly something like that: well, if I try to go, they will try to catch me and it is possible that whoever of them had success; and if they will not catch me, I could died for the hot in my tummy; she looks good, I will stay with her. Then I was up in her hand and continued my way there.

After that, I have had a different kind of life. She is warm and strong with me, she has taught me a lot of things, and helped me to be a good lizard. She has loved me and accepted as I am. Now the floor is not too hot, anybody wants to eat me and I have a new family and friends. Any of them are lizards as me, but they are my family, and in this time, I have discovered that the real family is who love you and help you to development and looking for whatever you want to.

Now, I have a good family. During long time I felt envy of the dog (my brother) because he is very cute and all people want to hug him, I thought that his life was easier than mine; and it could be possible, but step by step I have understood that I will never be a dog, I cannot select about be or not be a dog, I just can select about if I want to spend my life dreaming with be a dog or enjoying to be a lizard.... Now being a happy lizard.

Finally, I hope that my mother will not be angry with me because I didn't ask her if I was allowed to show our pics. Sorry mommy I could not find a way to ask you, but it is just for good reasons and you know I love you.

Dreaming with the freedom.

The little boy was around 8 years old; he was tall, active, playful, brown skin, smart, curious and sweet. I spent all day watching him, his eyes was beautiful and with an amazing shine, but still with a big sadness inside. Really more like disappointment or maybe resignation.

He loved read, and I could see how he was always thinking about all things he read, saw, listened and felt. That was as he was looking a sense of all this things.

The boy was in the park during the morning; there he played with his friends. It was a beautiful place, with a lot of flowers, all kind of trees and funny things to play. After two hours, arrived his mom who asked him to up in the car to go to eat. They went to a mall and ate fast food. In this way continued the day of the boy, he was as playing all day, relaxed, quiet.

At night he went to play chess with his granddaddy, suddenly, he asked to his granddaddy what seems a question always present in his mind: granddaddy, how the freedom is?

The old man was very confused with that question. Finally asked to the boy: why do you ask me that?

The boy told him: I have heard that you knew the freedom; I have heard that you lived without bars in your windows or soldier in all places. You could live out of the jails. How the freedom is?

His granddaddy almost crying said the boy: son, but it is a free country, you live in freedom. You can to go whatever you want to, here we don’t have a war or something like that.

The boy was absolutely disappointment with that sterile conversation, but he did his last try and said: I cannot go to visit to my friend Mike because it is very dangerous place, I cannot go out with mom at night because someone could attack us, I cannot open the windows in the car because someone could stolen us in the road, I just see soldiers in the park all time, they have long guns, it is the country where more people is murdered in violent ways in the world. It is a war and all of us are living in a jail, some jails are bigger than others. But anyway granddaddy, how the freedom is? I just want to know how it is.

In that moment the old man understood the importance of that question, he started to think what could be the better answer. He stood up and looked for his pipe, took it careful and parsimoniously, put one hand over the boy's head meanwhile support the pipe with the other. He returned to the chair and started to smoke... After some minutes he said: well my son, the life is not necessary as you have known, as you know the freedom is not the chance to go to the park or to eat in a mall. The freedom is much bigger and powerful that it, but you just can find it in the small things, it is very subtle. Freedom is the chance to can do whatever you want to do; it is the possible to feel sure, but I am not talking about not feel fear to be stolen, I am trying to explain that it is the chance to feel that you could to go in the life as far as you want and the only limit is inside yourself. It is like to feel the wind in your face but inside you, as you could close your eyes and go as far as you want. My son freedom is something that someone could try to stolen to us, and they could do more difficult to enjoy it for us, but only you can to lose it, the freedom is a decision; it is a way to life. Maybe you cannot do a lot of things now here, but in the future, you could decide to live in the different way. The freedom is the most difficult thing to keep, because it is always easier to accept that other take decision for you or maybe to feel that other is stealing your chance to do something, but the real freedom is inside you and if you can to keep it, you will do whatever you want, but listened me, freedom is very expensive thing, if you want to be free you should be ready to do a lot of effort to find it and when you are fine and quiet, then you will need to find strength inside you to keep your freedom and ask to yourself whether you are in the way that you want to be.

Boy: then, are we living in this way because people think that it is easier to be free?

Granddaddy: yes my son, I afraid that you are right.

Boy: thanks granddaddy, I knew that you could help me with this.

Granddaddy: I really hope to have helped you.

Then, the boy moved the horse and the game continued.