NORMALLY I SPEND CHRISTMAS at my dad's house in Virginia, or at my mom's in New York. But last Christmas was different. And it was the most special one I've had.
My mother's friend Bonnie invited my mom, my brother, my sister, my aunt, and me, to spend my December school break in Ecuador, volunteering in a little village called Azama, located between two mountains in the Andes, just north of the capital, Quito. The area is beautiful—very green and tropical. The temperature isn't humid, as you might think, but rather cool and refreshing.
Bonnie runs an organization called People Helping People, primarily from New York City, which helps poor, indigenous people in Equador. Bonnie's done a lot for the people in the village, for example, building them a school. Whenever she walks into Azama, you hear all the kids shouting, "Señora Bonnie!" She's well-known there.
