Hello again!
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Gabriela, Lissette’s daughter and this is my second time taking over the Editor’s Corner. The first time I took over, mom was having a ‘Writers Block’ episode and she asked for the favor. However, this time is different and special since we are celebrating the 10-year anniversary of Live & Life. In honor of this very special moment, I thought I should drop by and talk about my mom, and how proud I am of her and all her accomplishments.

As I mentioned in my first “take over”, Palmas has been part of my life and my mom’s life for as long as I can remember. I specifically recall when she mentioned 12 years ago that she fell in love with an apartment in Palmas. By that time, I was almost a senior in high school and mom’s office was in San Juan, so moving to Palmas was going to be very difficult. But she had fallen in love and she wanted the apartment no matter what! So… she bought it! She knew she wanted to live in Palmas, she wanted to live in paradise, and nothing was going to stop her. At that moment, she had a little over a year to come up with a “plan” so she could move to Palmas full time. She had set a deadline for herself: “When Gaby leaves for college, I’m moving to Palmas!”

This is when the magazine was born! Her love for Palmas and its community was what made her come up with the idea for Live & Life in Palmas, the community’s magazine. For the past 10 years, my mom has given her all for this magazine. Her main goal was, and still is, to unify Palmeños, as well as increase and promote our sense of community. I don’t know about you, but I think she has done an extraordinary job!

In 10 years, Live & Life has become our way to communicate news, to remember all the good times we spend together, and to share our lives and our stories. Creating this magazine is not an easy job; it might look like fun because you see my mom in all the activities and parties, but she also works for weeks until 4,5,6 in the morning to make every edition better than the last one. Her passion for Palmas and its community is what keeps her going edition after edition. And, to be honest, she enjoys every second of it! Mami, you don’t understand how proud I am of you and all your accomplishments. Not
only of Live & Life, but also of all those dreams and goals you have conquered throughout your lifetime, with your perseverance and passion. You have taught me that if you set your mind on something and you put all your energy into it, nothing can stop you from achieving it. And, if for some reason, the end result is not exactly what you were expecting, learn to love it, to understand that life wanted it to be this way and to always look at the bright side.

I also want to take this opportunity, since Mother’s Day is around the corner, to tell you how grateful I am for your unconditional love, for all of your sacrifices, for teaching me to chase my dreams, to live life to the fullest and teaching me, as abuelo taught you, that we are “Multimillonarios”. Thank you, mom, for being my best friend and role model. ¡Te
amo!

I really hope that all of you enjoy reading Live & Life, and that you agree with me when I say that the magazine does an amazing job connecting all of us palmeños.

Congratulations to my mom for the past 10 years of fun, hard work, adventures and success. We are very, very proud of you!

As last time, I apologize for taking over the Editor’s Corner. Writing is not my strong point, but I thought this occasion was worth it.

Happy 10th Birthday, Live & Life in Palmas!

Love,
Gabriela Collazo Rosado