Hello to everybody.   I am Sofia Maldonado Diaz, born and raised in Puerto Rico and for this reason my native language is Spanish.   I moved to Alaska five years ago because the military brought me to Eielson Air Force Base.   Currently, I finished my enlistment and stayed in Alaska to  study  a bachelor’s degree in Biology that I started ten years ago, and had to stop for  life reasons.   At this point, I do not think that I will ever adapt to  Alaska’s cold weather, even though people keep telling me so.

I am also a mother of  two children and  have been together with  my mountain man boyfriend Bruce Myers and his teen Alex for four years.    I  spend most of time reading books and studying because I lack the  full understanding of the English language and  for some reason I can learn better from reading a book than listening to a teacher in a classroom, which makes things a little harder when it comes to managing time with motherhood and doggiehood.   Something new I am trying to learn is to sew  with my machine, a practice that all  my aunts and my mom do and that I would like to pass to my daughter.

With this course I would like to learn about the different cultures that are around us.   I believe that understanding the culture and traditions of societies help us  to have more consideration for the people around us and be more civilized.   I met many people from different cultures and backgrounds in the military and it was awesome.   I also enjoyed the variety of foods.   I am looking forward  to start!