Panama: Crossroads of the World
Reflections of Childhood
Carmen Buelvas Critchlow
A B O U T T H E B O O K
In the wake of Hispanic Month in USA and the anniversary of Panama's Independence, Carmen Buelvas Critchlow has published her second book. In the pages of Panama: Crossroads of the World, Carmen reflects on her childhood in an exotic homeland, which molded her early life and lined her memories with tales of survival, reliance on the land and resilience in the face of adversity. Those unforgettable experiences prepared her in unique ways for citizenship in the United States. Panama was her first crossroads, but there have been many others since.
Transported alone to the U.S. as a young student of 13, Carmen has made southwest Michigan her home for more than three decades. The remarkable journey of this Hispanic-American has been filled with the ordinary wonders of marriage, raising children, working and owning a home. However, having lived with advanced kidney disease for nearly 25 years has added extraordinary challenges and unimagined dimensions to daily life. On dialysis for much of her adult life, Carmen has received two kidney transplants and now awaits a third. Her first book, The Courage to Live: My Personal Journey with God, A Kidney Patient’s Story, chronicles the physical, emotional, financial and spiritual barriers that have been Carmen and her family’s test by fire.
Panama: Crossroads of the World takes us back to Carmen's roots in Panama in the shadow of the Panama Canal. It also takes us forward in her crisp reflections on what it is to be a naturalized citizen---what it is to be a citizen at all---at this point in U.S. history, when the world is so threatened by volatile conflict and competing values. While her memories take her to what seem like simpler times in a far-away culture, her life and writing challenge us all to think about our own crossroads and what a potent force each individual can be in securing a future of peace for our children and grandchildren.
Citizenship, diversity, cross-cultural bridges, memorioes, and the importance of family are all important themes in this auto-biography of a naturalized citizen from Panama.
Available NOW in paper-back edition.
Price: US $15.95
The Book The Author Buy Now: US $15.95
A B O U T T H E A U T H O R
Carmen Buelvas Critchlow serves as a volunteer Spanish translator for the Battle Creek Health System. She works tirelessly with the Michigan Kidney Foundation to raise educational awareness of the thousands of patients of all ages who wait for organ donation. She spearheaded a minority support group for patients.
She is a frequent speaker at community and church gatherings. Dialysis and multiple near-death experiences have left this naturalized citizen passionate about healthy living and positive attiudes, no matter what illness casts a shadow. In her view, life is more important than its shadows.
Today, Carmen and her husband Dave are working to build a Reptile Rescue Zoo and mini-rainforest for the people of Michigan. It will be an expanded version of Critchlow’s Reptile Farm, which for several years has been visited by countless groups of children and community organizations—all of whom delight in the snakes, alligators, caimans, iguana and crocodiles. Some of the proceeds from this new publication about Panama will help make the dream a reality.
The Book The Author Buy Now: US $15.95
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