{"id":2787,"date":"2013-06-03T09:15:00","date_gmt":"2013-06-03T16:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/somimag.com\/?post_type=article&p=2787"},"modified":"2013-06-03T10:21:23","modified_gmt":"2013-06-03T17:21:23","slug":"teenage-life-lessons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/somimag.com\/teenage-life-lessons\/","title":{"rendered":"TEENAGE LIFE LESSONS"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/a>

TEENAGERS\u2019 BOOK DOCUMENTS LIFE WITH DOWN SYNDROME<\/b><\/p>\n

Honor societies, student council, junior class president-elect, cross country, track and field, tennis, Key Club, are usual things on a high school teenager\u2019s list, along with parties and hanging out with friends on the weekends. But published author is rarely heard of for high school sophomores. All of these activities are currently on the list of two very talented\u00a0young ladies.<\/p>\n

Gabriella Llano, 15, and Tiziana Vazquez,16, both sophomores at Our Lady of Lourdes Academy in South Miami, have published a young adult novel, In My World: Down Syndrome<\/i><\/b>, which was inspired by Llano\u2019s 10-year old sister, Daniella, who was diagnosed with Down Syndrome. Vazquez and Llano are cousins who are as close as sisters and often even finish\u00a0each other\u2019s sentences.<\/p>\n

In My World<\/i><\/b> is about a young girl with Down Syndrome and how she sees the world, but it also speaks from her mother\u2019s and brother\u2019s points of view and how the entire process\u00a0affects each of them. The book is targeted for nine through 12-year olds.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe decided that\u2019s when kids really start to lose their innocence. They do their own thing, have personal experiences and find their group of friends,\u201d said Llano. Vazquez feels it\u2019s a key transition age when kids become more independent. \u201cBefore that they don\u2019t really see the flaws in anyone, but when they get to that age, they only see the flaws,\u201d said Vazquez. \u201cYou don\u2019t notice if someone has Down Syndrome when you\u2019re three; you just play with them because it\u2019s fun, but then you get to 10 and you notice it completely, but that shouldn\u2019t vary\u00a0how you view them,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Llano and Vazquez say there wasn\u2019t a single idea that inspired them to write a book. They started the process about a year ago, but their initial drafts are nothing like the final product.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve always been involved with my sister and the Down Syndrome Association of Miami. At one of the annual walks,\u00a0I guess we got inspired and were like, \u2018Oh, let\u2019s write a\u00a0book\u2019,\u201d said Llano.<\/p>\n

They shared their idea with their moms and contacted their former English teacher, Mrs. Febo, from St. Theresa Catholic School, to be their editor and help them with the process. They met three times a week to discuss their drafts and ideas. The work was easily split up. Llano wrote in the point of view of the mom, Ava, because she has the mom with a child with Down Syndrome and could understand her better. Vazquez wrote in the point of view of the 16-year old brother, Javi, because she plays sports like the character and would draw on how he would think and act from her experiences with her older brother. They both wrote the main character, Mika, together.<\/p>\n

\u201cGaby would ask me questions about Ava. She took great effort to try and understand what it feels like to have a daughter with Down Syndrome. She tried to put my emotions into words,\u201d said Ayleen Pinera-Llano, Gabriella\u2019s mom. \u201cI think we grew closer during this process, and she got a better understanding of our family.\u201d<\/p>\n

The girls missed events and nights out with friends in exchange for their laptops, while keeping their book writing a secret from their teachers and friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not easy. During the summer, when we really wrote hard core, we missed out a lot like going to the beach, going out, sleeping in,\u201d said Llano. \u201cIt was worth it. We knew it was going to make more\u00a0of a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many times while at get-togethers with friends they would want to talk about it but knew they couldn\u2019t say anything. Each would tell the other not to forget to come over for a family get-together, code
\nthat there was an idea they had to get writing.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are teenagers. We didn\u2019t share it just in case we didn\u2019t find\u00a0a publishing company or we didn\u2019t go through with the publishing process, because it was more grueling than the writing process,\u201d said Vazquez. \u201cIt takes a while, and our family was extremely supportive.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI was very impressed with Tiziana\u2019s dedication to a project that would take her away an entire summer from the beach, her friends and parties. As they met at my house, it was wonderful to witness their creative process in action,\u201d said Silvia Pinera-Vazquez, Tiziana\u2019s mom.\u00a0\u201cHaving never written a book, the girls faced many writing and creative challenges but never wavered from their commitment to complete the book.\u201d<\/p>\n

They don\u2019t plan on this being a one-time thing. They are now brainstorming for their next book, which they hope to be on autism and are planning the third on a physical disability like blindness or deafness.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next for these two? Llano will be attending a medical school summer program for a week in Georgetown. She has dreams of following in her mother\u2019s footsteps and becoming a doctor, though she doesn\u2019t want to give up her creative side and passion for writing and art. Llano, who also designed the cover of the novel, aspires to work with kids and medicine in some capacity. Vazquez, who once also had dreams of becoming a lawyer like her mother, now aspires to go into film or screenwriting after going through this writing process. She will be honing her skills during a week-long film program at UCLA this summer. These aren\u2019t your average teenagers who are wasting hours away on their iPhones or Facebook.<\/p>\n

The girls are donating all proceeds of the book to the Down Syndrome Association. They are hoping to raise enough funds for a dolphin therapy program for children. After Dani attended a similar program on scholarship in the Keys, Llano wanted to give other\u00a0kids that opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw how all the kids there benefited from that program, so I loved it. I\u2019ve been wanting to bring it to Miami, but there hasn\u2019t been any funds for it,\u201d said Llano.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe love and care these committed young women have expressed in both written word and action filled the hearts of the community of Our Lady of Lourdes Academy with great pride. We are grateful for their determination, success and influence in our society,\u201d said Sister Kathryn Donze, Principal at Our Lady of Lourdes Academy.<\/p>\n

Their main message for the book is empathy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe put our brains into a girl with Down Syndrome, and we have no idea how Dani feels or what she thinks,\u201d said Vazquez. \u201cThe same goes for us in the real world. If you see someone struggling or feeling bad, you don\u2019t know how they feel, you don\u2019t know what they\u2019ve gone through so don\u2019t judge them right away.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

TEENAGERS\u2019 BOOK DOCUMENTS LIFE WITH DOWN SYNDROME Honor societies, student council, junior class president-elect, cross country, track and field, tennis, Key Club, are usual things on a high school teenager\u2019s list, along with parties and hanging out with friends on the weekends. But published author is rarely heard of for high school sophomores. All of<\/p>\n

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