On-the-go 'Albertito' prepares for home schooling
Watch out for the kid wearing the flashing sneakers who tears through the halls of Shriners Hospitals for Children Northern California.
That's Albertito with his new tennis shoes with lights in the soles.
Put another way – that's Albertito with the irrepressible light in his soul.
Most everyone who meets the 6-year-old talks about his inner joy and compassion.
When he comes to Shriners hospital for yet another in the myriad of operations and treatments he must receive for his burns, Albertito tries to cheer up the other children and rarely focuses on his own pain.
"He's very observant of other people," said his mother, Narda Chinchillas, speaking Spanish through an interpreter.
Enamored with stories – particularly the one about Noah's Ark – Jesus Alberto "Albertito" Salomon is part raconteur, part budding author. He draws, paints and recounts story after story.
When asked why he loves the story of Noah's Ark so much, he looks incredulously at his questioner.
"Because it's beautiful," he said, a bit irked by the question.
With burns over 90 percent of his body from a house fire in his native Mexico when he was 3, Albertito knows pain. But having survived and journeyed through 30 operations to repair his scarred body, Albertito also knows salvation. So do his parents.
"We have thankfulness because he is here with us," Chinchillas said.
The burns – particularly on his face – have disfigured him. Sometimes he asks his mom why he looks like that. His mom tells him the story of the fire, then reminds him that he is changing with the operations.
"But it's not something he always asks about," his mother said of the first-grader at Bowling Green Elementary School.
Albertito doesn't have the time or inclination to dwell on his injuries. There's his little brother Emanuel to chase after and the other children at Shriners who need cheering up, not to mention the staff.
"He's full of energy, optimism. He makes your day when he comes to see us," said Ana Guerrero, a social worker at Shriners.
Albertito's family is struggling financially during their stay in California while the 6-year-old is treated for his burns.
Firefighters Burn Institute officials have asked Book of Dreams readers to help purchase a child's desk and chair for Albertitio, who soon will be home-schooled as he recovers from another surgery.