Looking at my graduation photos today, I am reminded of how it all began. I was still in high school when a teacher told us about a competition for five full scholarships to study engineering at the University of Istmo in Guatemala. My best friend, David, and I decided to apply. The night before the exam I did something rather unusual for me: I prayed with all my heart. I asked God that, if it were his will, at least one of the two of us would win the scholarship. In the end, we both got through. That was how this journey began.

In 2021, I arrived at an Opus Dei university residence in Guatemala for the first time. I remember being shown around the whole house, and when we walked into the oratory, I looked at the altar and asked curiously what that little box was. It was the Tabernacle. At that moment I had no idea that, in time, that place would come to mean so much to me.

In time I came to understand something I had not thought much about before: study and work done well could be offered to God too.

Life in the residence had something special about it. There was a wholesome, youthful, and cheerful atmosphere, and little by little it became a true home. I enjoyed taking part in activities for university students, in outreach projects, and in the various activities that were organised. In time I came to understand something I hadn’t thought much about before: study and work done well could be offered to God too.

The first years of university were not easy. Some subjects were quite demanding and I had to work very hard to improve. Gradually I found my stride, and by the end of my Industrial Engineering degree I received an Academic Excellence award. That same year I was also president of the faculty’s Student Council. Looking back now, I realise that I learnt something more important than passing exams in those years: I learnt to sanctify the effort of each day.

In 2024 I travelled to Nicaragua with other friends to lead the holiday course at a youth club. It was the first time I had collaborated directly with this work in my country. It was a very meaningful experience for me, because I felt that many people in Nicaragua might be in need of an encounter with God.

A year later I moved to another Opus Dei centre in Guatemala and had the opportunity to take part in UNIV. That week was very special. I met young people from many parts of the world, and something very specific struck me: wherever I was, the Work always felt like a family.

I felt like part of the family even before taking the formal step.

I returned from that trip with a question that stayed very deep in my heart. As the months passed, I began to notice something curious: in a certain sense I was already living as a member of the Work. After so many activities, friendships, and moments of formation since I had arrived at university, I already felt like part of this family, even before taking the formal step.

Finally, after a period of discernment, in September 2025 I asked for admission as a supernumerary. I am the first one from Chinandega. And the story keeps unfolding: in 2026 Eduardo, another Nicaraguan from our year, also received the grace of a vocation to Opus Dei.

Now there are two supernumeraries from opposite ends of the Pacific coast of Nicaragua.

When I look back, I think it all began with a scholarship to study engineering. But in time God showed me that He had a far greater adventure in store for me.