 Members of his family were abused and killed by the army during the conflict and his primary school was closed down by authorities.He was sent to middle school at the Colegio Salesiano de Artes y Oficios in Guadalajara, where he learned various trades such as carpentry and metalworking, but he was there only two years before the government shut that down too.After he return from Guadalajara, he worked with his father, who made a living selling notions, make up, perfume and other items on the street.