Identity

During the summer I would usually go outside and sit on my rocking chair that is on my porch. I would have right next to me a cold cup of lemonade and some cucumbers with lemon and hot sauce. I would just sit there and wait for the sunset. Every time I sat there and waited for what seemed an hour I would always just observe everyone that passed by. I would notice that the people that passed were all from different backgrounds. They were White, African American, Hispanic, Asian and even Indian. They all passed by in little groups and talked in my different languages. It was something truly beautiful to witness because for me this neighborhood represented America. It represented how diverse America is and how the world comes together in one place for one reason: to live the American dream. But what I loved the most was that every single person that past by didn’t loose their identity. By what I mean by this is that they didn’t loose their parents culture or who they are. They didn’t assimilate to the American culture but rather in a way balanced it. Something that is really hard to do in the 21st century especially in American.

I come from immigrant parents who both left everything behind in Mexico to provide my siblings and myself a better life. My mom stopped studying when she was in 3rd grade and my father until 5th grade. They both have spend their whole life working hard labor. All they knew was that they wanted their children to have a better future so here I am on my second year at Kean. But something they made sure of was that my siblings and I didn’t forget who we were or where we come from. So from early age they told us you are American but your also Mexican. They told me that it was important for me to learn how to read, write, and understand English but I also had to read, write and understand Spanish. So she told me you can learn English in school but once your in my house you can only speak Spanish. Thanks to her know I am proficient in two languages. Something very useful today. My mom also taught how to cook Spanish dishes, traditions, as well as our holidays. I taught her how to speak English, the food we eat here, and the holidays. We both kinda balanced both cultures.

I think as a person who is Chicana or Latina it is crucial for the new generation to be proud of who they are and their roots rather to just assimilate to the “American” culture. This way you don’t loose your true identity. For me, embracing who I am has help me understand other cultures more deeply and relate to them.