Having experienced a Hispanic Heritage month, where for once I felt like I could feel super proud of who I am and where I come, it got me thinking… I have a lot to be grateful for, especially my parents. In the spirit of gratitude during the month of November, I wanted to share a blog of appreciation for mis padres. There is so much they have done even before I was born that has led to my successes today. Gracias a ellos (thanks to them) I am who and what I am today. Just like many immigrant parents, my parents had a humble beginning in a small town in Michoacan, Mexico. My parents always tell me that they started working at young ages (5-6 years old). Even if they were not making much money, they would work helping the wealthier families in town in the hopes of helping their large families. My mother is one of 10 and the second oldest, so she felt she had to carry a lot of responsibility in caring for her siblings. My father on the other hand was one of the younger siblings (one of 8), but also tried to help out his family as much as he could. And just like that my parents’ spent most of their childhood working towards helping their families and slowly building big dreams for their futures. Even with the responsibility of having to work at such a young age, I could hear the excitement and curiosity that is present in how my parents recount their childhood. By the time they were adolescents, my mom was working full time because her mother did not allow her to continue her education after 7th grade. She told her “why are you going to go to school, if you are simply going to get married and care for children in the future?!”. My mom was upset at this decision because she had saved up her money to buy her textbooks and uniforms. She had every desire to continue her education and learn. My dad on the other hand was able to start high school, but had to drop out due to money issues. By the time my parents were 17-18 years old, they had met and started dating. They actually grew up in the same small town. They simply lived in different barrios (neighborhoods). And this is where their joint decisions begin to lead to my success. My parents dated while they continued to help their families and helped take care of siblings. Fast forward a few years and my dad made the decision to migrate to the United States, and he wanted to take my mom with him. But in order for the plan to work he left first and my parents began the long distance part of their relationship. They both knew this was the best decision to make in order to have a better future than they ever could back in their hometown. For about a year, my parents had a long distance relationship between Mexico and the United States. My parents always recount how expensive it was to simply make a call for a few minutes in the late 80s/ early 90s. This always boggles my mind because now we can pick up the phone, use an app, and pretty much call anywhere in the world! At some point, when I was young I found a stack of letters that they had sent each other during this time. It showed me how committed they were to each other and their shared dream of making a life in the United States. Finally came the point that my mom was ready to go join my dad. My mom made the journey to the United States and first arrived in Arizona. My dad was in Los Angeles, CA, but she went there first because she wanted to stay with family for a bit. Once she took care of business, she reunited with my dad in Inglewood, CA. There, my dad was working as a dishwasher at a hotel near the airport and shortly after got a job as a cook at a local bar. My mom told me that once she arrived in California she and my dad were couch surfing with my aunt and uncles who already lived in the area until they were able to afford their own place. Once they saved up enough money, they were able to rent out someone's tiny garage and that is the first place they ever called home together! Once they felt settled, they decided they wanted to be married to each other. So they got legally married and shortly after my mom became pregnant with me. A few months into the pregnancy with me, they also wanted to honor their families and culture and decided to also have a Catholic wedding (which I got to attend haha). From this point on, they knew their decisions were not only just about them, but about the child they were about to bring into the world. And of course if you want to read what happens next, see my hispanic heritage month blog here: https://ies.ed.gov/blogs/research/2021/09/29/default And today, I am here so proud telling my parents story because if it weren’t for them I would not be who I am today or what I am. As you can see through their story, hard work has been part of the roots from the beginning. Throughout my entire life, my parents have also taught me that I have to be nothing but myself to succeed and that I should never forget where I come from. And because of that I am proud and grateful for my parents. They did the best that they could to open doors of opportunities for me. Their experiences and resilience in life is what fuels me and the work that I do every single day. I think about their humble beginnings and how this is still the experience of many immigrant Latinx families. I see the hope and love that these families still come to this country with and hope to use my family’s heritage to fuel to serve those around me. |
AuthorDr. Lorena Aceves unapologetically telling you the real deal about being brown in an academic world, but deciding she is going to be her authentic self and make her wildest dreams come true en esta vida! Archives
November 2022
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