Seven years into my life, our mother brought us from the comfort of our beds into the living room and told us that our life was going to change. This point in time opened an unforeseen perspective where everyone in this world has a different a background, family, and culture that lays out the foundation for life. Fortunately, my upcoming was strengthened by a tough, guiding, Hispanic community which helped me develop into the person I am today and overcome my substantial hardship; nevertheless, providing support to others in similar situations would be a wishful thought come true.
Fatherless, growing up as a child wasn’t a breeze; his absence left a major dent in my life. At eight years old, independence was a lifestyle I’d have to grow accustomed
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It all started with a family of 5 living in a compact house in Laredo - a border town south of Texas. Living in a border city neighboring Mexico, loving, heartwarming Hispanic culture surrounded my upbringing; A childhood I would never exchange for anything. The Hispanic community teaches to see the bright side of things and not dwell on the past; therefore, I carried on with my life to assemble the present and future for the better. Being raised by a single parent, my mom, and having one source of income, would remind my brother, sisters and I to always excel in school for it will provide knowledge, a career, and an overall benefit for us in the long run. A long, stressful day during my Junior year in High School after we were presented all the requirements we had to achieve to get into some of our dream schools and at the time being I still was immensely indecisive on where I wanted to attend since I didn’t meet the requirements for a particular school; therefore, I asked for my mom’s opinion on what to do. My mother said, “give in, to what you want to get out” which meant for me to give it my all in anything I do, my dedication and time for I will receive the results I want. Her words have had a crucial role in my life which I apply to my daily tasks and have stuck with me ever since. That being said, I was and still highly motivated to achieve in school.
My immediate family and especially my loving
My story would have never begun if my parents had not made a huge decision in my life, almost 15 years ago. When they decided to move our family across the border, my future would be become unknown. The fate I had been destined to have was completely altered, now, I had the opportunity to change my life for the better, to strive for something bigger. My parents pushed me to be the best I could be, and to work as hard as possible to get what I wanted. As the daughter of two Mexican immigrants I grew up in a very cultural household, and being surrounded by Spanish at all times. The only negative being I had to learn English on my own, and which led to me having some difficulty when I first started school. Yet, growing up in a Spanish speaking
I remember waking up that day and that feeling in my stomach, knowing what was about to happen. Growing up I knew about my father's sickness. My family, I recall, was always supportive. No one ever thinks about how one day, everyone you’re around for years, can just vanish. I cherished my friends as I was growing up. I lived there for a majority of my life, up until fourth grade. I remember sitting at a neighbor's house and having the mother come into the room and inform me that I need to be home swiftly. As I ran home, my head was crowded with thoughts to the point where I could not even think about why I was supposed to be home quickly. That day marked the transition of what would be the biggest change in my life. As by dad became sicker,
Growing up with an autistic sibling and being a first generation Mexican-American student have shaped the individual I have become. My parents worked long shifts in
Coming from a Mexican immigrant family I have learned to recognize since a very young age that because of the status that my parents are placed in they cannot pursue a better future like the one I want. I have been given the opportunity to challenge myself with obtaining a higher education than just high school itself. My parents have demonstrated to me through their hard work that I have to value this opportunity unless I want to end up with low paying job. My life long dedication comes from seeing my parents make sacrifices in order for my education to continue.
Coming from a Latino household, I’ve learned that anything is achievable – there are no walls nor boundaries to stop me from reaching my goals. Whenever it came to achieving something in school, I could hear my father’s words “si se puede” – meaning “you can do it” – playing in my head. So long as I believed I could excel and go beyond in my studies, I felt that I could open doors of opportunities for myself.
I was born in a small ranch in Mexico, and raised in Oregon .My first year and a half I grew up with only my mother and grandmother, my father in the US trying to raise enough money to send to my mom and me . I came to the United States with my mom at the time in only understood Spanish. The Spanish language stayed with me up until I was 3 , I was the only child but my older cousins taught me a new foreign language. From the moment I learned to speak English to almost 14 years later, being a year away fro graduation its been a big struggle. Fighting against the "I cant's" and "failure" it's been a bumpy ride. Something that has really shaped my life is, as I grew up I didn't quite understand the meaning of immigrant, my 7 year old mind didn't
Ask my teachers, friends, coaches, and family, they’ll all tell you that I’m mature. The way I hold myself responsible for my life, my studies, and my activities through the good and bad is a unique quality about me that they admire, but also know little to nothing about.
Being a first generation student requires more will power than I ever thought I owned. In middle school I was denied by my parents the chance to shadow a pharmacist because they saw this as an unattainable dream. It wasn’t until I began working with disabled children and tried to pursue a nursing degree, that I found the courage and determination to pursue all of my dreams in spite of my upbringing.
As a first-generation Mexican American, I am the product of two cultures merged into one. Like many immigrants, my parents left behind their homeland and came with just the clothes on their back. They were fish out of water when they first arrived in America. They came here with hopes of pursuing the American Dream but soon realized that they weren't going to be the ones to achieve the American Dream. They worked hard so that my younger brother and I could have a shot at it. So they’ve educated us and passed the Dream along to us. The hardships experienced by my parents have inspired me to take on my own challenges. Because of the sacrifices my parents made, I am where I am today. It's an unspoken responsibility that one day I will give back to those who gave me so much.
“Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay”. Habakkuk 2:10 NKJV Bible
Looking back at the years that I have completed in high school is a funny but a true life changer. If I was to go back to one year of high school I would want to go back to freshman year. One reason why I would want to go back to freshman year is to talk to myself. Another reason I would want to go back it tell myself to listen more. The last reason would to see if I could improve myself in any way.
Reflecting on my childhood, I always had a vivid imagination. I loved telling stories to anyone who would listen. As I grew older, I began writing poetry and I became obsessed with movies. Over the years, I realized that I wanted to travel to some of the places I had seen in the various movies but my thoughts of what I wanted to remain indifferent.
The different political, social, and cultural influences that have surrounded me throughout my life have constructed the integral individual I am today. Growing up in Colombia, I spent a great portion of my time playing outside in the dirt, hiking through the forests and creeks, and exploring my surroundings; which enabled me to develop a quest for knowledge and a fascination for the biological sciences. What constitutes my character are the core qualities that formed as a response to my exposure to the different experiences during my early development. The experiences of witnessing poverty and abandonment of people in many different areas of my native country are experiences that marked my life and enabled me to gain the essential quality of altruism. My parents have greatly contributed to my perception of and importance of my identity; they have exemplified that part of being Hispanic is having the drive and desire to surpass beyond the limitations. Through the difficult transition of moving to the United States, I learned to persevere, to work hard, and to fight for the future I envisioned. My goals and aspirations have been cultivated by all these factors that portray my personal ownership of being Hispanic. I see an abstract concept behind the word Hispanic; I associate it with family and the given capacity of carrying the willingness, love, effort, strength, and motivation to
Coming from a Hispanic family with very limited education, I've gone through many experiences that have made me realize that I don't want to go through the problems that my family has faced and that I want to be successful in life. Before my existence, my father immigrated from Mexico to the United States, and my mother moved from Puerto Rico to here as well. They both came to the United States in search of opportunities and a better life. For
I consider myself to be one of the more truly fortunate Hispanics by coming from a family of such perseverance. According to sociology, children of parents who grew up in poverty typically would not have the opportunity for career advancement. I knew I would have to continue the perseverance, and had to come up with a plan for myself. When I got to high school, The Boy Scouts of America gave me the opportunity to become a fire explorer. The duration of the five-year firefighting internship allowed the opportunity to explore an enticing health career. I gained much knowledge and experience that rooted me in health care. Through the same knowledge and experience I was steered into a different route. After many health-fairs, measuring blood pressure and pulse, I realized my calling was in a