The Cost of Living

My family comes from a humble background. My grandmother started working at the age of 13, with small jobs in order to feed her siblings. My grandfather worked many hard labor jobs in order to provide for our family. With my grandfather’s hard work, he was able to bring my grandmother, my two uncles, my father, my mother, my brother and I into the U.S. My grandparents decided to migrate to the U.S because in Mexico, they had nothing. They had enough to eat but they were still struggling to come out of poverty. When my grandparents migrated into the U.S my grandfather would still work a blue collar job, until he fractured his spine and couldn't work anymore. Nevertheless, that did not stop him from working. He began selling in swap meets, selling

My mother’s family is relatively new to America, early 20th century, and had migrated here from Bohemia (one of the Czech lands) after many political changes were occurring in Europe; which, eventually lead to the Great War (World War I). In their exodus from Europe all of their wealth was left behind and they only brought to America what they could carry. After arriving to the United States of America my ancestors immediately became successful with ambition and entrepreneurship. No one in my family stands idly by, nor do any of us stand around waiting for welfare. We are all very educated and successful and we have no tolerance for laziness and whining. My stepfather’s family is also from a highly successful and educated background; however, his family were in America since the Crowne. His family is linked to Thomas Jefferson, via marriage, and has had involvement with many of America’s great moment in history, such as, his families lumber company provided the wood for the first five frigates commissioned by Jefferson during the Barbary War. My biological father too has an in-depth history here in America. His family mostly were military officers in many of the countries early wars; i.e., French Indian Wars, Revolutionary War, Civil War, Spanish-American War, etc. Overall, I have quite an extensive

A important dilemma in my personal life is about my experience as a first generation immigrant in the United States. My parents take extra precaution to make sure I do not loose sight of where I came form and so, my parents drive to Mexico every year with my sister and I to see relatives who are living in conditions worse than ours so that we are grateful of our life in America. As I see my cousins and nieces/nephews grow up, I see realize that they have no real role model to look up to as no one has completed college when their parents exited high school and some not even that. So I want to help my family members to aspire to be something better in life and not a mailman or manual laborer like my father and uncles. I would like to instill

Inflation definitely has played a role and will continue to do so in the future as the economy changes and adapts. It is clear that in the last ten years tuition cost spiked and in some areas doubled. The cost of living was also a contributing factor for the spiked tuition costs. California Universities are amongst some of the best in the nation, but they come with a price tag that unfortunately many cannot afford. Finally the varying universities and the quality of the programs often dictate the costs. This was clear in the comparison between Fresno State and California Polytechnic State. Both offer quality education in specific fields for the right price. As some would say, A good education is not cheap, and a cheap education is not

Immigrant groups take refuge in America in hope of starting a better life for themselves and their ongoing generations. They take on the belief that upon coming to America, they will be presented by the riches and freedom granted by the “American Dream”. However, these opportunities are not easily achieved. Many immigrant families are challenged with the initial obstacles of having to adapt to the new languages and the customs of their environment. For example, without the basic knowledge of the standard English language, immigrants will not be able to apply for a majority of the jobs available. This puts immigrant parents at disadvantages because then they will not be able to provide the sufficient funds needed for allowing their children

Day in and day out many immigrants enter the United States of America in search of greener pastures. This greener pasture includes higher educational prospects and lucrative jobs. However, life usually does not turn out as many of them usually anticipate. The expectation they usually have prior to their entry to the United States is partly due to the all rosary and nice things they hear about America. They hear such nice things from the media and also from diaspora’s who return from America to their homeland who usually don’t share their entire experiences with them. There have been quite a number of reports and research findings that outline the various challenges that are faced by immigrants in America. I personally share some of these issues as an international student in a foreign country. Prior to coming to Metropolitan State University, I had colleagues who told me about the school and their excellent environments that facilitate learning. Also other friends who were in America made me aware of the opportunity to work alongside schooling which made me more interested as I needed financial aid. With all these palatable information in mind, I did apply for the school and even though the tuition fee was quite expensive considering my socio economic background, I did apply having the mindset of working to meet up certain financial needs. Upon arrival in America, I realized that I was given a fraction of the entire picture. I wasn't allowed to work outside of campus,

First of all, my family is Chinese. My parents immigrated into the United States 15 years ago from Hong Kong and so I am the first generation to go to college in the US. It is important to note that my parents did not come to the US so that they can attain a higher status but more so because they wanted to give me a chance to attain a higher status. When we first arrived my mother did not work, and my father’s first job was at a Asian supermarket. The pay was low and there was no coverage of any kind. We lived at my Aunt’s house until we managed to find public housing in Charlestown. Somewhere around that time my father managed to find a job at Boston Scientific as a Material Handler, and basically what he does it drive a forklift truck around a warehouse to find and move stock. The job change did not alleviate my father’s nor the family’s status. The pay was better and there is health insurance and retirement plans. However, even with my father working overtime, there is still simply a shortage in money especially when my twin brothers came along. That was when my mother decided that she needs to work too and she found herself working as a waitress at two Chinese restaurants. In terms of jobs, I think my parents did the best they could considering they speak little to no English and only have a high school education. There is simply not a wide range of options for

Did you know that people in other countries have jobs that can not even sustain life? This is a very detrimental problem for the country and the family within that country. Sadly, the people within the country come to a point of recognition that they are going to have to change their circumstances in life. So they have to make a difficult decision leave their family to be able to give their children a better life by sending money back to the home country or take their oldest child out of school to start selling things on the streets. If the parent decides to leave the home country, then she will start a process of immigration to another prosperous country like the United States America without looking back to change her

My grandparents struggled on a day-to-day basis because my grandfather’s salary was only enough to eat rice and beans. My grandfather realized that it was not possible to be able to feed four children and improve their lifestyle under this low-income job. He began to seek for a new job in which he would gain a decent amount of money to improve his family’s lifestyle. He was not able to obtain a good paying job in Mexico. As a result, he found that the only solution would be for him to immigrate to the United States. The author Carol Cleaveland, from the George Mason University, finds that many immigrants “faced the choice of subsisting at home, or realizing the hope of earning a better living job in El Norte” this was the case for my grandfather (576).

Some people settle and others seek more for their life no matter how hard it is to get it. Dreams that turn into reality and the ones that never stop believing. This is the case of many immigrants that migrate to America, a land known for its safety and freedom. They don’t want to settle and wish to live a better life. To give more to their children and to fight for more success. Eager for a better life they know that they will encounter many rough times, financially, legally, and even deal with hurtful discrimination. Immigrants in America come from all over the world, yet the focus is mainly on its

Our family history is rooted in Texas and Mexico. Discussing our family history with my parents and relatives I have found that my grand-parents and great grandparents were born and raised in Texas. They moved back and forth between Mexico and Texas for work. Both sides of our family always sought work and better opportunities for their families. Our families have been made up of strong men who worked mostly as laborers. My grandfathers and great-grand fathers worked in cotton fields, as ranch hands, migrant workers known as “Campesinos”, “Brazeros” or laborers, sheered sheep and have even been grave diggers. Working in many different manual labors in the Del Rio, Austin and Hill Country area of Brady and Seguin, always working hard for their families. During the depression in America, my

Living a good life as an immigrant in America is a big challenge. In fact, getting a reasonable life is not easy in many countries around the world, but as an immigrant in the United States that involves huge determinations. Thus, anyone who decides to move to another place or community should expect to face many challenges. Most of the time, an immigrant’s reason(s) for leaving their country is based on a hard life for some without figuring out that life in the USA might be harder as well as a better life for others who may have a good life in their motherland. Generally, they are all disappointed by what they encounter. Denis Hunt, a director of Multi-cultural Human Services, a Falls Church, Virginia-based organization that helps immigrants adjust to life in the United States, said “the issues immigrants face can be even more daunting. Most immigrant parents who arrive in new communities are faced with immediate challenges to their survival, including securing a job, finding a place to live, buying food, and enrolling their children in school" (“US immigrants face new challenges”). Despite this situation, it is conceivable for immigrants regardless their origin, to live a good life in America. However, it cannot happen merely by snapping their fingers; massive efforts are required, including working hard, learning English, resolving transportation issues, understanding of the culture, and getting

Undocumented families are generally confined to disadvantaged neighborhoods where they are segregated from mainstream culture and are often concentrated within social enclaves. Even though these social enclaves have positive elements that include linguistic and cultural similarity and continuation, these families and neighborhoods generally lack resources, making it even harder for families to

My family moved here to the United States in 1989; from Eritrea, located in east africa. My father lived in the largest city in Eritrea, named Asmara and my mother lived in the second largest city named, Keren. My mother made an hour and a half trip to school everyday. My parents met when they were only 16 years old. In 1988 my mother Kudusan gave birth to my brother Michael. My parents planned to have more kids but they wanted to provide a better life for a family. My parents decided to move to the United states where they didn’t know anyone, they didn’t have a job, and they didn’t know a lot of english. They moved to the states with just enough money to last them an apartment for a couple months while they looked for work. My father found

getting jobs, there are still a lot of families that fit the mold of the