The Day I Left America

This was when my dream trip got really bad , the police officers of Cancun didn’t want to let him out since he was a resident . After a day of trying to get out my dad we were finally able to get him out . The worse thing was that we wasted a whole day arguing and trying to figure out what we were going to do instead of going shopping and enjoying our last day . The next morning was time to go back home but on our way back we decided to get on a 2 hour plane to Chihuahua , Chihuahua since my dad’s family hadn’t seen my brother and me for 5 years. WE stayed at my grandma’s house over night but tomorrow morning was when we were going to go back home with my uncle. Two hours later we reached the border and it was definitely the worst day ever , they weren't letting my dad cross over since he had gotten arrested . They were planning on taking his papers and MICA away but for the next week or so he had to stay in Mexico and try to cross over again in a week. Imagine going on a beautiful

I grew up in a small town in the state of Michoacan, Mexico until a few weeks after my seventh birthday. In 2001, after six years since my father petitioned to have us come to the United States with him and finally he had received a letter from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services that his request had been approved. Being of that age, I was my mother’s companion everywhere, however, all I could grasp from those conversations was that we were going to the United States. I don 't think any of us knew what this meant or to what extent this would change our lives, not even my parents whom I thought knew it all.

When we crossed the United States border into Texas, things seemed surreal. It did not feel like this was really happening. I remember staring at the road behind us, watching everything I knew disappear. We only stopped a few times on the drive. We did not eat at any restaurants; we ate chicken tacos

Your family had big dreams. You were so small when you came to the US, just 6 years old. So innocent. Coming from Mexico City, its drastically different. You had no clue what was ahead of you. School was most difficult, you spent 3 years in an English learning class. Even after, many things seemed hard for you to comprehend. Yet, you stayed strong. When you got to high school things changed, all that work had paid off. From then on you only took honors and ap classes. You were president of National

April 13, 2010 was the day that my life had completely changed. My dad came home from a long day at work and had some excited news, at least that’s what he said. I remember when my dad walked into the house and told my mom the news first, I will never forget the look on her face. My siblings and I knew the news could not possibly be good by my mom 's expression. My dad told my brothers and I that we are moving to California because he had received a promotion. We had lived in Georgia for seven years of my life. I was so familiar with the land and every Sunday my family and I would go to the mall. We would eat ice cream, go shopping and later watch a movie. We lived in a gated community and they were like my second family. I was very distraught when my father had told me the “good” news. I had to leave my friends, family, and all of my memories in Georgia.

During Thanksgiving break of my sixth grade year, I embarked on a journey with my family to Spain. Though I had been taking Spanish for three years, I had a very limited vocabulary, but since neither of my parents have ever learned Spanish, I was still one of the best speakers in my family. I was very excited, but also very nervous. It was my first time visiting Europe as well my first international plane ride. Our plane took off at around seven pm our time, and we arrived in Madrid when the sun was just starting to peek through the clouds. We checked into the hotel, dropped off our bags and hit the city.

My family and I came to America in the year 2003, and those few years afterward made me realized the tremendous amount of love my parents had for us. Although I was only three, I saw how my father worked long hours trying to keep a young family of five comfortable and safe. He taught me the importance of hard work and endurance. My mother taught me the importance of education. We came to America because due to her receiving a student visa to complete her Masters in Christian Theology and Social Work. She would come back to from long classes and pick us up from daycare. Although she was tired, she made sure that her family was fed and well. As soon as everyone was well, she would finish her homework. Her desk and computer were located in my

Sitting in the back of the car with my younger brother and sister memories started coming back. I could hear the water from the river in mexico in my head. The voice of my cousin yelling and the laughter of my uncle. The crying of my baby cousin and the sound of cooking food. Then the funny feeling came back. I missed mexico, the air was fresh, the water was clear and the weather was nice. The shining sun reflecting off the water and the warm fresh air running across the flesh of people's bodies . The

When I came to America from China at age 16, everyone around me appeared to be different. However, I didn’t just talk to my Chinese friends. I pushed myself outside of my bubble; I tried my best to make friends with American students, while I still maintained good relationships with my Chinese friends. America is very different from what I expected, everyone speaks so fast and unclear; it almost made English a completely different language from what I had already learned. As I was trying to make friends, I realized that Chinese culture had made me different from Americans; things that I was curious about as a Chinese person were very private to American students. For example, in America, people won’t mention what their parents’ jobs are when they meet someone for the first time.

My family’s euphoria refueled our motivation to chase the American Dream. I finally started kindergarten after 5 months in the United States. I had already finished kindergarten in Mexico, but due to my birthday being after August and because I was yet to learn to write and speak English, I was forced to repeat kindergarten. I was learning to speak English at a surprising rate. Everything was going more smoothly for the family. Although not as an electrician, my father found a job and I helped him with some of the English I knew to fill out applications and communicate with people. I finally started to feel that life in the U.S might be worth

Last year in October I came from school as usual I remember that day was very cold and I was covered in winter clothes my stomach growled from the hunger I had, so I went to eat a hot soup so that the cold would take away. While I ate the soup I listened as my parents talked I could not hear clearly so I decided to go quietly to listen to my parents they decided to move from Mexico to United States the reason why my parents decided that it was better to go to the United States was for job reasons, while I processed everything they said suddenly my mother called me along with my younger brother and explained the reasons why it was necessary for us to leave.

The two were married one year later in September of 1958. Also in 1958, my grandma became a legal citizen of the United States. It was one of the happiest moments of her life, but it was soon overshadowed by the birth of her first son, John. After her second son, Andrew was born, my grandparents decided to leave the hustle and bustle of San Francisco for the growing city of San Jose. There both my grandparents found stable jobs and welcomed the birth of their last child, my mom. Finally, in San Jose, my grandma had what she always wanted, a stable job with good money, a loving family, and good future to look forward

It was nearly a year ago when my dad made the decision to bring me and my family to the United States so that we can have a better future and a better life for everything that is happening in Mexico such as poverty, bad governance, and disasters natural. It was difficult to say goodbye to all my loved ones, my friends, my grandparents, my cousins and all my family. But everyone supported me by saying that it is the best for me and that fulfills all my dreams and my goals. During the course of the trip I was meeting new things for me because I had not done any other trip, it was there when I first saw the sea and it was something awesome for me and my

When I got to school I was excited as a dog getting to get a whole bag of treats. Then I got home from school I ran into my house as fast as I could so I could pack. I then realized that I wasn’t even going to put the luggage into the truck. When it was finally time I sprang out of my room bursting with joy like a firework ready to blow up. A few hours past and we were on the road. We got to Mexico the day after, and when we got there I saw a lot of faces I’ve never seen before. And I saw aunts and uncles I’ve never heard of.

We arrived at the airport after a long drive since the airport was located in the city. There, we met up with three middle aged ladies and my grandparents introduced them to me. I was told that they were also going to America and I was to be a good girl and follow them there. Everything else that happened next was a blur, but I remember very clearly and strongly about how tightly I held on to my grandmother’s hand while being pulled away by the ladies. Tears poured from my eyes while I screamed “Wai po, wai po!(Grandma, grandma!)” over and over again. Our hands slowly slipped away from each other and I held up my hand to touch her one last time but all I felt was air. My sorrow was eased when one lady offered me a piece of gum. She opened the wrapper of another gum and showed me how to eat it after she saw my clueless face. She placed the piece in her mouth and instructed me to continuously chew on it without swallowing it. I recognized what it was right away after she showed me this because it was something I saw one of my Chinese teachers chewing on at school. I was always curious about what it was and to think that one day I would try one