Migrating Birds

As I climbed the old ash tree as a nine-year-old girl, I dreamt about what I wanted to do in my future life. Could I be an architect, or a translator, or better yet an artist…? All these thoughts seated up there at my parents’ farm, San Gonzalo, near Sarabia in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico.  

My illusions and aspirations as a young child took me through rough patches and family fatalities. These, among other challenging circumstances, forced my parents to send me to live with one of my aunts at the age of 14 followed by an arranged marriage at 17.  

It was decided by adults, unlike many married girls in my small town with husbands in the US, that I would follow my new husband to California. The only positive I could see in this was that I would finally get to see my sisters, Rosy being the most missed at the time, since she had to raise me after I turned 9.  

The new life, the new place, the new family was such a hit in my young mind.  I immersed myself in anything that I believed would improve my personal life.  The only option permitted by my new family was to go to adult school to learn English. Eventually due to my determination and acceleration in the language, I was allowed to pursue my GED.  

At age twenty I got pregnant, my biggest blessing in life. My baby girl gave me the courage to leave the rough environment I was living in. As a single mom, my biggest desire was to provide my daughter with the best. I had always been a believer in higher education, so when my baby daughter was 4, I enrolled in a community college. First, I achieved an AA through my employer and seven years later graduated from Cal Poly Pomona with a bachelor’s in science.  

Right before graduating from college, I decided to start my own business in landscaping. Now, sixteen years after getting myself established, I am eager to continue to grow by attaining my general contracting license. Over the years of my career and as a business owner, my work has been recognized by Claremont Heritage, La Verne Heritage, and Pasadena House of the Arts, among others. 

 I have never forgotten my humble beginnings, so I am keen on giving back. I am a member of nonprofit organizations such as Children's fund, and I am always willing to collaborate with any other community organizations to help anyone in need. I have had the opportunity to employ people and to serve amazing clients, many of which have become friends. And lastly, I think I have achieved my greatest goal through my baby girl's accomplishments; she is now employed and resides in Germany with a background in chemical engineering and biotechnology. 

 As you can see, I didn’t become an architect, nor a translator, but I became much more in this beautiful country where the American dream is not just rhetoric.  God, I thank you for my roots and please bless America.