Sometimes, stories are the most powerful possessions immigrants own. I learned this after years of listening to my parents tell me the same stories over and over again. While we began to laugh about how often they told these stories, I came to realize what these stories meant to them and how they influenced me. These stories were filled with heartache and joy, devastation and laughter, all the while imparting powerful lessons in me. These stories told me so much about who I am through my parents’ experiences.
My father grew up working with his father and grandfather before and after school. His shoes were reserved for school and church, less he face consequences. When faced with almost certain death, he chose to find a way to the United States.
As a child, my mother walked miles through fields to provide her father with lunch in the middle of the day. She wanted to get in education, but wasn’t able to do so because she was one of the eldest and needed to help care for her siblings. Her journey to the United States wasn’t out of want, but out of need.
The stories I heard throughout my childhood weren’t solely from my parents. Growing up with family members all around me, I also constantly remember hearing tales from family members as well. They all went through similar experiences together and worked hard to come out of them for the better. I came to see that the accumulation of these stories created a family narrative that wove together different experiences and lessons.
One of my uncles toughed it out in El Salvador for as long as he could and grew accustomed to seeing dead bodies lined along the side of the road. Even after facing such trauma as a teenager, my uncle is one of the kindest people I know.
One of my aunts slept in my parents’ kitchen when she first arrived because they didn’t have enough room to house all their family members. This was a persistent theme in my household: there was always a place for you with family.
Throughout my life, I grew up around my family’s stories. They became a part of me and helped shape who I’ve become.
Through this blog, I plan to share different vignettes from my family’s histories. It’s an intricate weave of memories and feelings seen through various people’s eyes.
We are at a moment in our country’s history that has the potential to alter the lives of millions of individuals who reside in the United States and know it as their home.
I can only hope that stories I share through this medium can continue to add to those being spread around the country, and help to affect change in the near future.
