Tell us about your family’s roots.

My family is from Mexico. My brothers and I were born in Chihuahua, Chihuahua, Mexico. Both of my parents were born in the state of Chihuahua, my father’s family had been in Chihuahua for generations and my mother’s family had been in northern Mexico for generations. Our family has Spanish and Italian roots but we consider ourselves Mexican.

What is your family’s migration story?

My family – father (44), mother (34), two brothers (5 and 7) and myself (10) migrated to the United States in August of 1995 for my father’s job. My family left behind all of our family, friends, pets, and home behind when we moved to Dallas, Texas. At the time in Texas, being Latino was not popular, even other Latinos often pretended not to speak Spanish in order to avoid being called out or being seen as different. We found a very diverse community at the time where we felt confident and comfortable at being Mexican. My father was asked to return to Mexico in 1997 and he decided to leave his job in order to keep our family in the US and provide us with a better life. We then left Texas for Oklahoma, where we found an even smaller Hispanic community. We were forced to assimilate and often times were the only’s in the room. It was a very isolating experience through middle school until we had “become a part” of our new community. 31 years later – my brothers and I remain in the United States, having spent more time living in the US than in Mexico. Our spouses are American, our children born in the US, and our heritage something we continue to instill in our homes and our children. We continue to go back to Mexico year after year, wanting to remain close to our families and our roots. My mother returned to Mexico 8 years ago and my father is now in Arizona. The distance to our loved ones was difficult in their marriage, often having to miss milestones such as births, weddings, and even funerals as we waited for our citizenship status.

What’s one memory, story, recipe, or item you and your family have carried with you?

On August 7th, 1995 I found out we were moving to the United States. At the time, we thought it would be a temporary move and I was full of excitement. I had been keeping a journal at the time and I kept the page from my journal entry from that date. It’s a reminder of the life we left behind for the journey ahead. I also have kept the little flag from my citizenship ceremony as a reminder of the years that went into this journey.

We continue to remain close to our family by cooking our grandmother’s recipes year after year. Every Christmas we make pozole the same way our grandmother would, we make the sopa de albóndigas, and her rice, as well as her salsas. We all celebrate Dia de Los Muertos to remain close to our traditions and keep traditional items for our altars.