Even though I was too young to remember moving to America, I can never forget where I came from.
My mom and I left Honduras when I was two. We first moved to South Carolina, then relocated to Durham with my stepfather. My mom and I have lived here in the United States for 13 years currently. My mom and step father worked hard for me and my siblings, and still do to this day, to build a life here.
When I was a little girl, I used to watch the famous Hispanic shows such as El Chavo del 8, La familia P. Luche, La Rosa de Guadalupe, and also American kid shows like Peppa pig, Tom and Jerry, Spongebob, and more. I didn’t grow up rich, but my family isn’t poor, either, so the only times I could watch television when I was little was every Saturday and Sunday. My step father would always wake me up at the exact time the television shows would start so that I could watch. He did not want me to miss them.
My mother and I would always put on Hispanic music to clean the house. Every Saturday, I would wake up to very loud music of the musical band Aventura and other Hispanic artists. Now that I think about it, music is part of almost everything we do. Everywhere that my family and I would go, Hispanic songs were involved.
I grew up believing in God. Every Tuesday and Saturday, my mother and my little sister and I would go to church. We would always get takeout food before or after the Saturday mass, and still do to this day. It is something that my family have always loved doing. My favorite food has always been pollo con tajadas. It’s a traditional Honduran dish of crispy fried chicken served with thinly sliced fried green plantains topped with shredded cabbage salad (colesaw) and pickled red onions. In my household, pollo con tajadas is a dish we will always enjoy.
My family has always celebrated birthday parties by hosting cookouts and family hangouts every Saturday or Sunday. We love to get together and eat. One of the foods my family serves is carne asada with chimole, white cheese, spicy sausages and tortillas. Every birthday party, we share good energy and happiness. I love to dance punta and bachata with my aunts and uncles. And it’s great to simply hang out together.
I used to be ashamed of where I come from. People from my past life, especially throughout middle school, made me feel like being Hispanic was embarrassing. I didn’t play Hispanic music around people who weren’t Hispanic. Whenever I was the only one in the room who looked like me, I did not feel comfortable in my own skin.
Now I play the songs no matter who’s around. I started seeing more of my people representing my culture on social media and at Riverside. It was inspiring to see the food, music and dancing I grew up with get more attention and recognition.
Because of that, I learned that sharing culture is a good thing. Nobody has to come from where I am from to feel the music. Being Hispanic isn’t a shame I carry anymore. It’s the part of me that makes me, me.
Hispanic Heritage Month reminds me my culture was never something to hide. It was something to turn up.
