this one is dedicated to monica
i wish id update more just so i can have documentation of my freshman year in collge, but theres so much to say that i never have time lol
But instead of writing about my fun in Gainesville, I wanna talk about Hialeah. Everyone who was born and raised there spends probably about 20 minutes a day complaining about the stupid drivers or the lack of intelligence standing behind any supermarket cash register or the invasion of reffiness that has taken overt the stores at westland or the fact that the only franchised non-fast food restaurant there is Red Lobster. Anyone who is reading this right now and nodding their head in agreement is a true Hialeahan. But you know what?? It's the only place in the whole world where you will find a lady standing outside her house selling tamales, where you can buy a full breakfast for $1.99 and churros y chocolate for about the same, where you can drive by taco bell on any random night and find a group of people just hanging out, where you can drive down any block in east hialeah and find at least one house adoring san lazaro with his huge statue sitting on the front lawn. you might not think so, but those are the type of things that make hialeah home.
People might not think so bc they dedicate so much time highlighting all the negative aspects of our city, but it is where we come from and it is the place that has watched us from entering kindergarten at dupuis, meadowlane, bright, or north hialeah as scared 5 year olds to walking out of either HHS, HML, or Goleman as men and women. we are who we are because of the love our parents have given us, the lessons our teachers have taught us, the good times our friends have provided us with, and the traditions our Hispanic culture has instilled in us. We have received all these things at one place: Hialeah.
I'm guilty of it. Claiming that I am too good to stay as a townie my whole life and that I want to expand my horizons and see the world and meet new people. In part, it's the reason why I didn't apply to one single school in South FL- not even FIU. But when you step out of the little bubble we know as lluvia, fango, y factoria, you realize that home is unlike any place out there and you start to miss it. like crazy.
During my mini-Thanksgiving vacation, I spent a lot of time hearing my parents drop subtle hints of selling the house. I heard names as close as Kendall and as far as Virginia being thrown out there. I have had one MAJOR move in my entire life and it was from 60 st and 12 ave, to 60 st and 4th ave. my parents sold the house i grew up in and i still cry about it. we obviously moved close by and although it affected me it was still comforting to know that i wasn't going to lose my friends or have to change schools. i finally start seeing my new house as "home" and now there is talk about leaving la ciudad que progresa. I know we all vow that we are leaving hialeah one day, but now I'm not so sure I want to. sure, i want my condo by the beach and my two story house in coco plum lol but i still want my children to come back and visit their gandparents in the house where i played the ouji board with jova, maiko, n humberto. i want them to see the room my dad and i painted together in pink and purple during my senior year.
the point of this entry was to let everyone out there know that as cliche as it sounds, home really is where the heart is. No matter where i end up or who i meet, my heart belongs in a suburb right outside of miami disregarded my many but loved by me bc it the place where i met my best friend in 5th grade, had my first kiss in 8th and drank my first rum and coke in 10th lol
But instead of writing about my fun in Gainesville, I wanna talk about Hialeah. Everyone who was born and raised there spends probably about 20 minutes a day complaining about the stupid drivers or the lack of intelligence standing behind any supermarket cash register or the invasion of reffiness that has taken overt the stores at westland or the fact that the only franchised non-fast food restaurant there is Red Lobster. Anyone who is reading this right now and nodding their head in agreement is a true Hialeahan. But you know what?? It's the only place in the whole world where you will find a lady standing outside her house selling tamales, where you can buy a full breakfast for $1.99 and churros y chocolate for about the same, where you can drive by taco bell on any random night and find a group of people just hanging out, where you can drive down any block in east hialeah and find at least one house adoring san lazaro with his huge statue sitting on the front lawn. you might not think so, but those are the type of things that make hialeah home.
People might not think so bc they dedicate so much time highlighting all the negative aspects of our city, but it is where we come from and it is the place that has watched us from entering kindergarten at dupuis, meadowlane, bright, or north hialeah as scared 5 year olds to walking out of either HHS, HML, or Goleman as men and women. we are who we are because of the love our parents have given us, the lessons our teachers have taught us, the good times our friends have provided us with, and the traditions our Hispanic culture has instilled in us. We have received all these things at one place: Hialeah.
I'm guilty of it. Claiming that I am too good to stay as a townie my whole life and that I want to expand my horizons and see the world and meet new people. In part, it's the reason why I didn't apply to one single school in South FL- not even FIU. But when you step out of the little bubble we know as lluvia, fango, y factoria, you realize that home is unlike any place out there and you start to miss it. like crazy.
During my mini-Thanksgiving vacation, I spent a lot of time hearing my parents drop subtle hints of selling the house. I heard names as close as Kendall and as far as Virginia being thrown out there. I have had one MAJOR move in my entire life and it was from 60 st and 12 ave, to 60 st and 4th ave. my parents sold the house i grew up in and i still cry about it. we obviously moved close by and although it affected me it was still comforting to know that i wasn't going to lose my friends or have to change schools. i finally start seeing my new house as "home" and now there is talk about leaving la ciudad que progresa. I know we all vow that we are leaving hialeah one day, but now I'm not so sure I want to. sure, i want my condo by the beach and my two story house in coco plum lol but i still want my children to come back and visit their gandparents in the house where i played the ouji board with jova, maiko, n humberto. i want them to see the room my dad and i painted together in pink and purple during my senior year.
the point of this entry was to let everyone out there know that as cliche as it sounds, home really is where the heart is. No matter where i end up or who i meet, my heart belongs in a suburb right outside of miami disregarded my many but loved by me bc it the place where i met my best friend in 5th grade, had my first kiss in 8th and drank my first rum and coke in 10th lol