January 21, 2011
Dear Mom and Dad,
To begin, this story is not about me, it’s about you. I chose to write this story about you because my life has been excellent and I have you guys to thank! As everyone knows immigrating to the United States can be very difficult; it is not an easy journey. You have to rely on strangers to help you cross and it’s scary because you don’t know if they are going to turn you in to the “La Migra,” but you take the risk for a chance at a better life.
I remember when I was 11 years old and you first told me your story. We were all watching TV on the soft, couch like any normal evening, when I asked you curiously, “?Como venistes a los Estados Unidos?”( How did you come to the United States?) because I had to ask you for a school project.
Dad, you said suprisingly , “Era muy dificil para venir a los Estados Unidos. Teniamos que tomar muchos riesgos.” (It was very difficult to come to the United States, we had to take a lot of risks.)
Dad, I remember how proud I was of you as you boldly told the story. It all started when you suddenly decided to come to the US. to help your mom pay for her small house. Little did you know, you were going on the most dangerous journey of your life.

You took a bus to Tijuana from Mexico City. From there, you went with a coyote who drove you to Los Angeles. Next, you looked for a job and spent six years trying to quickly earn enough money to go back to Mexico and get my mother. These six years weren't all flowers and peaches. You impregnated another woman who gave birth to my half-brother Adriel in 1994 a year before my mother came to the United States. Dad, you didn’t tell my mom about my step-brother until they came to the US. My mom felt sad, but she still loved my dad.
When you took my mom to the States, you guys got caught carelessly in the middle of the night in the desert by the immigration patrol and you were put in seperate jails. Mom, you felt scared like a spider almost being crushed to death. You thought you would be in jail forever. Dad, you were worried about my mom more than yourself.
The two of you were both thinking depressing thoughts like, “Tal vez yo nunca voy a ver a mi familia.”(I might never see my family again!) While my mom thought of her family, you thought sadly “Creo que yo nunca voy a ver a mi novia”(I think that I’ll never see my girlfriend again.)
When both of you were set free from the jail, three hours later you tried your luck again, and you made it safely. One year later, I was born.
You two had many problems starting in Los Angeles,Like you didn’t know English , you had to support yourselves and me, and my mother had to find a job. In the end, you both managed to get a job, an apartment, and a car. Later on, you had three daughters. Evelyn, the second oldest loves to dance and she dances really well she may dance like a dancer from a t.v show. Jasmin the third oldest, looks like Dora because of her short brown hair and her ginormous eyes. Lastly, Diana the youngest, is a talker once she starts talking she almost can’t stop and she is only three years old.
I want to thank you for everything because you risked everything for me and my siblings, I have a great life and I have you to thank for it. I am grateful for all the little things you have given me because I know you never had nice things growing up.
Today, I appreciate you and take advantage of the opportunities you have given me. Like it or not, I know you are eventually going to die someday but before then, I want to make you proud of me so you know that all your sacrifices were worth it...










Sincerely,
Your Son