"Before coming to the U.S., we stayed in TJ for a few months. My brother and I used to put plates together and invited our family and all the neighbors we could find and would act out all kinds of plays and skits. We'd borrow our parents and grandparents clothes and everyone would applaud us- we felt so special, we felt like we were entertaining everyone. We felt like we were on a vacation, it felt like we were going to Disneyland! We were all excited and looking forward to a fresh, new start filled with many opportunities.
There was a huge impact coming from Mexico to the U.S., though. I didn't know the language or anyone, and I tried so hard to blend in with the culture. My teachers wouldn't get a word out of me and one day when I was called to read out loud in front of my class, a student in the back of room called out to me and yelled, 'Speak English, I don't understand you!' and he kept yelling and yelling and I completely shut down. I told myself I wouldn't try to learn English anymore and I wanted nothing to do with this culture. It was an experience that gave me a lot of self-doubt and really broke me. It's taken years to come back from that traumatizing experience of being told that I didn't belong and I'm still- slowly- recovering and healing from it.
Little by little, I've been coming out of my comfort zone and have been healing from past experiences. I saw these girls empowerment workshops and remembered thinking how much I could have benefitted from something like this. I started taking the classes and getting the coaching to host them and have been able to further heal myself with the tools I've been given. I started in June 2020 and began hosting my classes in August 2020. Seeing the transformation in these young women once they realize that their power is within them is beautiful. I intend to teach these girls that they are not limited by excuses, gender and mindsets, we can grow and expand ourselves. Self-love comes from within, not other people. I want to empower one girl at a time.
I used to be filled with so much doubt and insecurity, and I can now express myself truly. I am my most and best authentic self. I remember trying so hard to fit in and make people like me, but I've realized that we all have emotions and we need to express them or we can't be true to ourselves. It's important to love and accept yourself for who you are, and this mindset must begin when we are young women. Seeing these workshops two years ago inspired me to want to empower young girls; What we do is something that can heal generations of women to come. This is what I need and am called to do."
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