#bridgesnotswalls

I was six years old. It was March 1999 & all I knew was that we were going to “Nueva York” to visit my grandma & my aunt. I remember how stressed my mom was at the airport when they checked our bags. The guards opened our luggage & rummaged through our things, questioning our intentions - were we just visiting or were we staying? Things had gotten really rough in Ecuador. In 1999, the sucre (the Ecuadorian currency) lost 67% of its foreign exchange value. Then in one week, it nosedived 17%.

Our quality of life plummeted. Our family car was sold (later, I learned it was actually repossessed). We left the house I remember growing up in entirely empty. But my mom kept telling me we were just visiting.

My family came on a tourist visa, which we all overstayed. And from there, you inevitably live in fear. There are days where you forget, but the fear always comes back. My parents tried their best to shelter me - they knew I would worry - but I picked it up pretty quickly. You don’t need words to explain fear. You just sense it.

My dad hustled to provide for our family: He shelved items at the 99c store, went door to door to sell pots and pans, computer software games, you name it. My mom did everything she could to be present & was at every teacher conference, field trip, and graduation.

I was undocumented until I got my green card at 19 years old. But by then, I had already foregone high school college acceptances, & when my grandma died I couldn’t go back to Ecuador. I couldn’t risk my immigration process.

At 25, I *finally* became a citizen. On the Uber ride back, I looked at my naturalization certificate & started crying uncontrollably. I thought about all of the sacrifices my parents & family made so that I could stay here, finish my education, find a path to citizenship, and find a way to go to college.

I’m 26 now & I still haven’t gone back to Ecuador. I have 9 uncles & aunts from my dad’s side, over 25 cousins, & many people who we consider family.

I can only hope that I’m making them proud. They can’t come here, so I’m saving money to go back. I can’t wait to surprise my parents with flights to Ecuador soon. It will always be home.

- Genesis

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