Being part of two Worlds

After reading chapter 23 in Maya Angelou I Know Why the Cage Bird Sings, I did not feel as lost as I usually do at my age. It was towards at the end when she remembers how wonderful it is to be who she is. "I was no longer simply a member of the class of 1940; I was a proud member of the wonderful, beautiful Negro race." Once I read that the memories of grade school came to me all over again. All the times that I was rejected from my Mexican race because I look white and all the times I was rejected from the white race because I am a Mexican. At times I would wonder why my parents chose to come to this country where we were never wanted. At worst times I even wanted to be white, and rejected my heritage. I always thought there was something wrong with me but the older I became the more I realized I am wonderful! The more I experienced the more I recognized that I was the best part of both worlds. I did what it is normal to do in the American traditions, like driving at 16, or having a big party at 15, and at 18 (21 is next!!). I can also do all the great things that my Mexican heritage teaches; like cooking, speaking two languages, having the beautiful body of a Latina, and a bold attitude that gets me everywhere I have wanted to go.
Like Maya I was lost and by little actions from others overcame that mind set, like she starts doing later in the story I started and still look for ways to over come all the judgment people can throw your way. It reassured me that I was not the only on in this world that suffered from it at one point in life.