Wabi-sabi? When I first heard this term I remember suspicioning it was some relative to the mouth-scorching green stuff that comes with sushi. But it’s not. This is a conceptual […]
Moving to America In life, never settle for crumbs. Become educated and informed; do not let the ignorance of the law or society’s rules suffocate you. There are no borders […]
Perspective is defined as a particular attitude toward something or a point of view. A statistic is defined as a fact or piece of data. At eight years old I […]
What is a Girl Scout? This is a seemingly simple question. A Girl Scout is a member of an organization called Girl Scouts. And, well, the organization is made up […]
Standing in the checkout line at Dollar Tree, my gaze fixated on the forbidden treasures Mama always warned me not to touch. Colorful lighters, lollipops in a myriad of flavors, […]
The acronym V.I.P. has various connotations to different people; to me, V.I.P. means “Very Important Pig.” It all started with me seeing some piggies on the internet. After countless months […]
I hate doors. I hated them ever since I stepped out the door to say bye to my father for four and a half years, sixteen hours away from each […]
I remember standing in front of that Jack in the Box when I made the decision to go into the alley and slam the rest of the heroin that I […]
Britney Spears isn’t Mexican, neither is Bloom from Winx, neither is Kim Possible, neither is Barbie, neither is Lizzie McGuire, and neither is Hannah Montana. Picking at my skin. Concoctions […]
“Where’s your favorite place in the whole world?” my twelve-year-old brother, Max, asks as we careen down a snow-covered mountain in our leaking, rusty, beat-up 1997 white Ford Expedition. That […]
I choke out a laugh and paste on a wobbly smile as I stare at my reflection in the mirror. When did it get this way? I’m in the privacy […]
My dad always used to get upset with me when I cried. After a while, I tried everything to avoid tears. Press your tongue to the roof of your mouth, […]
“My father had the kind of anger all fathers do. Loud and terrible. It lingers for your whole life.” – Katie Maria’s “It lingers for your whole life” “I am […]
I hated my sisters for the humiliation I had to suffer while standing on the stool as I was wearing one of their latest creations of clothing. The pins piercing […]
The solemn-faced man at the doorway to my mother’s bedroom wore blue latex gloves. “Would you please come in and remove her jewelry?” he asked. But Mom wasn’t wearing any, […]
It wasn’t a shock to me when my father started drinking. Sometimes I found myself justifying it. He needs this, I thought. Papi works long hard hours under the sun, […]
Subject analysis: In High School, I never got the chance to read a book that understood me. Instead, I was left with books that I disidentified and only read the […]
You start the long six hours drive on the lone desert highway void of life except tumbleweeds and sage brush. Your thoughts tumble and circle back like the dust devil […]
The last time I saw my baby cousin we were all in my mother’s backyard. My dad had set up one of my mom’s sun lounger chairs in front of […]
My father’s father was the first to face the crippling name. Though I do not know the ins and outs, I see what the name has done to him. The […]
My bare feet skipped through the thick, nighttime air, insensible to the encompassing zizz as hordes of malaria laden mosquitos hovered and buzzed, attacking in fierce, airborne squadrons. The mouth […]
As we stepped out of the elevator to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, I couldn’t help but stare at the badge that was given to me to allow me into […]
I look around this room, full of so much youth. We are already flowered but budding new limbs with a tremendous ache as we reach to become more. We all […]
My whole family is Mexican. I am Mexican, my parents are Mexican, my cousins are Mexican, my grandparents are Mexican, it goes on for a while. We’re all pretty Mexican, […]
When I was in fifth grade, I got lice. Addendum: in fifth grade, my whole Girl Scout troop got lice after spending the weekend before Thanksgiving camping in a lodge […]
My dad’s 1996 Toyota Land Cruiser barreled down the I-5 freeway, sending gentle wafts of balmy air over my mother, father and sister. Like hot breath, it descended directly beyond […]
let out a deep sigh as I looked in the fogged up mirror with a smile. My wet hair touches my back and towel wrapped around my body. In a […]
was surprise that our company was the transportation for Carlos Santana and his entourage for his concert in 2019 in San Diego. I have worked as a limo driver for […]
His name was Pablo, he is like our ancestors before us, another grain of sand in the sea of humanity. You will not find him in any books of history, […]
The four musketeers Jose, Joel, Jorge and Alfonso. We met in junior high. Joel’s family is from Ensenada Mexico. Joel is my best friend also my best man at my […]
I was nineteen years old and medically discharged from the military when I first started college. After the winter semester, I was academically suspended for maintaining a low GPA—I didn’t […]
Health inequalities exist in varying levels among many regions and ethnic groups, but among Indigenous North American groups health inequalities are much higher and typically more severe than for almost […]
January 22. Monday. The sky is clear and sunny, the air still. At least, that’s how I remember it–campus empty of people at 11am, which actually isn’t very likely. At […]
Coffee makes me a might nervous when I drink it.” Karl Childers, Sling Blade Each morning in the United States, 172, 437, 895 people awaken with the same vague feeling […]