Throughout my 24 years of living I have been through and experienced a significant of things that made me who I am today. With all that I’ve experienced it has formed the way I view certain situations, think, and the way I go about them. Coming from a big well known family that’s from the Caribbean that carries the history that they do and being raised in the United States have played a big role of my opinions and the way I view, value, and acquire things. Even though my family is from Haiti and Cuba I have a significant amount of family that now lives in the United States mostly in New York and Miami and other parts of the world. Before my mother’s siblings was in the states they were born and raised in Haiti from a Cuban father and a Haitian …show more content…
Growing up my mother and her 14 other siblings were raised in one household and was mostly taken care of by my grandmother and house servants due to my grandpa traveling back and forth from Cuba. As some got older and started families they moved out and got their own homes in Haiti or moved to the states with the help of each other and my grandfather. When my mother moved to New York that’s when she met my father who was also from Haiti. After them having my brother in Brooklyn New York and living there until he was three years old that’s when they decided to move to Miami Florida because of my father’s Auto Part business. While my parents were living there that’s when I was conceived but was only able to live there for three years before moving to New York …show more content…
We would take family vacations to Haiti to visit him and other family members. That’s when I had the most fun in my childhood. The first time I ever step foot in Haiti I fell in love. I was young but I was still old enough to know that this is where my family roots are. The feeling I got being there was a feeling I would never forget till this day. In the several trips to Haiti I was able to visit my grandpa’s home several time which is where my mom and her siblings grew up, and meet most of the house servants that helped raised them all. I was also able to meet family members I never met before and go back and forth to the white house due to my uncle being the president at the time. On January 12, 2010 Haiti experienced a massive earthquake that left the country and most in the most devastated situation they ever experienced. On the day of the earthquake I lost an uncle due to a house collapsing on him while he was at a friend’s house. And three months later I lost my father on Easter from him having a heart attack. During my trip to Haiti for my father’s funeral that’s when I discovered that I had 4 sisters and 6 brothers. Even though it was our first time meeting it felt like we known each other all our lives and have been close ever since. Now as an adult looking back at my childhood I wouldn’t change anything except for the fact that me and my dad didn’t keep in contact the way I
Although having a Mexican mother and an American father was not always socially acceptable, growing up with a different food taste, having a close-knit family, as well as regularly getting disciplined shaped how I am as a person today. I was dipped into a very different childhood most children did not grow up into.
My family of origin is Haitian. My grandfather was a crop farmer in Haiti. My maternal grandmother passed away when my mother was eight years old. As a result, my mother became somewhat of a foster child. While her father was living, his work prevented him from taking care of her, so he sent her to live with multiple families so that he could provide for her. My mother was abused in many of the homes she was placed in. My Mother came
People who are part of the Haitian-American culture, like myself, are either born in Haiti and moved to the U.S. and have assimilate to the American culture or were born in the U.S. and have parent who were originally from Haiti. I was born in Haiti and raised in the U.S. I can relate to other people, female and male, who were also born in Haiti and have moved to the U.S at a young age. Members
I was born in Port-Au Prince, Haiti in the summer of 1993. It was only my brother, mother and I living there in a big house in Haiti. My dad was already out the picture before I was even one. My mother and father never really got along after I was born so he left us. I don’t remember much about living in Haiti, I only heard stories of the reason why we left Haiti and moved to Miami,
As a Haitian immigrant, my parents and I would spend our family vacations in our hometown of Port-au- Prince, Haiti. I would enjoy participating in family activities such as card games, cooking, and just the quality time that we spent together. We could play these games and laugh amongst each other for hours, without a care in the world merely telling jokes and listening to the elder parables. Amongst my family I felt untouchable. Like a tree in the wind, my only cares were that of the breeze and the beauty of my foundation. In the sway of the wind I was overcome with a sense of peace.
In August 2005, at the tender age of 7, I received the most devastating news. I was told by my family that a hurricane was coming to my city, New Orleans, Louisiana. Because of this storm, Hurricane Katrina, I was told that I would most likely have to move away for a long time, meaning the rest of my life. My family and I lost everything, and the hurricane ended up destroying the entire city completely. This was heartbreaking to me for a plethora of reasons, including that I lost loved ones and was separated from the rest of my family at such an early age. This ravaging storm marked the most drastic change of my life.
Growing up in the Caribbean has molded me to be the person I am today. Our culture and customs are very different in comparison to Americans, and we take pride in the little things. For one, manners, wisdom, and obedience are just a few of the important aspects of our culture. There is a saying that says “ Who won’t hear, will feel” and a popular scripture “Honour thy father and thy mother.” We show utmost respect to those older than us and are trained on how to conduct ourselves. We grow up knowing life isn’t easy, and that there will be trials to overcome.
I was raised in Haiti for eight years. Those first eight years of my childhood was full of joy and happiness. I played with friends and my sibling, ate, and went to school, and had nothing to worry about. It was not until a few months of coming into the United States that
My background, my culture plays a huge part of my identity, it is the part of me I cannot change nor do I ever want to. The love and patriotism I have for my country is undeniable. I am Haitian born in Haiti, raised in the USA. At some point, being Haitian was not “cool” nor was it acceptable. I remember being in third grade coming from Haiti, not speaking any English, not to mention I went to a dominantly white school with very few black or African American students. Being in Haiti, I never felt different, never knew what bullying was, never faced any hardship nor what it means to feel and look different, unlike many of my peers who came from Haiti, I did not suffer a hard life. My dad lived in the United States and at the time my mother
I was born in the island of Haiti. When I was the age of six my father and I took a flight to the United States to live. We lived in Brooklyn New York; It was my dad, my aunt and me in a one bedroom apartment. I don’t remember me getting on the flight to the U.S, but I do remember how cold it was. I remember seeing all of the buildings and lights around me.
My nationality was no longer Guyanese. At first I thought nothing of it, but I began to wonder if my ethnicity would now be American or Guyanese American. But I remember the meaning of ethnicity. Although, my nationality may have changed, I still associate mainly with my culture that I am from. I was raised in a traditional Guyanese home. Even though my family and I lived in America, we still continue many of our Guyanese traditions. The food we cooked were all the same. The music I listen to was unchanged. The respect we have for our elders all remain the same. These traditions I continue each and every day. I finally came to an acceptance that my ethnicity is Guyanese. This is the culture that I associate and identify with
Before I knew it I was already a junior in high school and life was had taken a turn for the best. My now current step dad John who had been dating my mom for around 3 years by then decided to purpose to my mom. Things got even more exciting when they told me that we were going to be building a brand new house in the same area and to top that off my mom for the first time ever promised this would be our last move, and has kept that promise ever
They were shrimpers at the time and out at sea for several months at a time. My sister and I along with my cousins were the average young kids. We played outside together, we shared rooms, and had our share of happy as well as not so happy moments. The most significant life moment for me being the day my oldest cousin blurted out to me in anger that I was adopted. I remember that day as it were yesterday. I was 13 years old and we were outside of my grandparents’ house on a bright sunny day. For whatever reason, we got into an argument, and she told me “your dad isn’t even your real dad”. I felt shocked, sad, confused, and embarrassed all at the same time. My sister then went inside the house to tell everyone what was going on outside. My father quickly came out and told me he needed to talk to me about
As a little boy, growing up in Jamaica, family was important. I grew up with my mom who was a teacher, my dad who was a correctional officer, and older sister which is seven years older than me. Most of my weekends was spent at my grandparents’ house with my big sister. Then on Sundays I would go to church with my grandma and sister while my grandpa stayed home. If I can remember correctly, around age eight, my mom, sister and I would have our summer vacation in America. Life was going well, until my family dynamic changed. My grandma migrated to America because of the opportunities available there.
Complicated is a good word to describe my childhood. I am originally from Lima, Peru, where I lived my first eight years. Also, I am the only child of my mom Susana Ramos, a secretary, and Julio Ayin, a pilot of the Peruvian air force. Since before I was born, my parents were separated because of infidelities. Both, frequently argued over money and myself. I had to constantly attend counseling sessions because I was acting up, due to the fact that I was getting affected by my parent’s hostile encounters. As a kid, I always looked at my friends and saw how their family were united and how they had a great relationship with their father, which I always wanted but never got. I spend countless nights, crying and trying to figure out why my father never came to see me and every time I ask him why he never told me. Until one day I found out that he got