When you go to a new country for vacation, it is hard to cope with the new culture, especially if you don’t know stuff about that culture. Now imagine trying to live in that country you know zero stuff about, struggling day after day to live a better life than the one you had before. This is the challenge many people have done, and they will all tell you it wasn’t easy. Someone that introduces himself to a new culture and struggles to have a better life is someone courageous, someone I call “Apá,” my dad.

Childhood wasn’t easy in Guadalajara para mi apá. He had 4 brothers and 3 sisters, and life in México isn’t easy when you’re poor and it is even harder when you have a big family compared to the families of 5s that are common today. It is often only one man, my grandfather, that works to maintain the family. My dad would tell me, “Deberías de estar contento con lo que tienes. Niños en otras partes del mundo se mueren por tener lo que tú tienes. Cuando yo era pequeño y se me rompieron los pantalones, tu abuela le ponía un parche porqué no había plata para un pantalón nuevo. Que vergüenza.” I would tell him that he was right and that I should be happy with what I have, especially with what I see on tv and the internet. Struggling for money, my uncles would work as much as they could when they had the age to do so, selling what they could. As soon as my dad had the opportunity, he would sell jaletinas and some bakery items on the filthy streets of Guadalajara. He had to work to help the family and lighten the load of my grandfather.

Another difficult task that my father encountered was when he immigrated to the state of California. He came illegally when he was 20 years old (he is now a US citizen). He had to learn a completely new language and culture. There wasn’t a significant number of Mexican immigrants back then compares to today. My dad and other immigrants knew that it would be very different over the border, being away from your family and not having many from your country where you can relate your experiences with. Being an immigrant back in those days wasn’t as difficult as nowadays, but it was still a challenge to come from México to the US. He didn’t know what to work in, but he had help from a cousin. He started to work in the upholstery business. “Antes no sabía nada de tapicería, pero mira hasta donde he llegado. Con esfuerzo se puede lograr muchas cosas.” My dad learned English over the years with a lot of effort. It was difficult being an upholsterer in California, sometimes you have to take risks in order to progress. My dad took the risk and he moved to Chicago.

My dad lived in Chicago for a short time before moving to Round Lake. During an upholstery job, he met my mother. Once they got married and had their first child, life was difficult. They had to rent a room and live with other families in the same house. Me and my brothers were born with asthma and our childhood wasn’t the easiest. Back in those days, there wasn’t enough pharmacies as now and it was difficult to afford the medication. My mom was a stay at home mom so she could take care of my older brother, so only my dad worked. It was difficult, but I am thankful that my family got through those tough days. Also my dad has had to be very careful since he didn’t have US citizenship (which he got after I was born). He also had to be careful with his money. To this date our family has no debts and he is also  the only one in our family that a full time job to put food on our table every day. My father has been teaching me since I was born to take care of my money and be a hard worker and not be a lazy and unemployed person. I have developed some upholstery skills because he has taught me them. My dad had been a great teacher to me and many other people (Not specifically in the upholstery field). He has taken me to his deliveries, which range from Wisconsin to the Chicagoland area and Indiana. His job has risen over the years to maintain a family of 5 plus a dog and my grandmother. He is proud of maintaining our family and being an upholsterer.

My dad has had to do face many obstacles that other people wouldn’t dare to even think about doing it. Moving to a country you know almost nothing about is a difficult task to do. Since he was a small, little boy, my dad has gone through some very difficult times. His sayings motivate you to look at your life as a good life and to be grateful for it. Some people have really difficult lives, so be grateful with what you have. If it wasn’t for all the suffering and struggle he went through, I am positive that I wouldn’t be alive. Por todo su sufrimiento y sacrificios, estoy contento de llamar a mi apá mi heroe.