The Best Of Both Worlds

Being Mexican-American I get the best of both worlds.

Cheeseburgers and tacos de al pastor,

Pizza and tamales,

Sandwiches and tortas,

Hot chocolate and champurrado,

Popular music on B96 Radio and corridos on La Que Buena,

Halloween and Dia de Los Muertos,

Fourth of July, and Dia de Independencia,

Christmas and Dia de Reyes,

Christmas stockings and shoes under my bed,

The boogeyman and la llorona,

Twix, snickers and duvalin, mazapan,

Coca Cola and agua de horchata.

I eat Turkey and Mexican rice on Thanksgiving,

I root for the America soccer team and the Chicago Bulls,

Two flags to take pride in,

Two national anthems to honor,

Two languages to express myself in,

Two cultures merged into one young woman.

But am I too American for my Mexican heritage?

Am I too Mexican for my American culture?

Catherine: with a C, never a K.

“Your name is too white, it’s not Mexican enough. That’s a white name”

Is my spoken word too broken?

“That’s not how you pronounce it”

“Why can’t you talk, read and write perfect Spanish, aren’t you Mexican?”

But who cares if you are too much or too little for anyone else. Nobody’s opinion of you matters, be who you want to be. In the end, one, both or even three cultures make you who you are and that is someone unique.

#blogging #culture #life #writing