The artifact that I chose that connects to my family’s immigration is a cheese grater. It is a yellow plastic cheese grater that ironically looks like cheese. When my mom first came to this country from Guyana, she brought it with her because it reminded her of her childhood in her native country. She brought it because she wanted to feel and taste Guyana as she left. When she arrived in 1988, she made my grandmother’s infamous Mac N’ Cheese. She called my grandmother who was still overseas at the time to receive the recipe. When she made it, she almost cried because it tasted just like my grandma’s. This grater was also used to grate things like coconut when my great aunt and grandmother bake their delicious pies, cookies,and pastries. A family friend who happens to be my grandma’s neighbor in Guyana makes coconut cookies which we call “coconut biscuit”. When she makes these scrumptious cookies, she has to grate the coconut in order to put it in the batter. When my grandmother goes back to Guyana for her annual visit, she makes the cookies there and sends them to me because she knows I enjoy them a lot. These foods, made with the grater, give me fond memories of Guyana, even though I wasn’t born there. We still use the grater to this day and it gives us all a bittersweet feeling because it reminds us of Guyana, family, and good times.. We still have family that’s never immigrated to this country. This is the sad part because we can’t spend those heartfelt moments together.

– Bryanna

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