These are pictures from my parents wedding in Guanajuato, Mexico 1983. My mom got married when she was 25 and my dad married when he was 23. My dad had been crossing the border back and forth between the United States and Mexico. On this particular year he was able to convince my mom and my grandfather for her hand in marriage. My mom's name is Eleazar but everyone calls her Elia. My dad's name is Jose Natividad but everyone calls him Nati. My parents both came to the US about a year later. My mom's mom, my mama Jesus, had pictures of all her children that got married framed and along the wall of her room. Last year my grandma got sick and I told my mom it was time to bring her wedding picture. These photos are important to me and my family because it brings us back to a time when they were happy. They've had a rocky marriage and as a family we've been through a lot. Sometimes I forget that at some point they were happy and they wanted to be together. My mother is very Catholic, there's no such thing as divorce in her eyes, whatever happens you ride it out all the way through. I love having old photos of them and seeing them when they were younger and full of life. It reminds me that nothing lasts forever. My ultimate goal is to be happy, and I want them to be happy too.

– Elian Miranda Alvarado

Relationship:  Child of im/migrant Child of im/migrant