This is Pozole Verde. It’s made with pork -- sometimes chicken -- maize, green sauce, and topped off with oregano, lettuce, or lime. It originates in Mexico. My mom always makes it during wintertime, usually during Christmas and New Year. Although it’s mostly associated with holidays, it includes the tight-knit bond of family and friends. My parents grew up poor, living on a rancho, only knowing how to work in agriculture, hunt, grow livestock, and lacked in education due to there being no teachers. When my dad came to the US for the first time at 19/20, he got in a lot of trouble with the police. One time he wanted to start a campfire in the middle of the park because he wanted to grill some corn but, got the police called on him and the officers forced him to put out his fire. He didn’t speak or understand any English and hadn’t realized how different this country was. In el rancho, he was allowed to kill and eat a hare, dove, or squirrel with no repercussion, but here it was taboo and bad. As he always reminds me, “When you grow up hungry and poor, anything is fair game.”Both my parents left the land they knew in order to find opportunities. They wanted to give their kids a better, give them things that they never had, and make them never suffer from hunger. Each time we eat pozole together I’m grateful for it. Whenever our family and friends get together, it’s always a good time with smiles, laughter, alcohol, and a lot of singing

– Laura Camacho

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