My grandmother came to this country when my mother was 11. She had finally realized that there wasn’t a future for her and her kids in her country. Back in her country, she didn’t care for her kids. She always said people have kids, so that their kids can take care of them, clean and cook. She first came to this country when my mother was 11 years old. She went back and forth for a couple years. When my grandmother lived in the Dominican Republic, she had no job. She would stay home with her four kids. Her husband would give her $300 a month for food. When she got her papers, she brought her two oldest kids to the United States, so that they can work and make money for her. When they first came, they lived next to a garbage room in the basement of an apartment building. This rusted iron pot was the first household item that they had since they migrated over to the United States. Till this day, my family still has it. I feel that it symbolizes how my mother’s lifestyle was when she first came to this country and how it has changed. When first coming to this country my grandmother and mother worked in a factory, that manufactured clothing. All the money my mother made, she gave to her mother, so that she can bring the rest of her siblings. My mother’s lifestyle during her upbringing centered around her mother. Currently, my mother centers her lifestyle around her kids. And makes sure that her kids are always happy and striving forward for themselves not for the sole purpose of satisfying their parents. 

– AS

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