A trompo, which is a spinning top connected with a string, was a toy I grew up playing with my brother. This toy was first introduced to us by my father who used to play with it when he was a kid. It is originally a popular mexican toy that was often sold at flea markets and grocery stores in Mexico. While my dad wasn’t born in Mexico himself, his mom, or my grandma was. She was born in Culiacan, Mexico, while my dad's father was from Chicago. My father told us about him and his siblings playing with them and even betting candy on whos top would be the last one spinning. My father told us a lot about how our grandparents would often go to Mexico and bring back these trompos for us. I didn’t realize it until I was older, but those toys were a big part of our Mexican culture. These little tops symbolized our families ties to our Mexican heritage. But sadly my father wasn’t able to properly educate my brother and I about our culture since he was always busy working. Although my mother was around more, my mom wasn’t very in touch with her Mexican culture since my grandparents never had the time to teach her. Although I lack information about my ethnic background, I still feel like I am connected to my ancestors from both sides of my family from Mexico. Even though this has caused me to lose some of my heritage, I think that's what makes me and my family different. It's a reminder that even in the face of cultural differences, there's a distinct and valuable narrative that makes me, and my family, different and uniquely proud of our Mexican heritage.

– Christian Hernandez

Relationship:  Grandchild of im/migrant Grandchild of im/migrant