What can I say? It has been a looooong journey to where I am now. I was born in Manhattan, New York City to parents who were born in Puerto Rico – so what does that make me – a neuyorican, a first generation American, an American of Puertorican descent, all of the above? People always like to put labels on everything and so it gets complicated. I lived in New York for a while and then went to live in Puerto Rico, the island of enchantment. And boy was I in for a treat! The weather is gorgeous (no coats) and the air was pure and sweet. I felt like I had arrived in Paradise. The downside, you ask, well I’ll tell you, it was the smallness of the towns and how everyone wants to get into your business. When you’re young, you don’t think about it as much, but as you get older and you want to do your own thing, there is always someone at every turn giving you unwanted advice and trying to live your life for you. Boy can that be annoying!
Obviously I survived it but not without some scars. But that is a tale for another time. For right now, suffice it to say, that I came out of it relatively unscathed, or at least I would like to think so. The funny part about all of this is that because I bridged both cultures, I thought I felt fairly comfortable in both the US and PR. The complication came when I encountered intolerance of other races and cultures in the neighborhood I came to call ‘home’ in Philadelphia. It took a while to get used to this. Everyone has preconceived prejudices that are instilled by their relatives and friends without realizing that this is what they are doing.
