I’m here with Nathalie and she is my girlfriend’s best friend. We attended high school together but I never really knew her back then. Fortunately, I got to be friends with her through meeting my girlfriend. And a while back, I found out that she was actually born in Colombia and that’s where her roots are placed. She moved here at only 7 years of age. Since then, she’s been living in the United States and now I’m going to let her take over and give us some background on the rest.
Tell us a little bit about your daily life in Colombia at such a young age? I used to go to a bilingual school in Colombia and — it didn’t help me at all. All I knew were the colors, like “jellow” [laughs]. After going to school, I just came home and road bikes in a dirt road with my friends. It’s not much different (than the United States) other than the roads aren’t paved.
So technically were you only there until the first grade? Yeah, I got all the way up until the first grade. But when I came here I think I was old enough and intelligent enough to go into third (grade) but my mom was like “no no no” so my mom held me back.
I was also held back too since I was 5 day short of being in the grade level above me. Aren’t you glad you were since you fit in more with this crowd?
Yeah, because who would know who my friends are, you know? I’d barely be making it with the older kids. So I’d like to back up a bit. So before you got here what are your other childhood memories and any experience you can hold onto that you truly remember? So, because my mom lived in the U.S., she was able to bring me like the coolest toys. I would be the coolest kid on the block and everyone came to my house and played Playstation and stuff. I was the shit. [Laughs]
Was there a lot of friends and family you had to say goodbye to once you left Colombia? My family was pretty small and my friends were pretty young and we didn’t know the concept of being apart from each other. It was the first time I saw my dad cry . I wasn’t really scared or anything because I missed my mom.
You hold your mom closer than your dad, you would say? Well, I lived with my grandma but I still felt like a part of me was missing because I still didn’t have my mom.
How did you feel coming to school and not having English as your first language? It was integrating—my 2nd grade teacher was awesome I wish I can see her again and thank her for being so kind to me.
Where’d you go? It was called Glenview Elementary it was in Anaheim Hills.
So then you went to middle school where you met all of your friends now? And the distance from Anaheim Hills is pretty far, so how did that happen. Ugh, I hated middle school. [laughs] My mom just got a new job—from a flower company to Forever 21.
At your middle school, you had already established English as your second language, and then you were good by then. Academically speaking did you start taking more honors classes because you realized your potential? I don’t think I would have reached my potential if it wasn’t for my mom pressuring me to do so well in school.
So throughout all this how often did you see family? Every Summer—never missed it!
So you finished high school, and did you always know where you wanted to go? UCLA? No, never in my life. I tell people UCI was my dream school, UCLA was like, “yeah right”.
It never crossed your mind? No, because I knew the people who were going there and I didn’t feel like I measured up to them. I didn’t take all AP classes, and my life wasn’t solely school—I mean it was.
Who was the first person you told when you were accepted? Her. [points to her best friend] I wanted to tell my mom in person, do you want to see her reaction?
Coming from a place where English was not your first language and going to UCLA, how do you see your timeline from then till now? I don’t want to sound corny but I think it’s the “American Dream”. I see myself and I want to make myself proud. I didn’t come from poverty but Colombia is a third-world country and I would want to have someone see what I did and and maybe inspire someone in Colombia and make them proud.
Jesse Nunez Garcia's JOUR 240 Blog 