I told my mother about this weekly blog assignment, and she wanted to get involved. That being said, I’ll be recounting and making a point about her story here.
My mother was born and raised by a poor family in the islands of the Philippines. She’s had multiple relatives of hers move to and visit from the United States, so even by the age of ten, she had already formed a dream of moving to America, the land of opportunity – her own American Dream. She stuck to this dream through thick and thin, working hard both in school and through manual labor to eventually see her dream come to life. And I make no exaggeration, she had to work on other peoples’ farms, help fishermen, serve as a nanny, even sell whatever scraps of food she could find just to get by. What didn’t help matters is that it was mostly her and her mom providing for the family since her father had a stroke while she was in middle school, half of his body was paralyzed.
During her college career, after an incident in a rice farm that left her crying, she vowed that her children (or child) would never endure the pain forced upon her, to which she’s managed to uphold to this day. By the end of her college career, an opportunity arose to move to and work in the U.S, of which she obviously accepted. This was around the time of 9/11, but thankfully she was processed before the national incident.
22 years later, she’s worked hard for my family’s prosperity, working for the government for most of my life, namely the US Army up until recently. She was raised to be kind to herself and others, and she’s provided for me and many others ever since she’s had the opportunity to do so. She’s thankful that she gets to live her own American Dream, and never takes it for granted.
With all that said, I think it’s fair to say that people outside of America looking in would have different interpretations of the American Dream. In this case, the Philippines is generally lower in income compared to other countries like the U.S, with the U.S. having more jobs that pay out more money in comparison. I wouldn’t be surprised if other low-income countries like those in Africa or certain parts of Europe have similar dreams brewing within them as well, whether or not they end up coming to fruition. Overall, a notable addition to the individual perspective of the American Dream.
Thanks again to my mother for her contribution to the blog!
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