A white piece of clothing embroidered with colorful flowers and made with the most delicate fabric by my grandmother is on the hanger. The flowers range in color from red, to blue to pink. I see the headpiece that I am supposed to wear. I see the beautiful silver cross earrings. To the eye of anyone, it is just a piece of clothing, but to me it is tradition. I am ready. I am about to perform the dance that means so much to my family. It is nighttime. I am not quite sure because I am overwhelmed by the thought of performing a dance in from of my whole family. I am nervous because my whole family is about to see me, and by the end of my dance I will feel a part of my culture. I see my dad who will accompany me in the dance. This is a father and daughter dance, that is performed when a women turns 15. I take my dad’s hand and he shows me to everyone. I feel uncomfortable in the clothing I wear because I have never worn it. The band starts playing the song and I start dancing with my father. I feel uneasy and can’t seem to dance in rhythm. One by one my family members come and dance with me. Others come and dance with me as well, some whom I don’t know but recognize from other events.

This dance is special to my family and is what most of our festivities are made of. We dance until 1 a.m.

My dad speaks a dialect, but my mother does not, which limits my dad to speak his dialect. He does not speak it at home, which is why I am not able to speak it or understand it. When we go to festivities I am not able to understand and communicate with my family members except for when they are speaking Spanish. I am determined to learn the dialect because I want to be able to share more moments such as these with my family.

This is only the beginning. I feel proud and accomplished. I am no longer the young girl who is trying to find her identity. I know that I belong here and that I will keep my tradition going. I value my tradition. Events like these are what unite my family and friends.

For this reason, I want to be an anthropologist. I want to focus on the cultural aspect of anthropology. I want to see what connects and brings people together. I enjoy watching people unite and share moments together. For now it is just my family and I. I can now feel my feet dancing to the rhythm.