At a glance, I seem like an average girl in an average life

I may seem of average intelligence and average splendor

At times I feel as if I am one of many

Yet, we all face some struggle

We each fight a battle

 

We don’t belong here because we have origins from there

We don’t belong there because we were born here

We aren’t American enough because we have different cultures

We aren’t from there because we have an American culture

We are told that we can’t be both

But we are both

Where do we fit in?

 

I have to be more than that

I am someone’s daughter

I am someone’s sister

I am someone’s partner in life

I want to be someone’s mother

I’ve done everything right, so why can’t I be accepted?

 

In the media we are portrayed as criminals

We are called anchor babies

We are portrayed as people who steal jobs

We are told that we can’t stay here

But we can’t go home, there is nothing left for us

 

I see my family and I see love

I see innocence in the faces of those who are called anchor babies

I see the tears my parents try to hide

I see the guilt because they couldn’t say their last goodbyes

I see how they long to be with their family back home

But we both know that they can’t go

 

We think about how life would be different if they had stayed

We think about what to do if they get sent back

We think, “what if this is the last time?”

This is the burden we carry

Yet, we don’t mind

They have given up so much for a chance at a better life