-Nicholas, Sonoma
Born in Veracruz, Mexico, my dad was the youngest of eight. His family was very poor, and in search of a better life he moved to the United States in 2000 when he was twenty-seven. After hearing about a high paying job, my dad moved to Aberdeen, Washington. That is where my father met my mother. A couple of years of dating and my brother was born. One year later, I was born.
Times were tough for my family. Money was a big struggle for them. We ended up moving down to Sonoma after my father’s sister offered to help us. Unfortunately, after a big fight between my mother and aunt we were kicked out. For a while, we were homeless. But thankfully my dad was able to find us a place to stay.
Time went by and it almost seemed perfect for a while, however, money was still a big issue for my parents and drug addiction became another growing struggle for them. After a big fight between my parents, the cops were called, and me and my brother were taken from my family and placed in a foster home.
My mom loved us very much and wanted custody of me and my brother. However, drugs were still an issue for my mother and the court thought it wasn’t best that we stay with her. After much effort, my dad was able to get custody of us.
For the past twelve years, my dad has been working nearly every day to support me and my brother. There are many days where he says he is tired and doesn’t want to work anymore, but he still gets up every morning and struggles to create a better life. As a kid, I was too ignorant to see the greatness of this, but as I grow older, I see the importance of this.
My father has taught me to work hard for the things I love. Though it may be hard, and I might not want to do it, if I truly love what I am working towards, then I’ll continue to keep struggling. My father has been my greatest inspiration, and I love him very much for all the things he’s done for me and my brother, especially all the times he didn’t want to go to work but still wanted to give us a better life.