immigrating

so, i want to write about my parents experience immigrating to the u.s. and this is not intended for sympathetic needs what so ever, but more of me gaining the appreciation for the life i live now because of what my parents have gone through. and i'm sure a majority of our parents have gone through the same lengths, so big ups to them. although i don't know the detailed story behind everything, but growing up i managed to piece little information little by little and connecting it to how my parents managed to stand on their own two feet now. my parents don't like talking about what they've done or gone through when i was younger because i guess they didn't want to bring the matter up and spoil my mind with the negatives. so, as an infant i grew up in a house packed with my dad's side of the family. his dad and mom, my grandparents of course had 12 children and all whom had @ least one child lived under one roof. as a child i never understood why i always lived with all my cousins but it was fun you know. you were never bored, always got into some trouble, and it was like constant adventures in our big back yard. there were only 6 bedrooms and families crammed into bedrooms with 8 or more people. to me it kind of felt like a big sleep over you know. later i found out as a teenager, my dad and aunt were the first to arrive the u.s. and worked long hours to bring all their sisters and brothers to the u.s. and saved as much money to support everyone. it took years and they both invested in this 6 bedroom house which 3 rooms were illegally made to create borders amongst families to provide a little privacy. when my dad and aunt managed to successfully bring all their siblings to the u.s., life was tough. they all had to find jobs and get their licenses while the kids stayed at home with their beloved grandma (: even our grandpa as old as he was still worked to help support this family. however, it was not until sophmore year when i visited the philippines did i get the real picture behind my family immigrating. yes the story is so cliche about immigrants wanting to move to the u.s. in hopes of a better life but in all means everyone just wants whats best for them and their children. so when i saw how living out in the philippines was like it was tough you basically spend every minute of your life doing what you can to survive but yet even through the struggles they can still enjoy the little pleasures in life which i thought was fucking amazing. here you have a family living in a bamboo house, their 7 year old daughter cooking and cleaning already, mother out in the marktes trying to sell merchandise or food to bring a little money home, father out in the fields growing and harvesting crops in the scorching heat, and what not. i was like damn i spend $5 dollars on some mcdonalds and that shit can feed a whole family out there. i mean as sad as it seems, a lot families love the life they lived out there. i know my parents plan to move back to the pi when they retire. i guess my family did all this just so their children can get a good education and later support them in their older years you know. and that's the least we can do you know for having them struggle so we'd have an easier life. i remember after the whole philippines experience my dad straight up said, "you better change your life when we come back home" meaning appreciate what they give us and start helping out. but i've grown a lot through their experiences i look at what they've started out with a house with 12 familes to now owning our own house, own car, both parents have decent jobs, and their children all going to school. i think they live their dreams through us and it's taught me so much about life. like appreciate what you have, it's the little things in life that count, fuck what people think, and sorts of jazzy shit. yeah i know what a long blog, hoped you enjoyed.

--ria.