The Meaning of Sacrifice Essay Example

What does the word sacrifice mean to you? For me, it is the gratitude I hold in my heart for my mother. When I hear of the word sacrifice I picture a 20-year-old that left her country. That 20-year-old would be my mom. My mom came here with nothing and yet she still gave me everything. My story started before my time, it all started with her. She is the person who I received my name genetics and strength from. She has crossed mountains for me. Growing up my mom was one of nine kids living in a small town in Mexico. At 20 years old, she married and moved to the United States. It was always in her heart that she wanted better for her future kids.

Growing up I always knew I was different, and that it was only a matter of time before the other kids realized it too. As children, we do not notice the differences between us such as the languages we speak at home or the color of our skin. It was not until fifth grade that the bullying started. Over the years I received hatred from my peers. "Go back to your country." , "You're a dirty Mexican." As an 11-year-old I could not understand how kids could be so cruel. In sixth grade, a boy started telling everyone in our grade I had head lice because I was Mexican. In middle school, when social media became the center of our lives it got worse. All of a sudden I started receiving threats and harassment all related to my ethnicity. I cried my eyes out every day hating my nationality and my differences from my classmates. I started isolating myself from the world and completely lost my sense of happiness. I was angry at my mom for coming to a country that did not accept us. I thought that I would never be happy.

If only I could go back and tell my younger self to embrace her roots and where I come from. I am proud to say that in June I will be the first generation in my family to graduate high school. I’m excited to have new bridges to cross, to pursue my goals and love for children. I know my self-discovery in college will not be ideal. As I continue to discover myself I know there will be setbacks, heartbreak and speed bumps. I aspire to bring diversity to Montclair State as I pursue my education. I am excited about the organizations such as Laso that celebrate Hispanic heritage. Montclair is my top choice. I want to be apart of a community that celebrates Hispanic culture and diversity. It is the type of community that I have searched for all my life and I would love to be a part of it. I learned that with each challenge in life you discover a whole new side of yourself. It takes losing yourself to find yourself. Everything that I went through taught me that, we all have difficult bridges that we must cross. Thank you, mom, for crossing the border to watch me cross the stage.