Personal Narrative: Happer The American Dream

I came to the United States on October 1st 2009. As an eight-year-old, I didn’t realize the changes my life was about to go through. I would always dream of coming to the united states because of the amount of opportunities that I could have here, that I could never have in El Salvador. Although, I didn’t comprehend that would mean leaving my whole family and making such a huge change in my life. Growing up in El Salvador I got used to depending on my family and having their support no matter what. After I moved the changes were really hard for me: Not having my family around, learning a new language, and getting used to a new lifestyle; took me some time to get used to.

I was born in Kerala, India and was raised in Chicago, IL. I came to America at the age of three hoping for a better future. My father came to America first, and he lived with my Aunt who had three sons. After two years my father saved enough money to bring my mom, sister, and I to the US. During this time he would work as a dishwasher at a nursing home to support my family. After a month of living with my Aunty and her kids my dad found an apartment to rent. Eventually, we moved into a tiny one-bedroom apartment with my family. That was the hardest time period for me due to language barriers. My sister and I started to learn English. However, my parents were struggling to learn a new language so we would have to go everywhere with them to translate. Another, difficulty that we faced was financial issues. At that time we were making ends-meet and we were scraping every penny that we got. Afterwards, my mom got her CNA license she started working two jobs when I was only four years old. Even till this day she is still working two jobs to support the

I was born in a small town in Mexico on March 20, 1998. My life over there was rough, my mom had to work two jobs so she can provide for me and my brother. My brother was the one that always took care of me and was like a father figure. Leaving everything behind and having to start again chasing the American dream was hard, but was for the best. I had to learn a new language and interact with different people. In the beginning I didn't like being here I felt alone being in a strange place, going to school was also difficult since I could not communicate with my teachers and with most of my peers. That changed when I learned more English and I did everything I could to adapt to this country. I also saw how much my parents worked and still struggled

I was born in a middle class family in China and my parents care about me very much. Before I was even born, my farther adjusted the business hour of his clinic to make more profit by accepting more patients and my mother was a nurse who worked in my dad’s clinic, so they saved the money to send me to school and prepare to move to the U.S. Most of the members of my family already moved to the U.S. Moreover, once my aunt got her U.S. citizenship, she, as the sponsor, was able to apply for us to come. When I was 15, we finally got our immigrant visas and my parents told me we were ready for move to the America. Therefore, we sold everything we had in China we were staying at my uncle’s house in Hong Kong because we need to take the airplane from Hong Kong to Missouri, U.S. I still remember what my uncle said to me because he looked at me with a very serious face that caught my attention. “Qianxin, the America is different from China. I’ve heard people said life in the America is harder than China. However, if you work hard enough, you will get what you deserve.” The words are always in my mind. I tried to do my best in school and in everything because I want to be the person who can help my family.

Los angles is one of the cities where people try to achieve the “American dream”. Even though the “American Dream” is different from people to people. To me, Los Angeles means a new beginning…my new beginning. I have moved to Los angles in search of success in education and life, to prove to myself that I can be independent.

At the time I am typing this, I don’t have what I would consider the American dream. While most people would love to own a large house with an open field, smelling the freshly cut grass as they get ready for work in the morning, I'm not quite sure if I would want to live in a large house or own ten or twenty acres. A lot of people have learned the skills for what they think they want to do, and then they later realize they want to do something else. I would like to learn as many skills as I can, so if I don't like a job, for example, working on a computer in an office, hearing keys on a keyboard clicking away, I can get a job outdoors, operating heavy machinery in the warm sun on a construction site.

The American Dream is a concept that has circulated around the world and has caused people from other countries, and those who live in America, to come to our nation and take advantage of the opportunities in place to better their lives. The definition of the American Dream, provided by James Truslow Adams in his book The Epic of America (1931), is “a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement…It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable” (214-215). While this definition may not be exact to the

“The American Dream is a term that is often used but also misunderstood. It isn't really about becoming rich or famous. It is about things much simpler and more fundamental than that.”(Marco Rubio). The quote is about how people think the American dream is about becoming rich or famous, but originally about having a nice job and a good house. Too many people think that the American Dream is dead because of what is happening in the world. My dream is about getting a good education and a nice paying job, playing a sport in college, and settling down and having a nice home life.

The sun is high in the sky and she can feel it as it is irritating her skin. Standing there staring at the never ending desert with chapped lips, she is adamant to cross the Rio Grande River. As night time arrives the coyote says, “Are you ready for your American dream to become real?”. All the immigrants follow the coyote down through what seems like a tunnel, but one immigrant stops, a young boy, and says, “I am petrified. What if Immigration is waiting for us?”. A young lady asks the child if he wants to hold her hand; as they are holding hands they walk together along the dark tunnel. They come out of the tunnel, but there is still more desert to walk. Finally, after walking for hours the immigrants spot a house up the

Coming to America your vision is the “ American Dream” . Owning a home , educating your children , and spending time with your family are just a few dreams that attract foreigners . My father Caesar Reeves came to American to live those dreams . When he got here, he realized that working for someone else wouldn’t allow him to achieve his dream. He decided to work for himself and enter into the gas station business in 2007. During this time gas was at some of its all time highs ; $3.50 per gallon , $4.01 per gallon , and more on the east coast . My father’s ownership of the Sunoco gas station chain in Cumberland Maryland allowed him to live out both his American dreams , and nightmare . While he was making money he was being robbed , and reporting finances improperly .

I awoke in the morning to Baljeet Tjinder, standing right upon my bed. I was having the best dream of my life, It was of my past life before I made the travel. You see, before I made my trek to this new cultivated land I was in despair and complete isolation, except for my family who I worked every day for 12 hours to feed. Every dream I have reminds me of my family. I miss them and need to work extremely hard to get enough money to send them here and out of the depression back in California.

I came to this country not long ago with many dreams. Living in the US had been always our ultimate goal in life to accomplish. I studied Medicine in Cuba, and I practiced over there for more than 10 years. My oldest kid was born right before my last test to become a doctor and the little one while I was in the Family Practice residency. So, said that, I know very well about challenges, combining study, work and… family life as well. But, when we finally were able to move to this amazing country, then, I finally realized that I was needing a complete change in my life, to continue moving on, fighting for our dreams.

A few years ago, getting the visa to America made me feel astonished because the American Dream is rooted in all Chinese people’s mind. Everyone in China sees America as a place that they can have a better life. At the same time, people feel afraid to take the chance for themselves because of the anxiety or insecurity that they cannot even imagine. I aware there will be challenges waiting for me, so I cannot step back but forward. Instead of feeling worried, I had excitement for the new environment and the unknown challenges, but there is one thing I concern about, the language barrier.

The American dream isn't big, it isn't small and it isn't defined as something specific the american dream isn't dreamed by anyone specific, it isn't according to culture or religion or color. It's based on courage, motivation, strength and dignity. The people who can live the American dream are the people who believe they can. I believe no matter what age, culture, religion, race,or color you are you can achieve your American dream if you believe you can. Whoopi Goldberg said once, “i am the american dream. Epitome of what the American dream basically said, you could come from anywhere and be anything you want in this country: that's exactly what i've done. I am where i am today because i believe in all possibilities.”

For many people the America dream means to come to the U.S. and accomplish something they never thought will come true, for example owning a home, and a nuclear family of 2.3 kids. The American Dream is still attainable but for many it has changed. Hispanics come to the U.S. to have a better life to achieve their American Dream. Some people have everything on their hands, meaning they have all that they wanet but why aren’t they happy. The American dream does not mean being rich but having a place to live in with you nuclear family and being healthy.