The "Latino Community"

The community is such an important part of one's life-from work to school to the neighborhood block party. We form relationships and friendships by interacting with those people whose lives cross our own in some way...

I went to the hairdresser the other day and met a wonderful woman, Marisol. We began chatting because I was curious about her ethnicity. Marisol is a beautiful girl with dark eyes, smooth light-coffee complexion and a head of long thick dark hair. She has Latina curves and a bubbly personality. She told me that she is Puerto Rican but that she had grown up in Massachusetts. Her parents are both from the Island and moved to the States for jobs. We began speaking and I mentioned that I too speak Spanish (always a surprise coming from my "mas blanca que el pan Bimbo" face). I spent many years living in Spain. Marisol mentioned that in her house her parents thought it was important that the children speak only English so that they would fit in and do better in school. They didn't want to confuse her by having her speak two languages. As a result, Marisol understands a lot of Spanish, but has poor vocabulary and is embarrassed to speak Spanish sometimes-she doesn't want to make mistakes. We began to talk about the importance of language acquisition at an early age.

Marisol doesn't speak Spanish as well as I do, but she has a connection to the Latino community due to her heritage. She visits Puerto Rico every few years and says that when she's there there feels like she is at home-though I might find that crazy because her Spanish is so poor. I said "al contrario".and continued on-Marisol grew up with Puerto Rican parents-her parents instilled a sense of Latino culture in her from the beginning. They brought their language, food, and customs to their home. Though those simple every-day pieces of culture Marisol formed a sense of Latino community and pride for her heritage.

Going to Puerto Rico was like being at home for Marisol. She felt camaraderie because due to her parents Marisol IS Latina.

My background is somewhat different than that of Marisol. As a "gringa" I don't so much share the sense of being Latina, but because we speak the same language we share a sense of community-we've already found our common ground.

I've had wonderful opportunities to live abroad and partake in Latino culture. Living in two worlds has given me a unique perspective on life, on community and on friendships. My web is perhaps larger than most other American's I know as it spans across the globe from places I've lived or visited. Much like a spider weaving silk, I try to create the largest web I can of interwoven people networks.

I invite you to be a part of my community at Ventanabierta. Visit us online or send me your comments.
www.ventanabierta.com or email me: octavia@ventanabierta.com