Mi Vida as a Planner

I feel like a different person when I speak in Spanish then when I speak in English. Being a child raised in both Latin America and the U.S., both languages have always been a central part of my life and my identity. Spanish ruled my life during my early, formative years, while English was at the forefront during my later, school years. It wasn’t always easy or as simple as it is now to switch from Spanish to English. As a young child, I would commonly mix Spanish and English to form new words like “glasso” (glass in English and vaso in Spanish) or start my sentence in Spanish only to finish it in English. But one thing that has always been clear is that Spanish is the language of home, of family, of love.   English is the language I learned outside of the home, taught to me by others. As a result, my Spanish self has always been more passionate, more spontaneous, more earnest, and more alive. Spanish is the language that comes more natural when I’m overcome by excitement an

During this time of the year, Halloween always steals the show. Horror movies dominate the entertainment industry and consumers go all out with decorations, candies, gory costumes, and Halloween parties. But one tradition that goes more unperceived is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a Mexican holiday celebrated from October 31 st   to November 2 nd every year, and acknowledged around the world in many cultures. I love Día de los Muertos and have a deep respect for the tradition. In my eyes, it is a love story about those that are no longer with us but live on in our hearts. It is a celebration of their lives and all the happy memories they have left us with. The idea being that our deceased would not be thrilled with the mourning, the tears, the gloom, the sadness that comes along with death but would much rather prefer a celebration of who they were and everything and everyone they loved. The celebration is full of life indeed, with vibrant colors, papel picado (ti