It’s easy—almost far too easy to just say where we are from. A country. A place. A word. But where we really come from is from our parents and our culture. A history.
Living in Gratitude While Missing My Native Tongue
Memoir & Personal Essay
Making American Holidays Our Own
Two essays about experiencing American holidays through the lens of immigrant families. Each of us has different stories of trying to figure out American holiday traditions, but we’ve also tried to build our own.
The Lifelong Gift
People leave a mark in our lives that will forever stay with us; this essay is a love letter to everyone that has influenced me and put me on the path I am now traveling.
Running Towards Self-Care
This is what an injury taught me about self-care.
Mi Dos Casitas
Highlighting the beauty of my two colorful homes.
Pan Dulce in My Veins
My life growing up in a family of bakers.
What am I made of?
This piece showcases not only the hardships I faced as a queer girl in a Christian household but how I overcame my self-doubt and learned to accept myself as I am.
Where I’m From
This is a poem about where I’m from as a 16-year-old, born and raised in Queens, New York in a small family of four.
Thank You, Dr. Mary Beck: Meet the Trailblazing Ukrainian American Councilwoman Who Saved My Family
More than 4.6 million refugees have fled Ukraine with the onslaught of Putin’s brutal invasion. More than 70 years ago, my Dido (Grandfather) Osyp, Babtsia (Grandmother) Maria, and Teta (Aunt) Helen escaped Ukraine too, thanks to the heroic efforts of a Ukrainian-American woman named Mary (Marusia) Beck.
Her Palms
The first time I realized my parents did not hold the answers of the universe in their palms was not when I was asking obscure questions about aardvarks or pirate ships.
A Splash of Light
I was floating, my elbows resting on the pool’s stone ledge as the jets massaged my back. That’s the last thing I remember.
I used to hate the rain
Acceptance comes after the storm. It poured and poured.
My Way Up
Rock climbing helps me realize that I am capable of beating all the “impossibles.”
Sheltered
The day I was born is the day the twin towers fell.
Sometimes the Way to Win Is to Quit
“A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one,” is the best compliment for an overachieving young adult trying to find their way around the world. At least it was for me.