Party in the U.S.A.
As the years go by, I keep enjoying the Fourth of July (my favorite holiday) full of patriotism, fireworks and occasional hotdogs. Although the festivities haven’t changed much since I was a kid, the meaning of the holiday has changed, especially in the last few years. I was blessed with the opportunity to represent my country at the most prestigious sporting event in the world and to top it off, my fight of a lion paid off and my dreams of becoming an Olympic Gold Medalist were realized in 2008. I can honestly say I am living the American Dream. This dream didn’t start when I was 12 and declared out loud to myself that I would be an Olympic champ one day, it started years before that. It started exactly 36 years ago today.
The American Dream that was fulfilled on August 19, 2008 started 36 years ago when my mother migrated to this beautiful country where the streets are paved with gold (She soon realized the streets are far from being paved with gold, but that’s beside the point). My mother came with the dream of offering her yet-to-be-conceived children opportunities that, unfortunately, in her native country of Mexico are hard to obtain.
It’s not surprising that my mother has earned the nickname, The Terminator. She has been through so much adversity in her life and she is still standing strong. In these past 36 years, my mother became a permanent resident, worked many jobs and thousands of hours, cooked great Huaraches (my favorite Mexican dish), raised seven children all by herself and missed her youngest son’s greatest accomplishment. She didn’t get to go to Beijing because without her U.S. Citizenship, she couldn’t get a passport. (She anxiously watched the final match live in the wee hours of the morning in Colorado Springs through a computer).
This Fourth of July, the fireworks had a special glow to them not only for me but for my mother, as well. This past Fourth of July, my mother won her own gold medal match when she became a United States Citizen. After 36 long years, she was finally able to celebrate the Fourth of July as an American Citizen. Words cannot describe the look in her face as she waved the tiny U.S. flag she received at the Oath ceremony while the National Anthem played in the background. Such is life that I was unable to be there with her for her special moment. Just as she watched me win gold through a computer screen in 2008, I watched her victorious moment through my computer screen in videos my family sent me.
There’s Always a Second Chance
In the beginning of this year, I fully committed to train for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Although I have fulfilled my lifelong goal of becoming the best in the world, I want to go at it again and grant my mother the opportunity to go to the Games and watch me win gold. This time no computers or slow internet connection will get in the way. This time, we will both have a smile in our faces from ear to ear as our National Anthem plays in the background. Comebacks seem hard sometimes, but I’ve learned to embrace the pressure and remind myself of who’s in my corner. With God and The Terminator (my mother), all things are possible.
