Believing That You Can

Believing That You Can Believing That You Can

A Turning Point in My Life
When I was fourteen, I experienced prejudiced
behavior. Segregation barriers were still practiced by many
people. As a teenager in the 1960's, this was happening in
my hometown. Picture this: my first job. I knocked on the
front door and was met by a mean man. He said, “Go to the
back door!” He kept yelling at me. When I got to the back
door, he kept yelling and said, “Never come to my front
door again!” His wife stopped him and said, “He was asked
by me to work.” At lunchtime the wife took food for me in
a shed in back and told me, “Stay in here to eat, okay?” A
courageous lady across the street observed all that had
happened. As I was leaving to go home, she beckoned to
me, “Come here, would you like to work for me?” With her
influence on my life, she helped me believe in equality.

Nolan Alford is a student at the Family Service Center in Arcadia, FL.

A Turning Point in my Life
To come to the United States of America wasn’t my
own decision. I was married with 3 children in Peru. My
now ex-husband has a sister who lives here and she asked
us if we wanted to come to this country (The country of
opportunities). We thought it could be a great opportunity
for our children and us. We filled out all the papers and
waited. After waiting for five years, the day came to leave
Peru. We were only allowed to bring 2 suitcases with our
most precious belongings. We were happy and curious to
find out if everything we had heard was true. My husband
and I had struggled trying to keep our children safe. Many
years have passed since then and now we have 3
professional children. My husband and I got divorced and
he returned to Peru and I stayed here. In conclusion, I
would say that coming to the United States was a wonderful
decision. We did have ups and downs but it was part of the
process to start a new life.

Olga Gayoso studies at Miramar Branch Library.