humanity
Humanity begins at home.
Hispanic Heritage Month on Vocal. Top Story - September 2020.
It was never an unusual sight to see my great grandmother handing out homemade papa rellena to everyone in her Queens neighborhood. The community would pitch in money to buy bulk foods like potato, rice, meat just so they can give it to her to cook it. You may have even seen my grandmother running her own concession stand in the busy bustling streets of Puerto Rico where she would put her own touch on pastelillos that would make anyone stop dead in their tracks just to taste. When I started my own food journey through The Bronx Vegan, it may have been a surprise to my family that I was taking on a new approach to food but when you look at the dedication and passion for food that runs through my family history, this work really isn’t so surprising at all.
By The Bronx Vegan5 years ago in Families
Celebrating My Heritage: Sometimes in English, Others in Spanish. Top Story - September 2020.
When I was around four-years old, my family and I moved into our first rented home in El Paso, Texas, a city a mere mile or so north of Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. Having moved to El Paso from Juárez two years prior, I was introduced at an early age to the binational, bicultural, and bilingual phenomenon that people living in El Paso and Ciudad Juárez are accustomed to.
By Jose Antonio Soto5 years ago in Families
BELIEVE IT OR NOT
I have 1/3 Spanish, 1/3 Chinese and ½ Malay in my blood and I grew up in a household riddled with superstitions and ancient beliefs. As it is very well known, the Philippines had been occupied by the Spanish Conquistadores for almost 350 years and merchant trading brought Chinese into the islands of the Philippines. These migrations have enriched our customs and traditions and no matter what colour or ethnicity one may belong to, I have observed that there will always be some sort of interknitting of customs, beliefs and traditions of these cultures,….. superstitions, no exception. For example, if one broke a glass or anything breakable, one needed to break another piece of breakable item meaning that the breakage had been paired, (it was believed that bad luck come in twos) if this was not done, it is bad luck and the next breakage would be an accident of the one who broke it or someone close might encounter an accident or bad luck. Another one is the building of stairs in an Asian especially a Filipino home. I have to mention this because Feng Shui is the norm in Chinese home and is beginning to be adapted by Filipinos with Chinese ancestry. Oro, Plata, Mata which are Spanish words, translated to Gold, Silver, Death are one of the norms. The builder must ensure that the last step of the staircase wouldn’t be mata or death. If it ends in Oro or Plata, which is gold or silver, this will attract wealth. Still another popular belief is the spilling of salt which is an omen of evil misfortune and this action can be counteracted by taking a pinch and throwing over your left shoulder where evil is standing behind waiting for open entry to come in. The thrown salt will blind the devil and will be powerless. I have to emphasize that I have considered these beliefs funny and never really affected by it and such just ignored it.
By Nilda Juliana Johnston5 years ago in Families
My Second Mum
I wrote this a few years back. During a very tough time in my life. Things at home were bad, at university was getting to me. I've always wanted this woman to be my mum. Ever since I was little. But as I got older, I wanted it more. I wanted to have someone to talk to, like most mothers and daughters do. I wanted to be close to the influential woman in my life. I wanted to learn from her and grow up to be like her.
By Rebecca Smith5 years ago in Families
The good, the bad and the ugly.
Tattoos are considered different things around the world. In some cultures, they are treated as symbols of status or standing, symbols of wisdom or enlightenment. They are seen as an art form, a tool of self-expression or sometimes, a simple fashion statement. In others, they are perceived as taboo, unholy, barbaric, or plain tacky. They are thought of as symbols that identify criminals, deviants, sinners or “bad” people of all kinds. My home town is (was?) one of those places…
By monse cordero5 years ago in Families
Generational Forgiveness
My mother pulled me out of May Day 1963 games in elementary school that early afternoon because she was packed and leaving my father. We were headed for a long ride on the Greyhound Bus from Shreveport, Louisiana. It was the first I heard of this change to our lives. I did not have time to think or to feel. I just had time to get on the bus and go. It shouldn't have come as a surprise. I had seen her crying. I had heard the fights between them. But I hadn't seen this coming.
By Shirley Belk5 years ago in Families
Hold close what is dear to you
Life is a book full of lines, paragraphs and chapters. With each line is a different event, a different experience, a different part of me. There are lines that take up whole pages and chapters that explain a different part of my story. With each biography, novel, memoir, there is a beginning, a middle and an end. With each turn of the page the next fragment of a tale.
By Janine S White5 years ago in Families
What Happened?
For me as a child, the year 2020 was just as far away as the stars themselves. No computers, no internet, just the good ole days...right? We had cartoons that we all watched religiously on Saturday mornings like The Flinstones that poked fun at the simplistic idiocy of what a functioning society of "cave folk" may have been like, straight from the mind and beautiful imagination of Hannah Barbara. Not long after The Flinstones, Fred and Wilma would air among the same Saturday morning line up as George and Jane Jetson, each character having a futuristic counterpart..George and Fred. Wilma and Jane. Judy and Pebbles and how could we forget mans best friend in the past, present and future, Astro and Dino. Maybe Elroy was the counter of Bam Bam. I'm not sure but you get the gist.
By Rhiannon RainFeather5 years ago in Families
