Summary

The author recounts their life journey, beginning with an idyllic childhood in Venezuela, through personal and familial challenges, including immigration struggles in the US, and their eventual career in special education influenced by their son's autism.

Abstract

Born in 1969 in Caracas, Venezuela, the author reflects on a childhood marked by prosperity and family devotion. They faced personal challenges, including their father's accident and their own scoliosis. Marriage, motherhood, and a move to California for graduate school followed. The author's life took a significant turn when their first son, Diego, was diagnosed with autism, leading to a series of immigration battles in the US. These challenges ultimately shaped the author's career path, becoming a special education teacher. Despite the hurdles, the author expresses gratitude and a desire to continue learning, writing, and staying active well into their later years.

Opinions

The author believes that life is significantly influenced by the circumstances of one's birth and the obstacles faced.
They hold a strong conviction that their father's unique character, shaped by his accident and disregard for others' opinions, had a formative impact on them.
The author's perspective on life's randomness is evident as they reflect on the unpredictable nature of their journey, particularly regarding their immigration experience.
They express a deep sense of fortune and gratitude for their life, including the challenges that have led to personal growth and professional fulfillment.
The author values resilience, as demonstrated by their determination to overcome multiple visa denials and their commitment to adapting to life's curveballs.

My Life Story: An Introduction

My life in 849 words

I was born in 1969 in Caracas, Venezuela, a fantastic year and place to come into the world. Venezuela’s economy was prosperous and the country was in its 10th year of its emerging democracy. I am the third of seven children and my parents were -still are- devoted to their family and our education. My family did well economically; we wanted for nothing.

My childhood was idyllic, I suppose. Growing up in the tropics, I spent a lot of time playing outside or at the beach.

I believe that life is determined largely by when, where and to whom you are born (as we say in the US, “your zip code”), and by the obstacles you face.

I first learned of the existence of obstacles in life when I realized my father was different. Physically and behaviorally, he was different.

As a child, my father had an accident where he burned half of his body with acid. Can you even imagine? Half of his face burned off. He was also different in that he didn’t care much what people thought. He wore sandals and shorts when other dads wore suits, and he went to sleep on a couch if he was tired when he was a guest at parties.

My first personal obstacle was having scoliosis and wearing a hideous brace through high school. This obstacle was the reason I came to the US to college when the rest of my graduating class stayed in Caracas for university. I wanted anonymity, a fresh start.

After graduating from college, I got a job in Caracas with a multinational, met my future husband (Cesar) and, by 22, got married. Two years later, at 24, Cesar and I moved to California for graduate school. Six months into grad school I gave birth to my first son, Diego.

Two years later, it was back to Caracas, where my second son, Andres, was born.

Yeah, a lot happened in my twenties.

It was around this time when I began to be really concerned about Diego. He was 2 years old and his communication was totally off. He threw tantrums constantly. He lined everything up. I began to take him to specialists; to occupational, speech and behavioral therapy. When it was time to go to kindergarten, none of the schools I knew about in the city would take him.

This obstacle was the reason why we moved back to the US in 2000 when Diego was 6 and Andres 4, and why I eventually became a special education teacher.

Why did Diego’s autism lead me to become a teacher? It has to do with visas, not the ones you pay with, but the ones that allow you to be in this country legally.

We arrived to the US with a B1/B2 visa, a tourist visa. Cesar opened up an office for the Venezuelan company he worked at and, soon, we switched to an L1/L2 visa.

One year into this visa, we applied to renew it. This was supposed to be a straightforward process — but the renewal was denied. We appealed the denial, which was denied. Our lawyers recommended we apply for an H1 visa as, according to them, we qualified for that one too. The H1 application was denied. Something having to do with 9/11.

We appealed the decision, and guess what? The appeal was …denied. As a last resort, the lawyers suggested we apply for a “green card” before the original L1 expired and we needed to leave the US.

The green card was …granted! Five years later we were at our US citizenship ceremony! Great instance of “It ain’t over till it’s over.”

During the months we were going through all this, I decided to try for an F1 visa — that’s a student visa for those of you who are not up to date on your visa taxonomy. Thus, in order to be eligible for an F1, I applied to a graduate program in special education.

Clearly, I was also interested in special ed, but what really propelled me to apply was our immigration status. I never had to finish the F1 visa application because we got the green card before I started school.

If we hadn’t had the money to pay for lawyers, we might have given up at the first, second, third or fourth denial. We wouldn’t be living in the US anymore. I’d probably not be a special education teacher. I’m not saying that my life would be bad. We might have ended up as millionaires in Italy for all I know.

Everything’s just so random, that’s all.

I’ve now been a special education teacher for 15 years, and I love my job. Since my immigration troubles, I’ve faced plenty of new challenges, from which I shall spare you. All in all, I know that I’m fortunate, and I’m grateful for everything.

I am now at what I hope is the midpoint of my life. My goal is to continue to learn and grow, to write a lot, and to stay healthy and active until I’m at least 100, if fate will allow.