City Life

 

City Life

Parents always want the best for their children even though this can represent a big sacrifice. A good example of this happened to my family a couple of years ago. When my mother was in high school, my grandparents decided to start looking for better opportunities for their daughters instead of remaining in the same place in Chihuahua for the rest of their lives. They used to live in a small village, and the only nearby high school was boarding School four hours away. In addition, the universities were in the city, so they analyzed the options and decided to move to Chihuahua City, which is the capital of the state. Even though they knew this would be a big change, they decided to take the chance and move.

At the beginning, it was hard for everybody because not only did they have to say goodbye to everything they knew, but they also divided forces, some stayed in the city and some others at the village. The principal source of income for the family was my grandfather’s activities as a cattleman and farmer. Moreover when all the women moved to find their way in the city, they were grappling with this new life and all that it brought. My grandfather stayed at his farm, and only visited them during the fallow period. My grandmother always mentioned that the hardest part of this movement was to find a home. She mentioned that my grandfather just gave her the money and told her to take the girls and find a house. When it happened, she took with her the four youngest of their daughters that were not at school at that moment and went to Chihuahua with the intention to buy a house. This way when the rest if the family came, there was already a place for them to stay.

Another thing that the family had to deal with were different traditions and opportunities in this big city. This new city represented a new challenge for all the members because of the life they were accustomed to having. For the ones that attended  the boarding school, this new school was very difficult. This new school was very noisy and stressful, and male classmates were allowed at the classrooms. For the rest of the daughters that were older enough to work, they had to get a part time job to support the house. When I asked them, all agreed that one of worst parts was to adapt to the new kind of food. The oldest of the daughters, Josefina, always mentioned that she missed the big red guayabas a lot, that she used to cut from the tree, they also missed the fresh cheese the local farmers used to make, and the dry beef they eat every time they slaughter a cow.

A lot of memories have been lost since my grandparents made this decision. Some photos remain from that life. However, none of the third generations or the grandsons and granddaughters had the opportunities to go there because of the poor road conditions, is winding and unpaved. Even if my grandfather still wore boots, all his grandchildren are distant to have idea or to know the job he used to do at his farm. One thing is certain which is their daughters improved themselves. All of them attended high school and some of them went to the university.

When I look back in time, I thank my grandparents for being brave to make that decision to move to Chihuahua City. I have started to feel the same way because I decided to move to the United States with my family, looking for better life and adapting to a new country. Sometimes I think about it and ask myself if I prefer to be a country woman instead of a city woman, the one who is scared of the bugs and attends to the zoo to see the animals or the one that can be able to be in touch with nature and understand the cattle business. I am sure that I will find out in a couple of years. It is just a matter of time.