Where I From

Ezequiel Figueroa (December, 3, 1999) I am from Puerto Rico. In 2017 my family decide move to North Carolina because in Puerto Rico we had many needs with regard to the economy. Many people often move from their country to another one with the same situation. From a young age I dreamed of seeing all of the things in person that I would see in movies about the United States, kind of like snow. Puerto Rico is tropical and moist most of the year. That is why I have always wanted to travel here and feel the cold weather. Over the years, my parents have been with me through thick and thin, they have given me the best they can in order for me to continue having a great education for my future. I have siblings that live here with me, one brother and two sisters. My oldest sister passed away two years from a car accident, and that is the main reason my whole family moved here. We all spent many months with depression because we lost someone very important who always brought happiness into our home. We had previously came when she passed away and stayed only five days for her funeral. We went back to Puerto Rico, realized we wanted to move and ended up coming back a couple of weeks later. We came back for my nephews who were very close to us. We knew it would be hard to leave them without their mom and especially not having the rest of their family with them. Being here we came across many new opportunities such as a job, being able to join the Basketball team for my high school, and best of all a better education for my sister and I. With English being a struggle for me, the first few months were very stressful, I would challenge myself daily to get better with the language.

I live a very humble life, I know what it is like to have and not to have everything you need and want. In Puerto Rico we experienced many hurricanes that destroyed many parts of our house. We have lost many things due to this weather issues. It is very sad to experience and watch your belongings get lost and destroyed as well as loosing people that you really care for