“I came to this country at a very young age. There were many hardships in my family, but we endured and are stronger for it. I am no stranger to field work. I still remember waking up at four o’clock in the morning to pick cherries. The bucket was always too big for me and my feet always got wet with the dew covering the grass. It was a simple job, but it required precision to not rip the stems of the cherries and persistence to endure the long hours and heat. I complained a lot because I was so young. I never understood why my mom would insist we go with her. As I grew older, I realized that I learned valuable life lessons that I could not have learned otherwise. I feel blessed to be where I am now and as I continue to grow I will never forget how much work it takes to get the cherry on top on my seven-year-olds’ ice cream sundae.”
