I am a proud Puerto Rican woman, but when I was growing up, I continually rebelled against my ethnicity and culture. The idea of being different from my peers terrified me and I could not stand it when my family flaunted the Puerto Rican flag or played salsa music. I could swear I heard whispers about my family everywhere I went, so I kept my head down and pretended I was a white girl whenever I could. One day, I was surrounded by my beautiful and crazy family and I could not understand what I was ashamed of. Now at almost 20 years old, I love where my family comes from and will flaunt my culture wherever I can, because I love being Puerto Rican; I love being a Latina.
Here's what I love about my Puerto Rican heritage:
1. When you walk into a party filled with Puerto Ricans, you will never feel like an outsider.
It never fails; everything turns into a party and it does not matter to us if you're Puerto Rican—you're family. If we see you looking alone, expect to be pulled up to drink with us and dance with us. If you can hang out at one of our parties and last, then you have joined our family and we automatically love you.
2. We are one big family.
There is no specification about how distant your cousin is. We do not say, "This is my third cousin." We just say, "This is my cousin." Sometimes, if she's your mother's cousin, then that just means you will call her your aunt. We do not have an extended family; we just have one giant, nuclear family. I can tell you as much about my first cousin as I can about my fifth cousin. I know all of them and I love them all the same.
3. There is never a quiet or dull moment.
When I'm home, I wake up on Saturdays to Tito Puente's music playing and I know that it is time to wake up and clean. Bored? Salsa music and cleaning or cooking. The smallest thing can set off a mini party happening and the maracas coming out. The music will never stop and do not dare suggest that we put on something else, something in English. If you do, my grandmother will most likely curse you out in Spanish.
4. I never lack for affection.
Just walked into the room? "Dame un beso" (Give me a kiss). You can never go into any room for the first time without going around and giving hello kisses to everyone. This is both considered a sign of respect and a sign of affection for those in your family. It does not even matter if the person is someone you have never met before: "Dame un beso."
5. I will never go hungry.
It does not matter whose house in the family I go to; there will be food. "You hungry? Let me fix you a plate" is something I commonly hear the second I walk in the door. And if it's a holiday, I will have food for days. We cook to feed the masses and the leftovers last us for a very long time. Every Spanish restaurant is ruined for me because it's not my family's cooking.
Side note: Do not tell us that Chipotle and Taco Bell count as real Spanish food; it's insulting.
6. There is no such thing as being alone in my family.
Ever heard of personal space? We haven't. There will be hugs when you are not expecting it. Usually, a room is so crowded with people that you know, you can't help but brush against most of them while trying to get more food. Also, we don't handle privacy very well. Most people will just barge into my room without a word and ask me if I've seen something or someone.
7. The dancing
We always find a reason to dance. Even if there is no music playing, we hear music in our heads and it's usually salsa music. Time to clean? Time to dance. Time to cook? Time to dance. Passed a test? Time to dance. When we dance, it usually takes us a while to stop. We can find a beat in anything and there are members of my family that can dance salsa to any musical genre.
8. The loyalty.
Even when we are not speaking to each other, we have each other's backs. We protect each other and we love each other fiercely. You don't have to be blood to gain this loyalty; when we love you like family, we will always be there for you. More often than not, one family is multiple families bonded together out of loyalty and love instead of blood.
