Mamá y Papá,

I wish I could go back in time and tell my rebellious teenage self to shut up and listen to you two. That every lecture, every reminder to practice my espanol, every single action that seemed pitted against me, was really you two looking out for me. I won't be ever to repay you for all that you've done, or give you enough thank you's, but here's my best shot.

Thank you for sacrificing all that you had so I could have the world.

The country you loved, the family you saw everyday, the place you had learned to call home; your dreams were all left behind all so that my brother and I could have more opportunities to succeed. Everything that you knew was gone and you were thrown into a new world with an unfamiliar language and a different set of rules. You gave everything up, just for the chance that we could be better off in the land where all dreams can come true. This ultimate sacrifice of yours is a guiding light for me and my brother to make you both proud and prove that it was all worth it.

Thank you for being the best role models.

Since I could remember, you two have been the most giving, caring, and loving individuals in my life. Even when we had absolutely nothing to give, you taught me that as rough as we may have it, there's always something that can be done to help those who have even less.

There's a saying out there that says, "if I'm even half the person of what my parents are, then I'll consider myself blessed." Truly, every day I feel so blessed to have been raised by you two.

Thank you for teaching me how to fight against ignorance.

I remember the first time I encountered racism was when I was eight years old holding your hand, Dad. You had asked a woman how her day was going, and she simply remarked with a cold, "I'm fine, wetback." My heart felt like it had been stabbed, and I looked to you in panic. You simply smiled and told her to have a great day. I remember I asked you what her problem was, and you explained that sometimes people had a hard time understanding the beauty of people's differences.

Since then, you and mom taught me to never give into people's ignorance, but rather be an example of understanding and acceptance. You never let me separate myself from others by what they looked like, or where they came from, but rather, you taught me to appreciate those who taught me about different cultures and backgrounds.

Thank you for teaching me to never let others define who I am and my worth.

Even from a young age, I felt like the entire world got to decide who I was going to become and what I was worth simply because I was Hispanic and a woman. Both of you constantly drilled into my head that I needed to believe that I was smart, I was strong and I was capable of building any type of life for myself. In fact, you encouraged me to look myself in the mirror and tell myself that every time some tried to put a limit to what I could accomplish.

Every time I came home upset over a comment that someone said to me, or I was frustrated by the limitations that had been set by others, you reminded me that I was the only one who stop myself from being great. As soon as I started to doubt what I could do, I had already given up my opportunity to be excellent.

Thank you for teaching me the value of hard work.

As much as I hate stereotypes, I cannot deny how hard working our people are. From a young age I was constantly hearing about how nothing in the world was free and everything that you wanted for yourself required a lot of dedication and hard work. You never complained about the long hours that you both worked. Even after work, you still cooked, cleaned, helped us with homework, and kept on going, even when your bodies felt like they were about to give out.

During my senior year of high school, I remember coming home after a scholarship award ceremony, absolutely heartbroken with the results. How was it possible that I, student body president, honors student, and exceptional community member, had received a minimal amount of scholarships? Had I not done enough to deserve more?

Quickly, you both put me in my place, and reminded me that I still had so much more to do in order to see my hard work pay off. I couldn't be disappointed, in fact, I needed to stay persistent in my dreams and work twice as hard to make them a reality.

Now, as I sit in my fancy Vice President office I chuckle at my foolish high school self. Here I sit, absolutely debt free, lounging like the queen of England, as I have the opportunity to pursue my dreams and be a living role model for other hispanic students. Every day, I am so blessed because I get to watch my hard work finally start to pay off, but more importantly, I can actually feel the appreciation for all that I do. All of this, is because of you two.

Thank you for teaching me the beauty of our culture and customs.

I remember I used to be so embarrassed of some of the things we did. I would hate having friends over, because I would never know how the house would look, or what would be in the kitchen. Slowly over the years, I began to appreciate all of the little things about our culture and eventually, I was proud to be part of a culture that had such strong traditions.

Without a doubt this helped me realize not only the importance of family in our culture, but also helped me appreciate the unique ways we celebrated each holiday. Now, I get so excited when I have the opportunity to teach my friends about our culture and the way we go about things.

Thank you for teaching me to never settle for "good."

I remember how hurtful it would be to bring home an assignment I had received a good grade on or had been recognized for something, only to have you shrug and tell me that I could do better. At the time, I felt like regardless of what I did, it wouldn't be enough, but yet, I kept trying to finally get your seal of approval. With every new accomplishment, and award, you both simply told me that I could do more. I thought this was your way of telling me you weren't proud, but really, it was your way of letting us know that you full-heartedly believed we could be excellent.

Now that I'm a college student, I am so grateful that you were so hard on my brother and I. I realized that you have been our biggest cheerleaders since day one, but you were trying to help us understand that we were capable of being exceptional in everything that we did. You were in the process of teaching us how to do everything with passion and to never place a glass ceiling on ourselves. It's because of this attitude that I see everything as an opportunity to be better, to challenge myself to be the best student/daughter/sister/person I can be.

Thank you for teaching me the value of education.

Dad, you were never a huge fan of school yourself, but you didn't let this stop you from being a hard-ass when it came to my grades. Every single report card was reviewed during dinner, and even now in college, you will text me reminding me to study and get good grades. Mom, among your various sacrifices, you gave up your dream of becoming a lawyer. From struggling with geometry, to writing my senior thesis, you were always by my side, reminding me I had no excuse not to make the most out of my education.

I remember you both told me that the one thing someone could never take away from me was my education. Through education, I would be able to knock down every single barrier that life tried to put in my way. Thankfully, I fell in love with academics early in my life, but you two were always there to push me to be the best scholar I could be. My friends laugh at me because I once cried because I got a B+ in Geology, but I can hear your voices in my head, letting me know that this class is part of something much bigger.

Thank you for teaching me the true meaning of, "si se puede."

Ah, the motto of our people. I can't quite place when I first heard this, but I remember looking at you, Mom and your eyes were full of tears. You smiled at me and told me that one day, I would understand. Over the years, I've had the chance to witness the power of this statement. These simple three words represent the revolution of our people who are constantly working to break down every single barrier, defeating stereotypes and proving to the world that, yes, we can do it.

Nothing will stop us. Regardless of how impossible, or how outlandish any of our dreams may be, we will reach our dreams. Every single lesson, everything that you have drilled into my head throughout the years, all of this has led to my confidence behind the belief that absolutely nothing can stand between me and my dreams.

Without a doubt, this is one of the greatest things I could have ever learned from you.

Thank you for loving me unconditionally.

Despite my flaws and the large amount of headaches I provide you two with, thank you for loving me. I know I'm a handful, or two, but you two have never made me question the love you have for me. I know regardless of my mistakes, you will always support me and help me get back on track. They say that you can't pick your family but even if I could, I would pick you two, time and time again.