Linda's Childhood Memories

By Sindie Castro

Linda was born in El Salvador and her parents left her to search for a better life in the United States. Linda's grandparents take care of her and send her to the U.S. Linda recalls her childhood memories including when she crossed the border to the U.S.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Nov 7, 2017
• ISBN: 9781387351503

Book preview

Linda's Childhood Memories

Chapter 1: Call Me Linda

My name is Linda. But as a child living in El Salvador, my grandparents called me Maria. My full name is Linda Maria Perez Garcia. Linda translates to beautiful in English, but beautiful is the last word I would choose to describe myself. Growing up, I felt ugly, and I suffered from low self-esteem. My inability to speak and understand English added to my vulnerability. My middle name, Maria, didn’t suit me either. Maria is too saintly, especially for an undocumented female who unwillingly broke the law as a child.

Mom explains that she heard the name Linda Maria in a Spanish soap opera. I imagined the soap opera character as a beautiful tall brunette, named Linda Maria. She would walk into a room with a glass of wine on her right hand; stroking her long and silky hair with her left hand; wearing a short black mini-skirt that flaunts her long tan legs; and a tight white long sleeve button shirt that makes her look like an educated business woman.  Linda Maria had what she wanted, specially the man sitting on her couch staring at her, while the background music plays and then you hear a knock on the door from the police who wants to arrest her for the murder of her sister’s husband’s brother in-law’s sister because she wanted her position in the law firm. 

Although my imaginary character’s confidence helped her get away with murder, my low self-esteem hated Linda Maria. I wanted to be named Jenny, not Jennifer, only Jenny.  In El Salvador, I had a kindergarten classmate name Jenny and she looked beautiful. Everybody in my neighborhood liked her. My rationale was, if her name is Jenny and she is a beautiful child, then, if my name is Jenny that would make me beautiful too. It made sense to me as a 5-year-old girl.

Chapter 2: And Then There Were Five

I have 5 living siblings with me in the U.S and one sister in Heaven. My sister, Esperanza was stillborn. Mom explains that during her journey to the U.S, she gave birth to a baby girl named Esperanza, Hope in English. She named her Esperanza because Mom yearned for hope while walking the desert to continue her journey to the U.S. Mom nearly died of dehydration but was willing to risk her life in search for a better future for us.

Oscar is the oldest child who felt like a guinea pig from my parents’ disciplinary efforts to deal with his pesky behaviors. From Oscar’s experience, their discipline overshadowed their affection towards him.  Mom explains that before Oscar’s birth, they were uneducated teenagers expecting their first baby. Their goal was surviving the fields while working under the sun. She says that they also lacked parenting skills and health education. Mom didn’t know where babies came from until she had Oscar as a teenager.

Oscar has brown eyes and was very thin as a child but gained weight