I wake up early everyday and I still cannot believe that I am living in the place that witnessed my birth and some of the most significant events in my life. I look at all the familiar places and sometimes wish I did not remember anything at all. It is bittersweet to be home but I have tried to put a spin to those not so good memories and think, “Oh! The places I’ve been…” 
As I continue to live here, I find more people from my past. Some, I am happy to see…others, not so much. I am reminded every day of how much I have lived in the past 17 years and how different I am now. I left Puerto Rico when I was 19 years old, with a broken heart and a little bit of cash (no more than $100). I embarked on an adventure that—many thought—was going to beat me and send me right back to where I started. They were wrong, so wrong… No matter how hot tempered I am, the thought of coming back to dwell in self pity kept me focused throughout all the stress of being away from my family while being yelled by strangers.
During the past 17 years, I have seen the sunrise in the Orient and the sunset in the West. I have traveled across the United States only missing visiting Alaska, North Dakota, and Hawaii. I have seen the Statue of Liberty, the Washington Monument, the Gran Canyon, Mount Rushmore, Alcatraz, the Alamo, and many other historic landmarks of the United States. I have driven over the Rocky Mountain, The Great Smoky Mountains, the Black Mountains, the Appalachian Mountains, the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and Cascade Mountains—among many others that I do not even remember. I have swam in the second biggest reservoir in the United States—Lake Powell, AZ—and spent a week enjoying its hypnotic landscapes. I drove over the Mississippi River and discovered a completely different culture in the South of the United States.
I visited Germany, France, Canada and took a joyride through Mexico. I have met thousands of people of from different places. We have compared stories and I found out that in the end, we are more alike than not. We all most likely value family, our friends, and good earned dollar. I found that ignorance is not bliss, is unfortunate. I found that only insecure people hate others because they are jealous of their achievements. I pity the ones that resolve to racism instead of acknowledging they are afraid of the unknown. I have seen racism—and experienced discrimination—but I have also seen incredible acts of unity and goodwill. In all, I have learned not to measure everybody with the same stick and quietly get to know somebody instead of prejudging them.
Oh! The places I’ve been!... Aside from all the physical places I have been to, is the journey of my emotional growth that has given me the widest wingspan of all. Today, as I look at my life in retrospect, I can honestly say that… Even though I miss—and will continue to miss—my Island, the sacrifices made along the way have made this homecoming a revelation into who I really am.
