Honoring our Mothers: Arizona woman credits mom for that extra push in life

The end of the semester approaches and I will be graduating with my second Master's degree soon. I will begin my PhD journey in Mexican American Studies in the fall. It's hard to imagine, but I never wanted to go to college.

When I was 17, I thought that I should be done with school and able to move on to something else. My parents felt otherwise and insisted that I go to college for at least one year. They didn't have the means to pay for it, I would have to apply for loans and grants, and get a job.

Andrea with her mom and sisters.

When it was time for me to go, my mom had to borrow my uncle's truck to drive me down to Tucson. We couldn't find parking near my dorm and had to park 2 blocks away. My mom, my younger sisters, and I carried my boxes and bags those two blocks and up the three flights of stairs to my new home. I was so mad at my mom for insisting that I be there and resented every step we took.

I was scared to leave my parents and my family and my desert. But I cannot imagine what my life would be like had I never come to Tucson.

That day is perhaps the defining moment in my life. And of course, my mom and my sisters should be central in that experience. Those women were there to deliver me into this journey and have always supported me in it.



Andrea Hernandez Holm is a writer of poetry, fiction and non-fiction.She lives with her family in Arizona.