My Life the Short Version by Harold Aguiar

Essay by bennysosaCollege, Undergraduate February 2008

download word file, 7 pages 1.0

I was born in Harlem Hospital located in New York City. I feel blessed that I was born in Harlem for it is a historic place. I feel proud when I think of this spot on earth that was home to such intelligent people like John Henrik Clarke, Arthur A. Schomburg, Adam Clayton Powell Jr., and A. Phillip Randolph to name a few. I still remember going to shop on 125th Street with my mom as a youngster; I loved going there. It was full of life and had a different energy, to me this street felt like Christmas Day everyday. Another reason my birth in Harlem is special is because I was the first member of my family born in the United States of America. All my immediate relatives at the time of my birth were from Dominican Republic.

The Dominican Republic is very special to me, for there is a whole different culture and country that is part of my heritage.

I feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to experience another perspective to how people live and struggle outside the United States. It made me realize how lucky I am to live in a country that has the resources that this country has. It also made me think twice about squandering all the opportunities that this country has to offer. America has its problems, racism, a revolving door justice system, poverty and an increasing juvenile crime rate but it also gives you an opportunity get ahead if you decide that you want to. I truly believe that if you put your mind and will into it, there is nothing you can’t accomplish in America.

When I was four years old, my biological dad and mom were separated, at the time I had a two-year-old brother and...