I thought I was raising my daughter. Looking back, I think we raised each other.
A mother reflects on the challenges of becoming a parent at 20, which forced her to drop out of college and sacrifice her scholarship. She describes the journey of growing up alongside her daughter while navigating the pressures of the immigrant experience and the American dream.
Why it matters
The story offers a personal perspective on the intersection of early parenthood, educational attainment, and the intergenerational expectations of immigrant families.
The author was 20 when she had her daughter, who is now 21. Courtesy of the author I became pregnant at 20 and had to leave college and give up my full scholarship. I returned to school while working and raising my daughter, graduating seven years later. My daughter is now 21, and I realize we grew into adulthood together. Growing up as a first-generation immigrant , I understood early how much my parents sacrificed to build a better future for our family. They left everything they knew behind so their children could have opportunities they never had. For me, that meant becoming the first in my family to graduate from college.
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