I thought he was going to get a bigger knife, but he came back empty handed. I never quite found out why this happened, but I saw how it affected my mom. In 2004, my little brother was born and four months later, my dad died. I was six then, and my family moved to Florida to live with my relatives, then to California. There, my mom worked as a seamstress but made very little money. My relatives didn’t treat my mom well, so we came back to Iowa. Being a single mom who doesn’t speak English well has made life hard for my mom, and she’s had to work a lot harder than most people to live half as well. I’ve had to translate for her at many places we go, and I’ve had to take responsibility and take care of my brothers while my mom worked double-shifts. I still do this. I believe growing up in this life has shaped me into a very well-rounded person who wants to make the best out of my life so that my mom’s sacrifices were worth it. I want to make sure that she never has to experience anything as bad as she has ever again. I need do well in life and work hard so my mom doesn’t have to anymore. This goal pushes me every day to work hard to finish college and make the best life for myself and my family that I possibly