Running Head; CULTURAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY 1

Cultural Autobiography

Ana K Gonzalez

Community College of Southern Nevada

CULTURAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY 2

Autobiography

My name is Ana Karina Gonzalez, even though I was named after “Anna Karenina”, a

character from the Russian Tolstoy story, Ana is an spanish name with portuguese origins.

Gonzalez is a Latin name that, as Mexican, comes from a patronymic surname meaning “son of

Gonzalo”,(dictionary). I was born and raised in Mexico City which, if I dare to compare it with

another city of the USA, I would say that it is like Los Angeles or Huston, not with the glamour

and sophistication but with a lot more people and with the technology and infrastructure that any

of those cities offer. It has been known that Mexicans are very religious people and I am no

exception, only that the majority of the people are Catholic and I am not. Another characteristic

of being mexican is that the culture is very much family oriented, meaning that family is the

most important part in our lives. There is no success in the personal life of a mexican if we lose

the ties that bind us as a family.

I left Mexico in 1985, coming to the USA following the man I married, we have 4

daughters and four of us are working on getting a Bachelor’s degree right now.

These three major cultural background aspects (mexican born in a big city, religious and family

oriented) had been my heritage that had been with me even when I am not in Mexico City any

more.

When I got to the United States, I first lived in Los Angeles CA, pretty much like my

city, only much cleaner, Mexico City is one of the most air polluted and contaminated cities in

the whole world, I arrived to a big house where this family had to work really hard to support us
CULTURAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY 3
all, but that fact, help me to not realize that my life needed to change, so I kept on being my

mexican self, caring a lot for my new husband, washing clothes by hand and then putting them

in the washer to make sure the clothes were “ absolutely clean”, The house was supposed to be

impeccable, floors, walls, windows clean and bathrooms sanitized, food ready when husband

would arrive from work.

When I had my kids, I turned out to be the overprotective mother that as a mexican I had to be, I

never left my religion, so now my kids were basically religious with me as well, until they got to

the age to decide for themselves. I never thought of me being a paranoid woman living a life

from another world, from another time.

It was not until I took the decision to follow some examples around me, to make myself

more useful by going to school, and working. The combination of both goals, working, school

and keeping my traditions and culture the same way, was impossible, I realized I needed to

change.

I actually was able to change a lot the way I used to, but my mexican heritage continues

to be a great part of myself, like being an overprotective mother.

That makes me think that as a teacher it is imperative to be aware not only of the

differences between my culture and the culture of the people around me, especially my students,

but also to know that they do not have to be different from the way they are, that learning should

be free and accessible for all of us regardless. That me, as a teacher has the responsibility to

understand and appreciate those differences, to better help my class, to better understand each

other.
CULTURAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY 4

This assignment made me realize that there is a lot that I need to learn still. I would like

to be an inspiration and a big help for my students and not a discouragement for them. I want

them to succeed, because their success, it’s my success as well. That is my hope.