Harsh Reality

Tijuana, Mexico isn’t the safest city. There's a lot of human trafficking and drug trades
ran by different drug cartels and gangs throughout the city. However, the majority of the people
there are amazing. They are such hardworking people with big hearts. They’re always greeting
people with open arms, even if they may not know them. The streets of Tijuana are so colorful
and bright. The city's filled with palm trees, music, and many souvenir shops. It’s crowded as
well, especially because the U.S. and Mexican border is so close, many tourists go and visit.

We’re stopped at a red light. A little boy goes out right in front of our car and starts
juggling items I’m unsure of.
“Why is he doing that, he’s so little? What if he gets ran over?” my sister asked
worriedly.
“He’s trying to make money,” my mom said in Spanish.
“There's a lot of kids here in Mexico who don’t have enough money and the opportunity
to go school, so they’re out here working,” my dad said.

The little boy then stopped and took off his torn navy-blue hat from his head. He went car
to car, leaning his hat into each car window, to see if anyone would give him money for juggling.
He came up to our car and my dad rolled down our windows.

The little boy was so skinny and wore torn up, dirty clothes.
Pobrecito (poor kid), I thought to myself.
“Here you go. Good job mijo, keep it up.” My dad said. My sister and I waved at him as
the light turned green and my dad drove off.
He smiled and thanked us, “gracias!”
“I was like that kid,” my dad said. “When your grandparents had me, I only went to
school until the 5th grade. I had to then drop out because they needed me to go out and help them
work. There were days we would go without having anything to eat. They needed me to bring
home extra money, so we could have food at the table. Everyone’s story is different, but what
that kid was doing over there, that’s how most of the kids here make their living.”

There aren’t many job opportunities available in Mexico and if there is it's hard labor
with very little pay. A lot of parents can’t afford for their kids to go to school because in Mexico
you have to pay and it’s expensive. That’s why the majority of kids drop out and start working.

Dad parked the car and we went to the plaza nearby. There were lots of restaurants
selling seafood, tortas, pozole, and many other traditional Mexican dishes. Every restaurant we
would walk past, there would be singers with their microphones singing and others playing their
guitar. They were going table to table singing to customers.
All we could hear as we walked past the restaurants was the sound of music that made
you want to dance. They were playing Mariachi music on the far right, Ranchera on the other
side, and Norteno on the other end. As I looked around, all I could see were colorful banners,
buildings, and signs. Walking through the plaza is a breath of fresh air. People are dancing,
singing, chatting, and enjoying being with their friends and families.
It’s so vibrant and cheerful here, I thought to myself as we walked down the plaza.
 A few hours passed, and it was now late in the afternoon. We started to head back to our
car to leave back to California. My parents only wanted to stay here for a while because it takes a
few hours to get back to my grandparents’ house in San Diego.
We’re in line to cross back, and you wouldn’t believe how long the line was. We sat in
the car for a couple of hours until we were able to get closer. By the time we got halfway, it was
almost dark. There were so many vendors, everywhere you turned. Little kids were in groups or
even sometimes by themselves selling lollipops, packs of gum, or anything they could. Other
vendors were selling fruit cups, churros, chips, and so much more.

A little girl walked through the car lanes yelling, “Churros! Churros!”
“Ma, Pa, can we get some!” I yelled eagerly.
“Do you guys want churros?” My mom asked my sister and me.
“Yes please,” my sister and I said in a soft voice as if speaking softly would convince her
to say yes.
My mom called the little girl over and she came up to our car window.
“Would you guys like to buy some?” The little girl asked in Spanish.
“We would love to buy some mija, how much?” My mom asked.
“They’re 5 pesos each”
“We’ll take 4 and keep the change,” my mom said.
The little girl looked at my mom and grew out a big smile. She thanked us and continued
to yell with her bucket of churros to the rest of the cars in front of us.

As time passed, we noticed the sky getting cloudy. The closer we got to the front, the
worse the weather got. It was windy and looked like it wanted to rain, but the vendors were still
out selling.
Out of nowhere, we started to hear lightning and it started raining rapidly. The
thunderstorm grumbled and growled as it got progressively worse.
At this time, it was already dark. The first thing I thought of was all those kids outside.
Most of them started running into allies and others into buildings.
“They’re going to get soaked,” I said.
Water droplets rapidly hit our car. I then saw 2 kids outside with no jackets or umbrellas.
I took off my seatbelt, reached back into the trunk, and pulled out my pink jacket.
“Mia, grab your jacket,” I said.
She unbuckled herself and grabbed her puffy blue jacket.
“Here,” she said.
“Ma, Pa, can you call those kids over there and give them these jackets,” I asked.
My mom nodded and grabbed the jackets from my hand. She rolled down her window
and yelled out to try to get them to come over. A little boy and what looked to be her little sister
looked back and came running. My sister and I both looked through the window.

“Here take these and put them on,” my mom said in Spanish.
“Muchas gracias señora,” they said as they put them on.
“Stay safe and keep yourselves warm,” she said as they ran away.
 They were shivering and the storm wasn’t getting any better. Seeing those kids made me
so worried about everyone outside, especially the rest of the kids we saw.

We got to the front and crossed the border. It was a long night and we continued to head
back to my grandma’s. On the car ride home all I could think about was all those people, outside
working. I’d come to realize that not everyone has it easy. My family doesn’t have to wonder
every day where we’re going to spend the night or when we'll have our next meal. My sister and
I never had to drop out of school and start working just to be able to provide for ourselves and
our family. Seeing all those people and kids out on the streets, doing what they could for
themselves and their families was an eye-opening experience for me. Before, I never really paid
attention and realized how many people struggle through this. It’s hard and sad to see so many
people go through the same thing. I can’t even imagine how much of an impact it has on them.
Yet, it’s also so inspiring to see them push forward and not give up. Those kids I saw out there
today don't have it easy, but from what I could see, it doesn’t stop them from having a smile on
their faces. Instead, it’s their motivation to keep going.