Puff Pieces by Adrian: Baby Update

Monday, March 4, 2013

Baby Update

So the past year was the craziest year of my life. From the tragic passing of my best friend to the birth of my daughter- and everything in between, I am still left stunned. Here I am though. It’s 2013. The depth of pain and joy from the past year is still spilling over, and I’m sure it won’t ever cease to affect me, but at least it is getting easier.

Things that encompass all life seem calmer. Some things don’t seem as important, like my book writing, for example. I am grateful for the success so far of L.A. Ninja. I have sold somewhere approaching 100 copies, with only one review, but it’s a good one of 5/5 stars. I should be overjoyed based on the high level of internal importance that I had placed on writing and publishing it, but I’m not. I’m happy, but it just seems less important. I suppose that life has a way of putting things in the proper perspective. I guess I should know that from my own characters, but I admit- it gets away from me sometimes.

Speaking of which, my little girl is amazing. I purposely try to avoid being that parent that sings high praise about their little one, even with all evidence to the contrary. However, I am unable to do so, so it seems. She is so much more than I had hoped for. She is healthy, vibrant, passionate and intelligent. She is physically large, to my surprise, as neither my wife nor I are tall, and she is more advanced than most of her peers.

She was walking at ten months of age, and now at eleven months is able to make short bursts of runs. She says some words, including “dada” and “Adrian”, and she has a thirst for everything that is the life around her. She giggles and has had her first laugh attack. She loves dogs and all things animal. She loves the zoo. She is stubborn, temperamental, and so far, refuses to take shit from anyone. I admit that she probably gets more of that from her mother than me, but that is ok.

Speaking of which, my wife amazes me too. I have told her so, but I sometimes think that we both lose sight of it. So I will write it down here. I think she has far exceeded the already high hopes that I had for her as the mother of my children. She has shown patience, love and admiration, and strength with our babygirl. She has impressed me further with her research and educated approach to raising her, for which I am often times left in the dark due to my own ignorance on the subject. I think though, for my part, the result provides the ability to strike an even balance in raising her. Either way, I am so appreciative in the passion and energy that she has shown in raising our daughter.

Anyhow, it can sometimes be difficult when two parents must find agreement in the everyday decisions to raise a young one. The key though is communicating- as we always do, and sometimes having the trust and courage to make concessions. It works both ways. We are making it though, and I am happy with what I see in my little girl. It will be her first birthday at the end of this week. Happy birthday, Munkiepants. I love you like crazy! -Daddy

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Revolution of the Soul. A Mission Statement.

I am by default, and through no fault of my own, different. I’m not out cruising the boulevard on the weekends, blasting oldies-but-goodies with the homies. I am also not listening to rock en Espanol, speaking in Spanish-only with my friends. I could fit into either stereotype perfectly though, and to an outsider, I probably appear to be from either or both worlds. I have brown skin, which is pretty much all it takes. It’s not that simple though, as others like me surely understand. I speak some Spanish but I also speak perfect English. I went to college. I love hamburgers and fries, and hip-hop, and alternative music. I have simply integrated into American culture from the start, because I was born here, and because I wanted to.

I’m glad that I’m not still stuck in Mexico somewhere, growing up a third world existence, which statistically would have been the case, had my familia never come here. But I am glad to have come from a country and peoples with such a rich and vibrant history. There are many reasons having such a heritage is a good thing, and I am proud to be a part of it. I am glad to have been born here in America, and happy to be part of this system. I’m happier yet that I didn’t grow up as a cholo gang-banging, tagger, too-cool-for school type of guy, even though I’ve had plenty of chances, given my surroundings. That subculture is not all bad either, depending on the level of involvement and the choices one makes. In other words, you can look the part without being a thug, or a social, or immigrant, or anything else, que no? This is true of all life.

So even though I am different, I am by no means alone, and I know this. The problem for me is that I’m not seeing enough representation out there in the media. I’m not seeing a lot of works written, or filmed, for people like me. It annoys me, too, for a lot of political reasons, because our image is grossly misrepresented. Sure the gangbanger cholos are fun to include in film, because violence sells. However, that only perpetuates a false image. These days, it seems as though everyone in this country sees us either as cholos or as immigrants that refuse to assimilate, legal or not. This angers me because we are so many different things including a multitude of diversity within our own subculture. It’s pretty frickin’ beautiful, if everyone only knew…

Either way, I decided to make the changes I wanted to see, on my own. I’m writing stories for me, for you, and for everyone else, and my main characters are all Latino, and not just Mexican-Latino either. My stories are not about quinceaneras or growing up as a pocho in high school. They are not about crossing the border, or starting any revolutions. The only revolution I write about is the Revolution of the Soul. My stories are meant to entertain and inspire people, and hopefully many of you will relate to them in one way or another, and see yourselves there in them, wherever that may be.