DIANA

I was 14 years old when I told my parents I wanted to have a professional career as a violinist and violin teacher. My mother was always very supportive, but it took a couple of years for my father to warm up to the idea. Little did I know, when it came to the quality of education and fair treatment of the student body, Colombia’s Universities did not have too many options to offer. I found myself looking for educational institutions outside my Country, where I could get the education I needed to become who I wanted to be. One month before I turned 18 years old, I transferred to a music education college in Albany New York. I was beyond excited; I could not wait to gain the knowledge, practice, and experience to become the best violinist I could be.

Once in Albany, I made friends, and had the opportunity to learn from an amazing violin teacher. However, people around me seemed to underestimate their privileged realities. I could not believe how much procrastination, disrespect, and lack of interest I saw in several of my college peers. I came from a developing country, where you have to take advantage of the smallest opportunities, especially when it comes to education. I was raised with the belief that education is the way to become a better human being, of achieving a substantial life, full of meaning and purpose. But then I found people with no motivation, no drive or purpose. It was hard… It was hard to keep myself focused on my goal, while seeing those around me just wasting the beautiful things their lives offered them. I just wanted each one of those individuals to have lived what I lived when I was a child, for them to really appreciate the comfort of their own lives. Anyhow, I felt more than happy when I completed my undergraduate degree. I had gone further from what I had ever imagined. Furthermore, I decided to apply for a Master’s degree in Violin Performance, and was offered a scholarship at a prestigious University in Chicago.

Once in Chicago, I found myself surrounded by incredible people. Both the faculty and my classmates were all unique human beings, looking to become better selves and to contribute to the world with their art. During my time as a graduate student, I became very passionate about teaching; I decided to make it my mission to become the most influential violin teacher I could be. I knew that I wanted to perform, but I also wanted to make a mark in the younger generations through my teaching. I wanted to not only teach an instrument, I wanted to teach motivation, perseverance, purpose, and dedication. I would say my experience in Chicago was life changing, mostly in a positive way. I do not like thinking too much about the negative aspects of my time here, but long story short, I hung out with the wrong people for some time, which negatively affected my emotional wellbeing and my academic performance. Who would know that thanks to this experience, I was going to meet my life partner, my team mate for this battle field called life. I found love.

This is where the story got a little drama. My then boyfriend and I wanted to stay together, and to form a life together, which led us to become victims of judgments and social stereotypes. We stopped being treated as a couple of two human beings wanting to spend their lives together, and instead, we became two different races wanting a taboo. It cost us time, patience, understanding, and faith to keep our love strong through criticisms, gossip, and lies. I will not deny that emotionally and psychologically, I let myself be convinced by the popular saying, that I was no more than a latina looking to take advantage of an american. I soon became depressed, and thought my love for my now husband was wrong. Thanks to my partner's support and my family, I was able to find myself again, and fought for the life I want to live. My partner and I decided to get married right before being done with my Master’s degree, regardless of what anybody else would think of us.

Then it came the government and the immigration policies of the current U.S. administration. It took me a year after we got married, to be a “legal human” in the U.S. once again. I could not work, I could not drive, I could not leave the country, I could not attend any university or college, I could not go to the doctor without being charged insane amounts of money for a small visit. There was definitely a time when I struggled, but it was all worth it. I am living everyday next to the love of my life (cheesy to say, but true), we adopted a kitty, who we named Lola, and are planning to adopt a dog soon. We have been together for 4 years, and married for four, looking forward to what life brings us. We are now exiting the scary COVID-19 pandemic, challenging the bad times with our hopes and daily adventures.

I know it can be hard, but it is all about perception. One is responsible for seeing life however one desires. Life throws events at you, you make the emotions and life lessons from it.