April 2023 Student Spotlight: Adriana Rivera Hernandez
Adriana Rivera Hernandez is a young woman from Puerto Rico. She has been living in the United States with her parents and brother for five years. In this narrative essay, Adriana talks about the most precious she has received, the gift of life.
The Gift Life Can Give You
Ever since I gained the knowledge that I was an only child, I didn’t want to be one. My cousins and I were raised as siblings, but they had actual siblings and I didn’t. Even though my parents never made me feel lonely, I still did because I had to play by myself and find different ways to entertain myself when my cousins weren't with me. So, in efforts to end my loneliness and boredom, I started asking for a sibling.
“Mami, can I please have a sibling? Pleeeease?” I asked my mom with tears in my eyes.
“Why would you want a sibling when you get everything you want and all the attention you want?” my dad said as he was lying beside my mom not taking his eyes away from the TV.
“Baby, you’re already six. We don’t want another baby. I'm sorry,” my mom said running her fingers through my hair.
But, I didn’t give up, and every Christmas, I would ask Santa for a baby sister. That method never worked out, and there would be no baby sister under the tree. Years passed and I was still very much an only child, but that was going to quickly change. One day when I was nine years old, my mom picked me up from school with her coworker/friend. I was in the backseat; we were nearing her friend's house to drop her off when my mom started saying something suspicious.
“The blood test came out positive,” my mom said looking at her friend with a worried expression.
“You’re pregnant, girl. I told you.” Her friend said looking at mami laughing. My mom started laughing too.
“What?! You’re pregnant?!” I yelled with tears running down my face.
“Oh my God, baby! I forgot you were back there!” my mom said looking back at me while covering her mouth in shock.
“I'm going to be a big sister?” I asked her while wiping the tears from my face.
“I didn’t plan on telling you like this, but yes, Adri,” she said smiling and leaning over the console of the car to give me a big hug.
Nine months later, my dad woke me up around four in the morning to give me the unforgettable news. “Adri, wake up! You’re going to your grandma’s house because mami and I have to go to the hospital,” he said shaking me awake after turning my light on.
“Is the baby okay?” I said yawning and rubbing the sleep out of my eyes while pulling the covers off me to get out of bed. He responded that the baby was okay while putting my school clothes into a backpack. My aunt was going to drop me off at school while my parents were at the hospital.
The process of waking me up, packing everything I needed, getting my mom and me in the car, and driving to grandma’s took only about 15 minutes. We got to my grandma’s house, I kissed my parents, and wished my mom good luck. I told them to call me when he was born because I wanted to be the first person to receive the news.
I slept for a couple hours in a spare room until I had to get ready for school. I hadn’t heard anything from my parents yet, so I felt anxious and not in the mood to even go to school. I felt like I should’ve stayed with my grandma until we heard the news, but my grandma didn’t want to upset my parents and I obviously didn’t want to either, so I had to suck it up and still go.
As soon as I got to school, I made it a mission to let everybody I knew that I, in fact, was about to be an official sister. It was the only thing I could talk about all day. I told all my classmates, all my teachers, and even the lunch ladies. People were getting annoyed with me just talking on and on about my baby brother's birth.
Around 12 in the afternoon, my dad called me to tell me my brother was born at 11:30 in the morning. I had tears coming down my face while jumping up and down with an ear-to-ear smile.
About 30 minutes later my aunts picked me up from school and we headed towards the hospital. One of my cousins had to put makeup on me so I could look older, so the security guard would let me through. I was too young to officially visit. When we got to the door to maternity, the security guard looked at me and asked how old I was. “I’m 12 years old, sir,” I said looking up at him trying to not smudge the eyeliner and mascara that were burning both of my eyes.
“Mmhmm, just go through,” he said disinterestedly turning his eyes to his phone.
We walked into the room and my mom was laying down watching the news on the TV while holding my teeny tiny baby brother. My dad was taking a nap on the couch next to my mom’s bed. My mom heard the door open and turned her head towards us, and the biggest smiles came out on both of our faces.
On the day my brother was born, I couldn’t have been happier. That day changed my life forever. He was, and still is, beautiful and perfect. He grew up to be the funniest, craziest, most loveable, and smartest little boy. I love him so much that words can't even explain it. He is the best gift of my life.
ESOL Voices a collection of stories written by ESOL students at Monroe Community College. This publication highlights our MCC students who come from all over the world. Look for new stories in the Tribune. We hope you enjoy our students’ stories as much as we do.
Pamela Fornieri, ESOL Program & Katie Leite, GEIS, April 2023