Nicol

"In Spanish, I sound like a poet."

By Students of NYC

November 6^th, 2024

“My dad came to New York first. From the age of 3, I would spend one year studying here and one year back in DR. It was like my life was split in two. School is different there — it's a lot about survival. And people change a lot in a year, so each time I came back, it was like starting over. I think I talk so much today because I always had to work to make friends.

In 5th grade, my mom called me into her bedroom and told me that we would be leaving the Dominican Republic together for New York for good. She told me, “The next time you go to New York, you won’t be going alone." Part of me was so happy that our family was finally going to be together. But as they worked to get the papers together, I realized how final it was. That I was going to be leaving the place I considered home. My friends, my life, my extended family, everything. I love it over there. The weather, the food, the people — the culture is so vivid. In DR, you don’t have to tell people, 'Hey, I’m coming over,' you just go. I remember climbing the mango trees in my neighbor’s yard. I’d rinse them with my water bottle and eat them right on the spot.

It was my 5th-grade graduation in New York City that something clicked in me. Some of my classmates got this award, certificate of merit I think it was. And I said to myself, I can do that too. English was still hard for me, but I knew I had more potential. I just knew I could do more. From that moment on, I wanted to be at the top. 6th-8th grade, I was Valedictorian, and I’m on track to be Valedictorian in my senior class, too. How do I do it? I write everything down. I have two notebooks to make sure I keep organized.

But to this day, English is still hard. In Spanish, I sound like a poet, but in English, not so much. Ms. Martinez gave me this book by Elizabeth Acevedo called 'Clap When You Land.' She talks about her two worlds, the U.S. and the Dominican Republic, and her language and poetry reflect that. That book changed my life. I fell in love. I read it in one day — spent the whole day reading. I felt seen through that book, the way she describes both worlds.

Last March was hard on my family. My brother was born at four and a half months premature, and my mom spent a lot of the time in the hospital and on bedrest. He is our miracle. But I’m the oldest, and the responsibilities of the house fell on me. Before I cooked only on the weekends and on Wednesdays — we had a schedule. But after my brother was born, I cooked every single day, I did laundry, took care of my sister. I had to give up some of my programs, because that whole month I had to go straight home after school. It was SAT time too, so everything was overwhelming. But I started baking because it brought joy to me and to my family. I still love baking to this day. Recently, I baked tres leches for my school.

As student body president, I organized a guacamole party for Hispanic Heritage month, and each grade was in charge of bringing in an ingredient. Freshman brought in limes, sophomores onions, juniors tomatoes. Seniors had to bring the avocados — they are the most expensive. I was texting like crazy the night before to remind everyone. But the day of the party, everyone came with their ingredients. We had little containers and we washed everything and I had the student government cut it all up. We had chips and a big party. When I have a vision, I do everything to bring it to life.”