1 00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:11,920 Speaker 1: Welcome back to this is Wilmer. Val Uh. 2 00:00:12,160 --> 00:00:16,440 Speaker 2: This episode, for me particularly, I'm going to very much 3 00:00:16,520 --> 00:00:21,240 Speaker 2: enjoy because we are diving into Amigo's life, his early 4 00:00:21,320 --> 00:00:23,480 Speaker 2: life before he became. 5 00:00:30,280 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: No. 6 00:00:30,520 --> 00:00:32,479 Speaker 3: Thank you, Thank you for allowing me the space to 7 00:00:32,840 --> 00:00:35,519 Speaker 3: dig dig deeper into my life. 8 00:00:35,920 --> 00:00:38,559 Speaker 4: I hope we can dig I know, uh uh. 9 00:00:39,320 --> 00:00:42,320 Speaker 2: Wilmer has a wonderful book out which everyone should go 10 00:00:42,360 --> 00:00:45,120 Speaker 2: and download and buy and read and all that stuff, 11 00:00:45,159 --> 00:00:47,360 Speaker 2: And so I hope that we could. 12 00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:51,680 Speaker 4: Dig in without giving too much a way where you 13 00:00:51,720 --> 00:00:52,400 Speaker 4: feel that. 14 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: You no, no, no, I can get all over our way. 15 00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:57,000 Speaker 1: I mean, I think that the the thing about the 16 00:00:57,000 --> 00:00:58,080 Speaker 1: book that's so interesting. 17 00:00:58,120 --> 00:01:00,720 Speaker 3: It's like that, even though it's a trajectory there, there's 18 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:03,360 Speaker 3: a couple of deep dogs, like you know, just talking 19 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:06,920 Speaker 3: about the previous episode when we got to know so 20 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:10,480 Speaker 3: much about you, you know, I've never had really the 21 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:13,640 Speaker 3: opportunity to really talk and adapt about you know, my 22 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:15,520 Speaker 3: parents and what they had to do and all that, 23 00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:18,640 Speaker 3: and the trajectory was clear, but a lot of it 24 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:20,400 Speaker 3: is attributed to to their journey. 25 00:01:20,840 --> 00:01:24,080 Speaker 4: Where where was your mother and your father born? 26 00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:28,880 Speaker 3: So my mother is from Peda, Colombia, and my father 27 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:34,600 Speaker 3: was raised in San Cristova, Tachia, between Cuguta and San. 28 00:01:34,520 --> 00:01:35,839 Speaker 1: Cristova, back and forth. 29 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:40,080 Speaker 3: San Cristoa Tauchia is it shares the border with Kuguta, 30 00:01:40,360 --> 00:01:43,600 Speaker 3: you know. And in Colombia, Colombia Venezuela, like they're right there. 31 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:46,800 Speaker 3: And then as he was growing up, you know, then 32 00:01:46,840 --> 00:01:48,120 Speaker 3: he eventually went to. 33 00:01:47,880 --> 00:01:48,760 Speaker 1: To Caracas, you know. 34 00:01:48,880 --> 00:01:50,440 Speaker 4: But is that where he met your mom? 35 00:01:51,280 --> 00:01:51,360 Speaker 2: No? 36 00:01:51,560 --> 00:01:54,880 Speaker 1: They met later years years years later in Miami. 37 00:01:55,240 --> 00:01:59,080 Speaker 3: Oh okay, yeah, they they were living life in Miami, 38 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:03,000 Speaker 3: you know, med and eventually returned to Venezuela. But I, 39 00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:05,320 Speaker 3: you know, kind of dig in a little bit deeper 40 00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:10,160 Speaker 3: into into where my parents were from. Not until I 41 00:02:10,200 --> 00:02:15,280 Speaker 3: was writing an American story Everyone's Invited, which is my memoir, 42 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:22,320 Speaker 3: I got to ask these questions that I for some 43 00:02:22,560 --> 00:02:27,440 Speaker 3: reason I felt I knew to then realize I didn't 44 00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:30,280 Speaker 3: as you were writing the book, Yeah, and why did 45 00:02:30,280 --> 00:02:30,760 Speaker 3: you feel the. 46 00:02:30,720 --> 00:02:31,359 Speaker 4: Need to do that? 47 00:02:31,760 --> 00:02:34,040 Speaker 3: I felt like, in order to tell my story of 48 00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:37,000 Speaker 3: where I am now, I realized that my story would 49 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:39,920 Speaker 3: only be possible if you you know, with you know, 50 00:02:40,120 --> 00:02:43,240 Speaker 3: I would only be possible possible with the chapters of 51 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:46,320 Speaker 3: my parents, right, Like I mean, the trajectory of them 52 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:49,919 Speaker 3: as people, what they had to go through in order 53 00:02:49,960 --> 00:02:53,760 Speaker 3: for me to be possible. That stuff was really humbling, 54 00:02:53,840 --> 00:02:56,360 Speaker 3: you know. I mean, for example, sitting down with my 55 00:02:56,440 --> 00:02:58,720 Speaker 3: mom when I was doing the exercise right of the 56 00:02:58,800 --> 00:03:01,239 Speaker 3: dissecting of who I am in my world and where 57 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:04,400 Speaker 3: I came from and all that, you know, asking questions 58 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:06,440 Speaker 3: that I hadn't asked before, you know, Like I asked 59 00:03:06,440 --> 00:03:08,920 Speaker 3: my mom, Mom, did you ever have a job like 60 00:03:09,080 --> 00:03:11,320 Speaker 3: and she literally said to me, he goes, yeah, I 61 00:03:11,400 --> 00:03:13,840 Speaker 3: used to be a reception instead a doctor's office. And 62 00:03:13,840 --> 00:03:18,400 Speaker 3: I go, what, Like, I literally my only memories of 63 00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:22,880 Speaker 3: my mom is being my mother right right? And for 64 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:25,520 Speaker 3: some reason, not that I hadn't forgotten, but I kind 65 00:03:25,520 --> 00:03:26,440 Speaker 3: of I felt like I. 66 00:03:26,480 --> 00:03:28,359 Speaker 1: Knew my mom's family. 67 00:03:28,440 --> 00:03:31,799 Speaker 3: I knew my mom's sisters, I knew my mom's mom 68 00:03:31,840 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 3: and my grandpa, So I felt like I knew her life, right, 69 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:38,840 Speaker 3: But that specific question like who she was when she 70 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:42,200 Speaker 3: was a teenager and in her early twenties, Like what was 71 00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:45,040 Speaker 3: that life like for her before I was a possibility? 72 00:03:45,040 --> 00:03:47,360 Speaker 2: And it's something as simple as that, right, Yes, that 73 00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:51,200 Speaker 2: was a receptionist that opens up your brain and world. 74 00:03:51,520 --> 00:03:57,119 Speaker 3: And then she says something like, yeah, I guess an 75 00:03:57,240 --> 00:04:02,119 Speaker 3: uncle of her was a doctor in Colombia and had 76 00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:06,080 Speaker 3: a doctor's office and she wanted a job, so the 77 00:04:06,720 --> 00:04:09,400 Speaker 3: doctor hooked her up at the job. But nobody at 78 00:04:09,440 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 3: the doctor's office knew she was a niece. So they thought, oh, 79 00:04:14,840 --> 00:04:18,120 Speaker 3: this guy and this young, you know, beautiful woman, like oh, 80 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:18,719 Speaker 3: he gave. 81 00:04:18,520 --> 00:04:19,760 Speaker 1: Her a job at the place. 82 00:04:20,200 --> 00:04:22,440 Speaker 3: Later they found out a year later, they's like, no, 83 00:04:22,520 --> 00:04:26,880 Speaker 3: that's my uncle, right, yeah, I think she was in 84 00:04:26,920 --> 00:04:29,640 Speaker 3: her I think she was eighteen or something like that 85 00:04:29,720 --> 00:04:33,440 Speaker 3: at that point in y. But the idea that like 86 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:37,040 Speaker 3: at that time they already were living a Spanish still 87 00:04:37,040 --> 00:04:39,200 Speaker 3: a novela, you know what I mean, Like already there 88 00:04:39,279 --> 00:04:43,119 Speaker 3: was like you know, oh no she's not the side woman, 89 00:04:43,279 --> 00:04:45,920 Speaker 3: she's actually her knees, you know, his niece the side. 90 00:04:46,240 --> 00:04:46,400 Speaker 2: Yeah. 91 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:50,080 Speaker 1: It's like it's a very interesting thing. But by those 92 00:04:50,120 --> 00:04:53,680 Speaker 1: little things, you know. And then I somehow I buried this, 93 00:04:54,600 --> 00:04:54,760 Speaker 1: you know. 94 00:04:54,800 --> 00:04:58,599 Speaker 3: We talked about grandparents and and yeah, sometimes I docked 95 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:00,719 Speaker 3: a little deeper and I asked, I asked my mom. 96 00:05:00,800 --> 00:05:03,479 Speaker 3: I was like, hey, so what in my grandpa do 97 00:05:03,839 --> 00:05:04,360 Speaker 3: for living? 98 00:05:04,440 --> 00:05:04,680 Speaker 1: You know? 99 00:05:04,920 --> 00:05:08,719 Speaker 3: And and then she unlocked a memory for me that 100 00:05:08,880 --> 00:05:11,120 Speaker 3: came tumbling down in so many ways. 101 00:05:11,200 --> 00:05:13,440 Speaker 1: He just I was like, Mom, so he well, he 102 00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:15,479 Speaker 1: was a coffeeto. He was a coffee maker. 103 00:05:15,520 --> 00:05:15,680 Speaker 4: You know. 104 00:05:15,720 --> 00:05:18,440 Speaker 1: He was a coffee maker. You know. He cultivated the 105 00:05:18,480 --> 00:05:20,840 Speaker 1: bean and roasted it, he grew the bean. 106 00:05:20,960 --> 00:05:24,920 Speaker 2: Yes, yeah, he had a coffee farm in Colombia, in Colombia. 107 00:05:25,080 --> 00:05:27,280 Speaker 1: And I was like, what, but that makes a lot 108 00:05:27,320 --> 00:05:30,159 Speaker 1: of sense, I said, drinking a little thing. But I 109 00:05:30,240 --> 00:05:32,320 Speaker 1: so I started asking my my mom was like, wait, 110 00:05:32,360 --> 00:05:32,840 Speaker 1: what do you mean. 111 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:35,839 Speaker 3: And as soon as you say covetereto, I had these 112 00:05:35,880 --> 00:05:40,400 Speaker 3: flashes of memories that took me to the farm, that 113 00:05:40,520 --> 00:05:43,279 Speaker 3: took me sitting in my grandpa's leg while he was 114 00:05:43,279 --> 00:05:47,640 Speaker 3: feeding me apples from the tree, smelling the beans and 115 00:05:47,720 --> 00:05:50,719 Speaker 3: smelling with a roasting, you know, like it all start 116 00:05:50,960 --> 00:05:54,080 Speaker 3: unlocking for me. And I was like, wow, we come 117 00:05:54,120 --> 00:05:57,320 Speaker 3: from a from a family of caffettoes in Colombia. 118 00:05:57,440 --> 00:05:59,520 Speaker 4: And he owned the land. He did. He didn't work. 119 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:00,520 Speaker 1: It was thinka. 120 00:06:00,560 --> 00:06:03,920 Speaker 3: It was just finca and pereta and it was it 121 00:06:03,960 --> 00:06:06,960 Speaker 3: was it was beautiful to think about that, you know, 122 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:09,880 Speaker 3: and you know, my my uh and then my my 123 00:06:09,960 --> 00:06:13,080 Speaker 3: mom's mother, you know, she was you know, she was 124 00:06:13,120 --> 00:06:15,320 Speaker 3: at home, stay at home mom, and for a very 125 00:06:15,360 --> 00:06:15,960 Speaker 3: good reason. 126 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:17,480 Speaker 1: She had fourteen children. 127 00:06:18,480 --> 00:06:19,520 Speaker 4: Wow, like my mom. 128 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:24,680 Speaker 3: Yeah, she had fourteen children too young, didn't make it 129 00:06:24,760 --> 00:06:27,359 Speaker 3: then she had thirteen, right, I think it was like 130 00:06:27,480 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 3: three men and three. 131 00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:31,120 Speaker 1: Men and ten women or something like that. 132 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:34,080 Speaker 3: It was like absolutely, you know they had they had 133 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:35,760 Speaker 3: so many, so many kids. 134 00:06:35,800 --> 00:06:37,560 Speaker 2: You know, they worked the land, right, I mean when 135 00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:40,360 Speaker 2: you say this, that's why they had such big families. 136 00:06:40,760 --> 00:06:41,400 Speaker 1: Work, I think. 137 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:44,799 Speaker 3: I think that and probably lack of television and entertainment. 138 00:06:44,920 --> 00:06:45,719 Speaker 1: You know, I think that. 139 00:06:46,320 --> 00:06:50,920 Speaker 3: There's absolutely no hobbies except for making babies and changing diapers, right, 140 00:06:50,920 --> 00:06:55,320 Speaker 3: and making babies and changing diapers again, you know. But yeah, 141 00:06:55,360 --> 00:06:59,200 Speaker 3: my mom is one out of you know, twelve, you know, 142 00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:03,000 Speaker 3: thirty people you know, and and and you know, so 143 00:07:03,080 --> 00:07:06,520 Speaker 3: I have a gang of cousins all over the world. 144 00:07:06,760 --> 00:07:07,640 Speaker 1: Still still there. 145 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:09,800 Speaker 3: Yes, a lot of them in Colombia, a lot of 146 00:07:09,880 --> 00:07:12,080 Speaker 3: them in Venezuela. 147 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:12,360 Speaker 4: You know. 148 00:07:12,440 --> 00:07:15,040 Speaker 3: But my dad and my mom's stories are are just 149 00:07:15,320 --> 00:07:19,560 Speaker 3: polar opposite, completely different human beings. You know, my mom 150 00:07:19,600 --> 00:07:23,320 Speaker 3: grew up in Colombia right in a coffee farm, you know, 151 00:07:23,480 --> 00:07:27,000 Speaker 3: and you know, many many siblings my dad grew up 152 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:30,520 Speaker 3: you know, and pretty much in the slums of San 153 00:07:30,560 --> 00:07:34,520 Speaker 3: Cristoa and Krakens, you know, and he never met his father, 154 00:07:35,080 --> 00:07:37,760 Speaker 3: you know, he he doesn't know who his grandparents were. 155 00:07:38,080 --> 00:07:42,000 Speaker 3: You know, really he never had time to ask those questions. 156 00:07:42,040 --> 00:07:46,280 Speaker 3: Before his mother passed. He was just hustling and working 157 00:07:46,360 --> 00:07:48,400 Speaker 3: his ass off, you know, to making sure that he 158 00:07:48,480 --> 00:07:51,560 Speaker 3: maintained his brothers and sisters, you know, because he was 159 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:54,960 Speaker 3: like the older he was. He was the second oldest, 160 00:07:55,000 --> 00:07:58,360 Speaker 3: I think, I believe. And you know, he had a 161 00:07:58,400 --> 00:08:01,200 Speaker 3: couple of other brothers and you have a couple of 162 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:04,440 Speaker 3: other like maybe you know, one half brother or something 163 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:10,200 Speaker 3: like that. But you know, his mom was a baker. 164 00:08:10,560 --> 00:08:13,240 Speaker 3: She you know, she was a bread you know, bread bags. 165 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:17,280 Speaker 3: So she would go to the bakery like after it closed, 166 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:20,320 Speaker 3: she would bake all night and the and the bread 167 00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:24,160 Speaker 3: will be freshly put out early in the morning for 168 00:08:24,200 --> 00:08:28,320 Speaker 3: the customers to come in. She go home, you know, 169 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:30,680 Speaker 3: try to hang out with kids, do the thing, you know, 170 00:08:30,680 --> 00:08:32,959 Speaker 3: put them to school whatever you know that she could, 171 00:08:33,440 --> 00:08:35,480 Speaker 3: and then at nighttime she would go and work all 172 00:08:35,880 --> 00:08:38,000 Speaker 3: and then you know, the tragic you know, memory of 173 00:08:38,040 --> 00:08:40,479 Speaker 3: it is that you know, my dad had a stepdad 174 00:08:40,520 --> 00:08:42,880 Speaker 3: who was just not a kind man, who was not 175 00:08:42,960 --> 00:08:46,600 Speaker 3: a good man. And everything that my grandma would struggle 176 00:08:46,640 --> 00:08:49,680 Speaker 3: to make, he would take it and drink it and 177 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:52,000 Speaker 3: play pool down the street, and you know, and just 178 00:08:52,200 --> 00:08:56,680 Speaker 3: and so so it was a pretty sad and abusive trajectory. 179 00:08:56,840 --> 00:08:59,840 Speaker 4: You know, my bread feed the family, that that you're 180 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:01,520 Speaker 4: that you're that she made. 181 00:09:01,679 --> 00:09:04,000 Speaker 3: Yeah, that was that was she was the bread winner, 182 00:09:04,080 --> 00:09:08,120 Speaker 3: quite quite literally, you know. And and uh so my dad, 183 00:09:08,200 --> 00:09:11,240 Speaker 3: you know, saw that hustle, but also saw that that tragic, 184 00:09:11,520 --> 00:09:15,640 Speaker 3: you know, life that his mother was living. And very young, 185 00:09:15,880 --> 00:09:18,640 Speaker 3: I think he was like twelve or thirteen, he decided, 186 00:09:19,520 --> 00:09:21,920 Speaker 3: you know, mom, we we got to stop this. And 187 00:09:22,000 --> 00:09:23,920 Speaker 3: in the middle of the night, while he was out 188 00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:26,679 Speaker 3: there drinking or whatever, he packed all his mom stuff. 189 00:09:27,240 --> 00:09:29,560 Speaker 3: I think he was like thirteen or so, thirteen years old, 190 00:09:30,040 --> 00:09:32,600 Speaker 3: and he packed up his mom stuff, picked up all 191 00:09:32,640 --> 00:09:34,680 Speaker 3: his brothers and sister stuff, and he goes, we're leaving. 192 00:09:34,720 --> 00:09:36,400 Speaker 3: And they took a bus and they went to Caracas 193 00:09:36,480 --> 00:09:38,199 Speaker 3: and they just disappeared in the middle of the night 194 00:09:38,880 --> 00:09:40,760 Speaker 3: and took their family to Karakas to have it to 195 00:09:40,760 --> 00:09:41,480 Speaker 3: start a new life. 196 00:09:41,679 --> 00:09:44,520 Speaker 2: And and and would Caracas at that time be considered 197 00:09:44,559 --> 00:09:48,120 Speaker 2: a more kind of metropolitan or more like a city. 198 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:48,760 Speaker 1: More of a city. 199 00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:51,320 Speaker 3: And you know, back then you're talking about you know, 200 00:09:51,679 --> 00:09:54,040 Speaker 3: at that point you're talking about you know, probably sixties, 201 00:09:54,200 --> 00:09:57,000 Speaker 3: you know, or so, and uh, it was a more 202 00:09:57,480 --> 00:09:59,960 Speaker 3: stable Venezuela. You know, all the way into the eighth 203 00:10:00,280 --> 00:10:03,240 Speaker 3: he was a very profitable Venezuela. It was a very 204 00:10:03,360 --> 00:10:07,920 Speaker 3: rich country. Nobody lived Venezuela. Now, nobody left Venezuela to 205 00:10:08,480 --> 00:10:10,640 Speaker 3: the United States. They came to Miami to vacation and 206 00:10:10,720 --> 00:10:13,360 Speaker 3: go back to Venezuela. You know, Venezuela is the third 207 00:10:13,480 --> 00:10:17,160 Speaker 3: largest producer of oil in the world, and it says 208 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:18,160 Speaker 3: the number one reserve. 209 00:10:18,520 --> 00:10:19,800 Speaker 1: So it was a very rich country. 210 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:22,080 Speaker 3: You know, in the early eighties, there was no need, 211 00:10:22,120 --> 00:10:24,040 Speaker 3: there was no need to go anywhere, you know. So 212 00:10:24,200 --> 00:10:27,400 Speaker 3: my dad kind of grew up the slumps of Caracas, 213 00:10:27,480 --> 00:10:30,719 Speaker 3: you know, and you know, att thirteen fourteen years old, 214 00:10:30,800 --> 00:10:33,880 Speaker 3: he was out there hustling to try to bring bread, 215 00:10:33,920 --> 00:10:36,199 Speaker 3: winning for the house and you know, mom also working 216 00:10:36,200 --> 00:10:38,600 Speaker 3: full time make sure the other kids have food. And 217 00:10:38,760 --> 00:10:42,040 Speaker 3: you know, my dad at thirteen fourteen years old, you know, 218 00:10:42,120 --> 00:10:46,880 Speaker 3: he go ask for three sandwiches you know, and two 219 00:10:46,920 --> 00:10:50,720 Speaker 3: sodas and he would snatch it, run a couple of 220 00:10:50,760 --> 00:10:53,400 Speaker 3: blocks where his brothers and sisters were waiting in the 221 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:56,360 Speaker 3: corner and give them the sandwiches, then go to the 222 00:10:56,400 --> 00:10:58,920 Speaker 3: next corner over it and you know, or a few more. 223 00:10:58,800 --> 00:11:01,240 Speaker 1: Sandwiches and like rand you know, and like that was 224 00:11:01,320 --> 00:11:02,560 Speaker 1: that was how he grew up. 225 00:11:03,480 --> 00:11:05,200 Speaker 3: And it was that was a hustle and that until 226 00:11:05,240 --> 00:11:07,280 Speaker 3: later when he started saying, okay, maybe I can work 227 00:11:07,320 --> 00:11:11,320 Speaker 3: out the agriculture industry and all that. So but yeah, 228 00:11:11,360 --> 00:11:14,200 Speaker 3: that was the trajectory of them. And you know, my 229 00:11:14,320 --> 00:11:19,000 Speaker 3: dad is and it blows my mind how happy he is. 230 00:11:19,440 --> 00:11:20,480 Speaker 3: He's a happy man. 231 00:11:20,800 --> 00:11:22,280 Speaker 4: Happy now, Yes, he's. 232 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:23,040 Speaker 1: A very happy man. 233 00:11:23,120 --> 00:11:28,559 Speaker 3: He looks back, doesn't reflect on you know, the sadness 234 00:11:28,679 --> 00:11:31,599 Speaker 3: or the tragedy. You know, remembers fondly, you know, the 235 00:11:31,760 --> 00:11:35,200 Speaker 3: the years that he worked for you know, for the family, 236 00:11:35,320 --> 00:11:37,679 Speaker 3: you know, making sure that the family was good. So 237 00:11:37,679 --> 00:11:39,520 Speaker 3: so you know, I think back at like all the 238 00:11:39,559 --> 00:11:42,160 Speaker 3: stitching of what I am right, like what I've become. 239 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:45,160 Speaker 3: And you know how how some of some of us 240 00:11:45,160 --> 00:11:47,720 Speaker 3: in our families have had to bear right the trauma 241 00:11:48,360 --> 00:11:52,400 Speaker 3: and bury it right right and say like there's still 242 00:11:52,400 --> 00:11:55,800 Speaker 3: things to celebrate. There's still things to celebrate, right and 243 00:11:55,800 --> 00:11:58,280 Speaker 3: and I think as you continue to grow up, you realize, 244 00:11:58,360 --> 00:12:01,400 Speaker 3: like that that that that ag of dumb bills in 245 00:12:01,440 --> 00:12:05,360 Speaker 3: your backpack is an optional thing you bring along, that 246 00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:07,520 Speaker 3: you can start dropping that weight along the way. And 247 00:12:07,559 --> 00:12:09,320 Speaker 3: I think there was something that I learned from my dad. 248 00:12:09,800 --> 00:12:14,760 Speaker 3: My dad never talked about his trauma, but he celebrated 249 00:12:14,760 --> 00:12:16,960 Speaker 3: that right now, at least we have food right now. 250 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:18,480 Speaker 3: At least we have food right now, you know. And 251 00:12:18,679 --> 00:12:21,319 Speaker 3: so I grew very grateful of what we could experience. 252 00:12:21,600 --> 00:12:24,560 Speaker 3: And you know, and my mom, you know, my mom 253 00:12:24,640 --> 00:12:24,920 Speaker 3: was the. 254 00:12:24,880 --> 00:12:29,480 Speaker 1: Police, you know, my dad and my mom was the police. 255 00:12:29,559 --> 00:12:32,760 Speaker 1: My dad was the party, right like oh no more 256 00:12:32,760 --> 00:12:40,040 Speaker 1: than yes, like you know, like streak my back. 257 00:12:40,520 --> 00:12:43,520 Speaker 3: You know, I remember very clear moment when my mom 258 00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:46,760 Speaker 3: hit me and it didn't hurt. 259 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:49,440 Speaker 1: And that's when I was like, well, well well. 260 00:12:52,960 --> 00:12:55,160 Speaker 3: But the funny thing about it, though, is that at 261 00:12:55,200 --> 00:12:58,199 Speaker 3: that point then I had to fake cry to make 262 00:12:58,240 --> 00:13:01,280 Speaker 3: sure my mom stop, because I was like, oh no, mommy, no, no, 263 00:13:01,640 --> 00:13:02,600 Speaker 3: just stop by the room. 264 00:13:02,640 --> 00:13:04,160 Speaker 4: Why would she be like, oh I on't her? 265 00:13:04,320 --> 00:13:06,800 Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, I keep going till I heard you know, 266 00:13:07,440 --> 00:13:09,680 Speaker 3: but so I pretended it hurt right away, you know, 267 00:13:09,920 --> 00:13:12,440 Speaker 3: but I think, like looking back at those things and 268 00:13:12,480 --> 00:13:16,360 Speaker 3: seeing my mom working at the the doctor's office. You know, 269 00:13:16,400 --> 00:13:19,440 Speaker 3: I had some older sisters that lived in Miami. She 270 00:13:19,520 --> 00:13:21,880 Speaker 3: there eventually went I'm going to spend some time in Miami. 271 00:13:22,000 --> 00:13:25,360 Speaker 3: My dad, very younger age, started traveling, you know, looking 272 00:13:25,360 --> 00:13:27,600 Speaker 3: for himself, ended up in Miami. 273 00:13:28,200 --> 00:13:29,000 Speaker 1: He met my mom. 274 00:13:29,640 --> 00:13:32,800 Speaker 4: What did your dad do? What was sort of his trade? Like? 275 00:13:32,800 --> 00:13:33,720 Speaker 4: What was he. 276 00:13:35,160 --> 00:13:35,240 Speaker 2: Like? 277 00:13:35,280 --> 00:13:35,920 Speaker 4: What did he do? 278 00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:38,959 Speaker 2: Like it doesn't necessarily mean that he was employed somewhere, 279 00:13:39,000 --> 00:13:40,320 Speaker 2: but what what was his thing? 280 00:13:40,360 --> 00:13:40,880 Speaker 4: What did he do? 281 00:13:41,480 --> 00:13:42,720 Speaker 1: He was about? 282 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:46,280 Speaker 3: You know, he was kind of a social butterfly, right 283 00:13:46,320 --> 00:13:49,800 Speaker 3: Like he just knew everyone, and everyone loved my dad. 284 00:13:53,920 --> 00:13:58,160 Speaker 3: And my dad we walk into a room and he'd 285 00:13:58,240 --> 00:14:01,760 Speaker 3: find opportunity. He walked into a room and he saw 286 00:14:01,760 --> 00:14:04,680 Speaker 3: a job, he saw he saw a partnership, and you know, 287 00:14:04,760 --> 00:14:07,000 Speaker 3: he saw an investment, you know, and like the little 288 00:14:07,040 --> 00:14:08,720 Speaker 3: money that he would make, he'd try to make two 289 00:14:08,800 --> 00:14:09,520 Speaker 3: dollars out of it. 290 00:14:09,600 --> 00:14:11,360 Speaker 1: You know, if he had a dollar, he goes, how 291 00:14:11,400 --> 00:14:13,000 Speaker 1: do we make five? Oh? We only made three? 292 00:14:13,080 --> 00:14:14,960 Speaker 3: Cool, we have two more dollars to keep investing like 293 00:14:15,160 --> 00:14:18,880 Speaker 3: he kept moving around. His downfall though, is that he 294 00:14:18,960 --> 00:14:24,520 Speaker 3: loves celebrating life so much that he would just spend, 295 00:14:24,800 --> 00:14:27,840 Speaker 3: spend the savings, you know, which really caught up to 296 00:14:27,920 --> 00:14:29,800 Speaker 3: him later in life with my mom because my mom 297 00:14:29,920 --> 00:14:32,880 Speaker 3: was like, this is not going to work, you know. 298 00:14:34,320 --> 00:14:36,360 Speaker 3: But in those moments, my dad, you know, my dad 299 00:14:36,400 --> 00:14:39,440 Speaker 3: would work different industries, you know, he would import. He 300 00:14:39,480 --> 00:14:42,720 Speaker 3: eventually started importing machinery from the United States to work 301 00:14:42,720 --> 00:14:43,120 Speaker 3: the land. 302 00:14:43,560 --> 00:14:45,520 Speaker 1: Then eventually bought his finger. 303 00:14:45,600 --> 00:14:48,080 Speaker 3: Yes, we go to So he started his life in 304 00:14:48,560 --> 00:14:52,000 Speaker 3: like he's professional, was professional, he's a professional. At the 305 00:14:52,000 --> 00:14:55,120 Speaker 3: time in Miami, he met my mom. They fell in 306 00:14:55,160 --> 00:15:00,520 Speaker 3: love right and then. And then the opportunity Inventuela was 307 00:15:00,560 --> 00:15:03,320 Speaker 3: so great. The agriculture industry was booming. So my dad 308 00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:06,160 Speaker 3: moved back to where the wark was and we moved 309 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:09,720 Speaker 3: back to Venezuela. So now he had married my mom, 310 00:15:09,800 --> 00:15:13,040 Speaker 3: But you were born already. Yeah, So my sister Maryland 311 00:15:13,200 --> 00:15:16,480 Speaker 3: and I were born in Miami, and when I turned 312 00:15:16,520 --> 00:15:19,280 Speaker 3: three years old back in nineteen eighty three, they decided 313 00:15:19,280 --> 00:15:20,400 Speaker 3: to move back to Venezuela. 314 00:15:20,760 --> 00:15:23,320 Speaker 1: So I grew up in Venezuela for the following ten years. 315 00:15:23,320 --> 00:15:27,400 Speaker 3: After that, and you know, and like so I didn't 316 00:15:27,440 --> 00:15:29,640 Speaker 3: really quite remember where Miami was. 317 00:15:29,800 --> 00:15:32,320 Speaker 1: Again, I had just these flashes. It just kind of 318 00:15:32,320 --> 00:15:33,560 Speaker 1: came to my mind. 319 00:15:33,400 --> 00:15:38,400 Speaker 3: But living in Venezuela, you know, Spanish was my first language, 320 00:15:39,000 --> 00:15:42,680 Speaker 3: right and you know, ten years later, never did I 321 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:44,680 Speaker 3: ever think that I was gonna need to learn how 322 00:15:44,680 --> 00:15:46,280 Speaker 3: to speak English. You know. 323 00:15:46,480 --> 00:15:48,880 Speaker 1: But hay years, isn't that crazy? 324 00:15:48,960 --> 00:15:50,280 Speaker 4: And you think that because ten years. 325 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:52,720 Speaker 3: Is like this, it goes by quick, But when you're 326 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:56,400 Speaker 3: that young, at three years old, it feels like that's 327 00:15:56,440 --> 00:15:59,840 Speaker 3: your lifetime. Because I was thirteen by the time we 328 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:01,920 Speaker 3: decided it was time to leave Venezuela. 329 00:16:02,520 --> 00:16:04,920 Speaker 1: A lot of stuff happened the trajectory of Venezuela. 330 00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:07,840 Speaker 3: You know, my dad bought this finca and you know, 331 00:16:07,880 --> 00:16:11,640 Speaker 3: this farm and started buying the machineries to level the land. 332 00:16:11,720 --> 00:16:14,360 Speaker 3: And then he would rent those machineries to nearby farms 333 00:16:14,360 --> 00:16:15,680 Speaker 3: that couldn't afford the machinery. 334 00:16:15,720 --> 00:16:18,560 Speaker 1: And you know that my dad had a hustler's farm. 335 00:16:19,040 --> 00:16:21,320 Speaker 3: He was doing corn, he was doing rice, he was 336 00:16:21,360 --> 00:16:23,840 Speaker 3: doing cattle, he was doing pigs, he was doing chickens. 337 00:16:24,120 --> 00:16:26,400 Speaker 3: And then because we were so close to the Amazon's, 338 00:16:26,600 --> 00:16:29,280 Speaker 3: he was chopping up wood too, and selling wood. You know, 339 00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:32,560 Speaker 3: so that farm was producing so many different things, like 340 00:16:33,120 --> 00:16:36,320 Speaker 3: whatever season way was, he was selling something, you know. 341 00:16:37,960 --> 00:16:43,200 Speaker 3: But then, you know, the trajectory was that that eventually, 342 00:16:43,880 --> 00:16:47,480 Speaker 3: you know, the you know, the agriculture industry became very competitive, 343 00:16:47,840 --> 00:16:50,160 Speaker 3: and little farms like my dad just didn't have a 344 00:16:50,160 --> 00:16:52,840 Speaker 3: place anymore because these big corporations were buying their own 345 00:16:52,880 --> 00:16:56,240 Speaker 3: farms and they were swallowing up all these small little businesses. 346 00:16:56,480 --> 00:16:57,760 Speaker 1: The winters were long. 347 00:16:58,160 --> 00:17:02,440 Speaker 3: Right, and so so at some point, you know, we 348 00:17:02,480 --> 00:17:05,680 Speaker 3: started struggling, and then all of a sudden, we go 349 00:17:05,840 --> 00:17:08,240 Speaker 3: Chavis decided that he was going to pretty cool on 350 00:17:08,280 --> 00:17:11,480 Speaker 3: the on the government. They didn't succeed the first time, 351 00:17:12,280 --> 00:17:14,920 Speaker 3: and my dad saw that as a just a sign, 352 00:17:15,200 --> 00:17:16,280 Speaker 3: a sign of things to come. 353 00:17:16,400 --> 00:17:29,040 Speaker 2: You know, you were living in Venezuela, your mother's from Colombia. 354 00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:33,440 Speaker 2: Were you still in contact with her family in Colombia 355 00:17:33,520 --> 00:17:35,360 Speaker 2: even though you were living in Venezuela. 356 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:37,240 Speaker 4: Yeah, we go back and forth to see them and 357 00:17:37,280 --> 00:17:37,560 Speaker 4: all that. 358 00:17:37,680 --> 00:17:38,760 Speaker 1: Yeah, we got back and forth. 359 00:17:38,800 --> 00:17:40,919 Speaker 3: We grew up with them in our lives and my 360 00:17:40,960 --> 00:17:42,800 Speaker 3: mom will go visit a lot in Colombia. And my 361 00:17:42,880 --> 00:17:44,960 Speaker 3: dad also had so many friends in Colombia. So we 362 00:17:45,040 --> 00:17:48,240 Speaker 3: go back and forth, you know, but at some point, 363 00:17:49,160 --> 00:17:51,280 Speaker 3: you know, we we fell. It was time, you know, 364 00:17:51,359 --> 00:17:55,119 Speaker 3: and my dad all of a sudden one day said hey, MEO, me, I, 365 00:17:57,000 --> 00:17:58,600 Speaker 3: We're gonna have to go back. 366 00:17:58,480 --> 00:18:02,040 Speaker 1: To the United States. And I said, where are we going? 367 00:18:02,080 --> 00:18:05,520 Speaker 3: He goes next week and I said, what, I've been 368 00:18:05,560 --> 00:18:08,840 Speaker 3: failing all my English classes, by the way, yeah, literally 369 00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:10,000 Speaker 3: failing English classes. 370 00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:11,640 Speaker 1: I was like, I'm never gonna have to speak English. 371 00:18:12,359 --> 00:18:14,440 Speaker 3: And I came back to the United States not knowing 372 00:18:14,480 --> 00:18:18,360 Speaker 3: how to even counted three, you know, So thirteen years old, 373 00:18:18,560 --> 00:18:21,280 Speaker 3: thirteen fourteen years old, imagine, you know, not able to 374 00:18:21,680 --> 00:18:23,159 Speaker 3: even ask for where the bathroom is? 375 00:18:23,280 --> 00:18:25,400 Speaker 4: And did you word you? Land you when you came Miami. 376 00:18:25,880 --> 00:18:27,879 Speaker 3: We went to Miami and there was nothing for us 377 00:18:27,880 --> 00:18:30,359 Speaker 3: in Miami. My dad had a brother in Los Angeles. 378 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:34,240 Speaker 3: Then we drove across country, came to Los Angeles, and 379 00:18:34,760 --> 00:18:36,399 Speaker 3: you know, we stayed with him for a couple of weeks. 380 00:18:36,600 --> 00:18:39,280 Speaker 3: That went south A major chapter on my book on that. 381 00:18:40,400 --> 00:18:43,159 Speaker 3: We you know, we didn't stay there long, and that 382 00:18:43,240 --> 00:18:46,480 Speaker 3: put a damfort on the savings he had because without 383 00:18:46,520 --> 00:18:48,199 Speaker 3: a job, we had to kind of figure out our 384 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:50,720 Speaker 3: housing because we were supposed to be in my dad's 385 00:18:50,760 --> 00:18:54,360 Speaker 3: brother's house for a little while while my dad got 386 00:18:54,359 --> 00:18:56,280 Speaker 3: a job and got it all together so he didn't 387 00:18:56,320 --> 00:18:59,720 Speaker 3: have to deplete his savings. That went south. We had 388 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:02,840 Speaker 3: to go and deplete the savings without a job. So 389 00:19:02,920 --> 00:19:05,880 Speaker 3: he set us up at like zero. So we started, 390 00:19:06,640 --> 00:19:08,679 Speaker 3: you know, very much. Our story is not very different 391 00:19:08,680 --> 00:19:11,240 Speaker 3: than any other you know, immigrant that leads to a 392 00:19:11,280 --> 00:19:13,359 Speaker 3: different state or a different country, you know, and starts 393 00:19:13,359 --> 00:19:15,560 Speaker 3: from scratch, and you. 394 00:19:15,520 --> 00:19:17,199 Speaker 1: Know, and that's kind of how we started. 395 00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:19,160 Speaker 4: And what did he do for employment at that point 396 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:20,840 Speaker 4: when the when the savings were depleted. 397 00:19:21,040 --> 00:19:24,919 Speaker 3: So my dad so my dad started looking for jobs, 398 00:19:25,040 --> 00:19:27,520 Speaker 3: couldn't find anything. And my dad speaks English, but he 399 00:19:27,560 --> 00:19:30,520 Speaker 3: pretends he speaks more English. He started realizing that he 400 00:19:30,600 --> 00:19:33,160 Speaker 3: had to do what it took. There was no ego here, 401 00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:36,120 Speaker 3: there was no anything, you know. We just had to food, 402 00:19:36,119 --> 00:19:38,439 Speaker 3: food on the table and keep the light on. So 403 00:19:39,600 --> 00:19:42,600 Speaker 3: look story short, you know, he with the little money 404 00:19:42,640 --> 00:19:45,720 Speaker 3: he had, he bought this little Mazda, yeah you know, 405 00:19:45,840 --> 00:19:47,520 Speaker 3: and he would put a for sale sign on it 406 00:19:47,960 --> 00:19:50,879 Speaker 3: and he would drive this car while he did errands 407 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:53,200 Speaker 3: for mechanic shops. So he will bring these parts from 408 00:19:53,240 --> 00:19:55,840 Speaker 3: mechanic shop to mechanic shop, or from supplier to mechanic 409 00:19:55,880 --> 00:19:59,240 Speaker 3: shop while the car sold. When the car sold for 410 00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:01,000 Speaker 3: a little bit more money for a little profit, he'd 411 00:20:01,040 --> 00:20:03,640 Speaker 3: buy a more expensive car, put another for sale sign 412 00:20:03,680 --> 00:20:03,840 Speaker 3: on it. 413 00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:05,800 Speaker 1: He continued to drive it and huse and house it 414 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:07,000 Speaker 1: back and forth. That's what he would do. 415 00:20:07,640 --> 00:20:10,359 Speaker 3: And we were able to get a tiny little house 416 00:20:10,359 --> 00:20:15,120 Speaker 3: in Van Eyes when Ice, California, I remember I met 417 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:19,600 Speaker 3: my neighbors were you know, Green Day fans and Metallica fans, 418 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:24,760 Speaker 3: you know, like and Van Eyes and and uh yeah. 419 00:20:24,800 --> 00:20:26,680 Speaker 3: So that's how we kind of kicked off. And then 420 00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:28,520 Speaker 3: we had to go to school. Didn't know how to 421 00:20:28,520 --> 00:20:30,840 Speaker 3: speak English, so everybody looked at us like we were too. 422 00:20:31,520 --> 00:20:34,080 Speaker 3: We went to Umholland Junior High and then we went 423 00:20:34,119 --> 00:20:37,840 Speaker 3: to Taft High School. Eventually, yeah, way I was. I 424 00:20:37,960 --> 00:20:41,479 Speaker 3: was a tour door. But but the the idea that 425 00:20:41,520 --> 00:20:44,440 Speaker 3: we were going to go to school with E. S 426 00:20:44,560 --> 00:20:45,960 Speaker 3: L classes and we were going to learn how to 427 00:20:46,000 --> 00:20:50,200 Speaker 3: speak English with ludicrous. I mean, it was the scariest 428 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:53,240 Speaker 3: experience of my life. And since I was six years old, 429 00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:57,879 Speaker 3: I you know, I was always performing and singing and 430 00:20:57,960 --> 00:21:00,840 Speaker 3: dancing and whatever. So you know, because I was in Venezuela, 431 00:21:00,880 --> 00:21:03,439 Speaker 3: you know, you know in our countries it's mandatory to 432 00:21:03,480 --> 00:21:06,520 Speaker 3: how I'm performing. Arts class, you know, is you have 433 00:21:06,560 --> 00:21:08,199 Speaker 3: to either sing, you have to pick one. You have 434 00:21:08,240 --> 00:21:10,080 Speaker 3: to sing, dance or act. 435 00:21:10,240 --> 00:21:12,040 Speaker 4: You mean like in the in the family structure. 436 00:21:12,320 --> 00:21:13,639 Speaker 1: No, no, in school. 437 00:21:14,880 --> 00:21:18,760 Speaker 3: So it's like math, you know, uh Spanish, you know, 438 00:21:19,280 --> 00:21:23,200 Speaker 3: you know Casano right, and then and then dance class, yeah, 439 00:21:23,320 --> 00:21:25,240 Speaker 3: you know. So that's how Latinos got down, like they 440 00:21:25,280 --> 00:21:26,840 Speaker 3: always had an arts class. So when I came back 441 00:21:26,840 --> 00:21:28,399 Speaker 3: to and I say it, anyone I speak English. I 442 00:21:28,440 --> 00:21:31,399 Speaker 3: went back to school activities because it was forcing me 443 00:21:31,640 --> 00:21:33,399 Speaker 3: to read and force me to speak out loud. And 444 00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:35,080 Speaker 3: then that the more I did it, the more my 445 00:21:35,119 --> 00:21:39,960 Speaker 3: English became better. But that was a really scary time 446 00:21:39,960 --> 00:21:43,199 Speaker 3: of my life, not being able to communicate looking at 447 00:21:43,240 --> 00:21:45,800 Speaker 3: somebody with blonde hair and blue eyes, and I was like, 448 00:21:45,840 --> 00:21:47,400 Speaker 3: I gotta go the other way because if the person 449 00:21:47,440 --> 00:21:48,520 Speaker 3: looked at me in the eyes and think they can 450 00:21:48,560 --> 00:21:50,200 Speaker 3: talk to me, I want to want him to be 451 00:21:50,240 --> 00:21:53,399 Speaker 3: embarrassed too. I don't want to feel this way, you know. 452 00:21:53,480 --> 00:21:54,760 Speaker 3: And it was it was very scary. 453 00:21:54,840 --> 00:21:57,960 Speaker 2: Did you did you feel like racism towards you during 454 00:21:58,000 --> 00:21:59,600 Speaker 2: that time or did you feel. 455 00:21:59,400 --> 00:22:01,600 Speaker 3: It's tough, because there's definitely a lot of prejudice that 456 00:22:01,640 --> 00:22:04,280 Speaker 3: comes with individuals who either don't know how to speak 457 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:08,240 Speaker 3: the language or have an accent. Back then, if you 458 00:22:08,280 --> 00:22:12,040 Speaker 3: had an accent, you were uneducated, right, you were inferior. 459 00:22:12,280 --> 00:22:12,399 Speaker 4: Right. 460 00:22:13,280 --> 00:22:17,240 Speaker 3: Literally, most people know that the school academics and in 461 00:22:17,320 --> 00:22:20,480 Speaker 3: Latin America are two years ahead of the United States. 462 00:22:21,080 --> 00:22:23,080 Speaker 3: I came back to the United States not knowing how 463 00:22:23,080 --> 00:22:26,679 Speaker 3: to speak English and grade sixth and seventh, and I 464 00:22:26,720 --> 00:22:29,080 Speaker 3: was a straight at student. People like how I had 465 00:22:29,119 --> 00:22:31,639 Speaker 3: been taught those things two years prior to my sixth 466 00:22:31,640 --> 00:22:34,639 Speaker 3: grade interesting, so, you know, so they thought I was 467 00:22:34,720 --> 00:22:37,760 Speaker 3: cheating because they were like, no possible way you know this, 468 00:22:37,840 --> 00:22:39,679 Speaker 3: You didn't know how to speak English, So like I 469 00:22:39,680 --> 00:22:40,720 Speaker 3: had to fight against all. 470 00:22:40,640 --> 00:22:44,320 Speaker 1: That stuff, and you know, I don't know, I chose 471 00:22:44,359 --> 00:22:46,640 Speaker 1: to not. I didn't know racism was. 472 00:22:46,560 --> 00:22:49,760 Speaker 3: A thing in the United States because it just seemed 473 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:52,280 Speaker 3: in the movies and everything, like it was just it's 474 00:22:52,320 --> 00:22:54,720 Speaker 3: the happiest place on earth. And actually, judging by the 475 00:22:54,760 --> 00:22:57,160 Speaker 3: six o'clock news that I grew up watching in Venezuela 476 00:22:57,240 --> 00:22:58,880 Speaker 3: and coming to the United States and watching the six 477 00:22:58,880 --> 00:23:01,040 Speaker 3: o'clock's news was the happiest place on. 478 00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:03,680 Speaker 4: Earth because of what was happening there at that time. 479 00:23:03,760 --> 00:23:08,200 Speaker 3: The contrast, right, But but I think I remember people 480 00:23:08,359 --> 00:23:09,800 Speaker 3: just trying to talk to me, and as soon as 481 00:23:09,800 --> 00:23:12,159 Speaker 3: I couldn't communicate, they're like, you know, they would just 482 00:23:12,200 --> 00:23:15,119 Speaker 3: wave you off. All of that stuff kind of served 483 00:23:15,480 --> 00:23:18,800 Speaker 3: as as fuel to to say, like, all right, I 484 00:23:18,800 --> 00:23:20,199 Speaker 3: gotta really learn how to speak English. 485 00:23:20,760 --> 00:23:22,840 Speaker 2: When you were when you were in school and and 486 00:23:22,880 --> 00:23:25,479 Speaker 2: the arts were mandatory, what what kind of arts were 487 00:23:25,520 --> 00:23:27,119 Speaker 2: you doing in Venezuela. 488 00:23:27,240 --> 00:23:29,879 Speaker 1: In Venezuela, I was singing, so you could sing. I 489 00:23:29,920 --> 00:23:30,600 Speaker 1: was singing then, So. 490 00:23:30,680 --> 00:23:32,720 Speaker 4: When are we gonna hear you sing? Man? You talk about. 491 00:23:34,480 --> 00:23:36,760 Speaker 1: Should do it collaboration? 492 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:41,080 Speaker 3: You know, I could definitely do your your pretty angelic 493 00:23:41,160 --> 00:23:43,880 Speaker 3: core is what you drop down some mean bars. 494 00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:44,479 Speaker 2: You know, there you go. 495 00:23:45,640 --> 00:23:50,040 Speaker 3: But yeah, I was the first voice really I could 496 00:23:50,119 --> 00:23:53,680 Speaker 3: I could hit I could hit some really high notes. Uh, 497 00:23:53,800 --> 00:23:55,760 Speaker 3: and then my voice changed and I can still hear 498 00:23:55,800 --> 00:24:03,080 Speaker 3: some notes, but but not as like as angelic. Yeah, 499 00:24:02,720 --> 00:24:05,280 Speaker 3: but yeah, so yeah, so that's this is the stuff 500 00:24:05,280 --> 00:24:06,800 Speaker 3: that I kind of grew up doing a lot of 501 00:24:06,880 --> 00:24:10,600 Speaker 3: and so coming back to America, you know, I remember 502 00:24:11,320 --> 00:24:15,040 Speaker 3: the moment, you know, my dad's car gets stolen. 503 00:24:15,240 --> 00:24:19,640 Speaker 4: Yeah, which was the family source of income. 504 00:24:19,800 --> 00:24:23,199 Speaker 3: It was the train, it was the bread device and tool, 505 00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:28,240 Speaker 3: and that was the moment, you know. But before that happened, 506 00:24:28,400 --> 00:24:30,440 Speaker 3: my dad as soon as we landed in America, my 507 00:24:30,520 --> 00:24:34,199 Speaker 3: dad said me, hoo, we came here to work. We 508 00:24:34,240 --> 00:24:37,000 Speaker 3: didn't come here to go to Disneyland Universal Studios. 509 00:24:37,600 --> 00:24:38,359 Speaker 1: We're here to work. 510 00:24:39,280 --> 00:24:41,240 Speaker 3: And I was thirteen years old and he said that 511 00:24:41,320 --> 00:24:44,240 Speaker 3: to me, and I knew that I was next. So 512 00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:46,560 Speaker 3: at a very younger age, I just I had to 513 00:24:46,600 --> 00:24:48,439 Speaker 3: really get it together. I have to figure out, like, 514 00:24:48,440 --> 00:24:50,440 Speaker 3: at some point, I'm going to have to contribute, right. 515 00:24:50,480 --> 00:24:53,760 Speaker 3: And you know, it wasn't that I wanted a choice. 516 00:24:55,200 --> 00:24:58,640 Speaker 3: Not having a choice made me realize that sooner or later, 517 00:24:58,680 --> 00:25:01,840 Speaker 3: you're going to have to be responsible and no matter 518 00:25:01,880 --> 00:25:05,320 Speaker 3: if it's with your own life or others, you're gonna 519 00:25:05,359 --> 00:25:08,600 Speaker 3: have to contribute. And uh, and you better figure it 520 00:25:08,600 --> 00:25:10,720 Speaker 3: out now because you only have a few years before 521 00:25:10,720 --> 00:25:13,040 Speaker 3: you hit haite eighteen and you're expected to keep the 522 00:25:13,080 --> 00:25:16,800 Speaker 3: light on, right. That's the generation we grew up in right, Like. 523 00:25:16,720 --> 00:25:19,119 Speaker 4: You came here, there's no like. 524 00:25:21,040 --> 00:25:21,960 Speaker 1: Lawn and mound the lawn. 525 00:25:22,080 --> 00:25:24,960 Speaker 3: Okay, cool, get inside. Yeah, what were you expecting five 526 00:25:25,000 --> 00:25:27,640 Speaker 3: dollars from moaning the lawn? Like it's your house. You're 527 00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:29,480 Speaker 3: gonna moan the lawn in your house, you know, Like 528 00:25:29,600 --> 00:25:31,280 Speaker 3: it's that kind of stuff that like you're. 529 00:25:31,119 --> 00:25:33,480 Speaker 1: Going to grow up with, you know, and. 530 00:25:34,920 --> 00:25:35,560 Speaker 4: You know I might. 531 00:25:35,600 --> 00:25:38,760 Speaker 3: My dad didn't have enough money to give us for school, 532 00:25:38,800 --> 00:25:40,320 Speaker 3: Like we're going to get a bag of chips, we 533 00:25:40,440 --> 00:25:42,359 Speaker 3: want to get a sort of from the vending machine 534 00:25:42,400 --> 00:25:45,719 Speaker 3: or whatever. So I was like I got to get 535 00:25:45,720 --> 00:25:49,119 Speaker 3: a job. So at fourteen, you know, just literally I 536 00:25:49,200 --> 00:25:51,560 Speaker 3: arrived here. An uncle of mine worked at this restaurant 537 00:25:51,600 --> 00:25:54,520 Speaker 3: called Cafe Issue, right, and I became a bus boy 538 00:25:55,240 --> 00:25:59,080 Speaker 3: and I was leveling the butters and picking up you know, 539 00:25:59,320 --> 00:26:02,119 Speaker 3: and you know, and again I got hired from the 540 00:26:02,160 --> 00:26:02,920 Speaker 3: alleyway right. 541 00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:05,480 Speaker 1: So it was like no minimum wage, no minimum hours, 542 00:26:05,560 --> 00:26:07,520 Speaker 1: you know, like you just have to be there under 543 00:26:07,560 --> 00:26:09,960 Speaker 1: the table. Yeah, I mean like they just break me off. 544 00:26:10,000 --> 00:26:11,639 Speaker 1: The waiters would just break me off, you know. 545 00:26:11,760 --> 00:26:15,639 Speaker 3: And you know, I remember making I don't know, like 546 00:26:16,600 --> 00:26:19,080 Speaker 3: ten dollars for the whole day, you know, something like that, 547 00:26:19,840 --> 00:26:22,639 Speaker 3: and I said, you know, fourteen, fifteen years old, you know, 548 00:26:23,359 --> 00:26:25,000 Speaker 3: I go to school, and I'm like, I was enough 549 00:26:25,040 --> 00:26:26,000 Speaker 3: to buy the bag of chips. 550 00:26:26,040 --> 00:26:28,000 Speaker 4: I want it right right right. 551 00:26:28,080 --> 00:26:30,720 Speaker 3: So I'm like, oh cool, like I'm making money, you know, 552 00:26:31,720 --> 00:26:34,119 Speaker 3: and and yeah, So that was my first gig, and 553 00:26:34,440 --> 00:26:36,720 Speaker 3: I remember very clearly the moment where I said I 554 00:26:37,040 --> 00:26:40,680 Speaker 3: have to I have to be more. A lady came 555 00:26:40,720 --> 00:26:43,840 Speaker 3: in right to your school, No, to the restaurant, to 556 00:26:43,880 --> 00:26:48,560 Speaker 3: the restaurant. Lady came in and she weighed me over, 557 00:26:49,560 --> 00:26:51,840 Speaker 3: and I should have. Man, when I think back at 558 00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:56,440 Speaker 3: this moment, I still like, start my my upper lips 559 00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:59,840 Speaker 3: starts sweating, like I have so much trauma from this moment. Right, 560 00:27:01,440 --> 00:27:03,120 Speaker 3: she waves me over, and I should have just gotten 561 00:27:03,119 --> 00:27:06,520 Speaker 3: a waiter to go there, but instead I went myself. 562 00:27:07,359 --> 00:27:09,879 Speaker 3: And when I got to that table, the lady started 563 00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:13,359 Speaker 3: you know those like when when Charlie Brown went to 564 00:27:13,400 --> 00:27:14,960 Speaker 3: school and the teacher's like whoa. 565 00:27:14,800 --> 00:27:16,840 Speaker 4: Whaa wow wow wow wow wow wow. 566 00:27:16,680 --> 00:27:19,280 Speaker 3: Wah wah wah, and You're like you can't like that's 567 00:27:19,280 --> 00:27:22,800 Speaker 3: all I heard, right, and I just froze. She started 568 00:27:22,840 --> 00:27:26,440 Speaker 3: snapping on my face, started clapping on my face. And 569 00:27:26,520 --> 00:27:28,680 Speaker 3: she starts pointing at the table, and I had and 570 00:27:28,800 --> 00:27:31,480 Speaker 3: I just froze. I'd like thirteen, fourteen years old. 571 00:27:31,480 --> 00:27:34,960 Speaker 1: I froze. And I was like, I didn't know. I 572 00:27:35,000 --> 00:27:35,880 Speaker 1: didn't even have a word. 573 00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:38,040 Speaker 3: I could even I could even say one, two, three 574 00:27:38,119 --> 00:27:41,280 Speaker 3: and pretend like I said something, you know, like and 575 00:27:41,480 --> 00:27:43,800 Speaker 3: my then the waiter came in and asked her of that, 576 00:27:43,840 --> 00:27:45,960 Speaker 3: and apparently she was asking me to refill her water. 577 00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:48,840 Speaker 3: And I didn't know what she was asking me about. 578 00:27:49,640 --> 00:27:53,080 Speaker 3: And the way she was looking at me was so 579 00:27:54,080 --> 00:27:56,800 Speaker 3: heart shattering. I was such a happy kid, you know, 580 00:27:56,920 --> 00:27:58,480 Speaker 3: and the way she looked at me, she looked at me, 581 00:27:58,520 --> 00:28:01,920 Speaker 3: I was like like I was uneducated, dumb, like I 582 00:28:02,040 --> 00:28:06,280 Speaker 3: was inferior, and it really hurt, really hurt. I went 583 00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:08,280 Speaker 3: back to the kitchen and I was just quiet, and 584 00:28:09,359 --> 00:28:11,240 Speaker 3: my uncle came in and he was like, okay, It's 585 00:28:11,280 --> 00:28:15,520 Speaker 3: like I just couldn't even express myself. I couldn't express 586 00:28:15,560 --> 00:28:19,720 Speaker 3: the feelings I was going through. And in that moment, 587 00:28:19,840 --> 00:28:23,440 Speaker 3: I said, never will anyone ever talk to me like that. 588 00:28:24,480 --> 00:28:28,000 Speaker 3: And if I'm ever in a situation of leadership or 589 00:28:29,359 --> 00:28:33,800 Speaker 3: you know, or entrepreneurship, whatever environment I create, people have 590 00:28:33,920 --> 00:28:36,840 Speaker 3: to feel so empowered to be able to share. I 591 00:28:36,880 --> 00:28:42,840 Speaker 3: should never feel shell shocked from contributing because of any perception. 592 00:28:42,960 --> 00:28:45,560 Speaker 3: We might build like we should have in constant empowerment. 593 00:28:46,880 --> 00:28:49,360 Speaker 3: And it really hurt me, but I really believed that 594 00:28:49,360 --> 00:28:52,560 Speaker 3: I was the moment I went home and I said, immediately, 595 00:28:53,560 --> 00:28:55,240 Speaker 3: first thing I gotta do is long how to speak English. 596 00:28:55,720 --> 00:28:59,080 Speaker 3: And within less than a year, I was speaking English 597 00:28:59,240 --> 00:29:01,800 Speaker 3: like I was so petrified to have an encounter like 598 00:29:01,880 --> 00:29:05,160 Speaker 3: that again that I was just literally everything that the 599 00:29:05,280 --> 00:29:07,880 Speaker 3: teacher would say I was. I was taking it into 600 00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:10,840 Speaker 3: my heart and uploaded it into my brain and translated 601 00:29:10,880 --> 00:29:14,840 Speaker 3: it into a tool, into a weapon for building, you know, 602 00:29:15,080 --> 00:29:18,520 Speaker 3: a reality that that felt more comfortable for me and 603 00:29:18,640 --> 00:29:21,720 Speaker 3: my sister. My sister did the same thing. She learned 604 00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:25,680 Speaker 3: right away and as soon as I was and you know, 605 00:29:25,960 --> 00:29:29,080 Speaker 3: that led me into more theater. I started doing theater, 606 00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:31,520 Speaker 3: you know, and I met some of my dreams and 607 00:29:31,640 --> 00:29:33,480 Speaker 3: I've never been kissed, and you know, I started doing 608 00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:35,640 Speaker 3: on this theater and I was performing words I didn't 609 00:29:35,680 --> 00:29:38,920 Speaker 3: know what meant, but I was also performing sentences that 610 00:29:39,040 --> 00:29:41,320 Speaker 3: resemble things that I could say outside. 611 00:29:41,000 --> 00:29:41,600 Speaker 1: Of that stage. 612 00:29:42,000 --> 00:29:44,800 Speaker 3: And immediately I was like, oh, I'm speaking English on 613 00:29:44,880 --> 00:29:48,560 Speaker 3: stage and somebody's looking at me like an equal on stage. 614 00:29:49,360 --> 00:29:52,600 Speaker 3: They're talking to me unlike people would talk to me 615 00:29:52,720 --> 00:29:55,960 Speaker 3: outside of that stage. And that was a magical moment 616 00:29:56,000 --> 00:29:58,440 Speaker 3: when I thought performing arts were going to save my life. 617 00:29:59,120 --> 00:30:02,080 Speaker 3: You know, give me people skills that I just couldn't 618 00:30:02,160 --> 00:30:07,840 Speaker 3: develop quick enough at my age. And you know, I 619 00:30:08,400 --> 00:30:10,600 Speaker 3: was so relentless about it, Like every time I would 620 00:30:10,680 --> 00:30:13,000 Speaker 3: ditch a class, it was cool. Yeah, I go to 621 00:30:13,080 --> 00:30:16,440 Speaker 3: the drama room to go yeah, and this was that tap. 622 00:30:16,560 --> 00:30:20,000 Speaker 3: Yeah high school. Oh interesting, the teacher will go and 623 00:30:20,120 --> 00:30:25,440 Speaker 3: have auditions and leave me teaching drama class. Yeah, wow, 624 00:30:25,480 --> 00:30:27,560 Speaker 3: because I knew the exercises, I knew everything she was 625 00:30:27,640 --> 00:30:29,600 Speaker 3: gonna say anyway, so she wouldn't let me be in 626 00:30:29,760 --> 00:30:31,160 Speaker 3: what she knock out for an audition. 627 00:30:42,560 --> 00:30:45,640 Speaker 2: Hey, it's funny, how like trauma, what trauma does to 628 00:30:45,720 --> 00:30:49,880 Speaker 2: a human being? Right, Like you experienced the trauma right 629 00:30:50,080 --> 00:30:53,000 Speaker 2: with that with that person speaking to you, and and 630 00:30:53,160 --> 00:30:55,320 Speaker 2: how demeaning it was, and all the other emotions that 631 00:30:55,400 --> 00:30:56,320 Speaker 2: you expressed, But. 632 00:30:56,400 --> 00:31:00,000 Speaker 4: It was the motivator, right, and it's it switched your birth. 633 00:31:00,200 --> 00:31:03,160 Speaker 3: But you can either motivate you right, or it could 634 00:31:03,200 --> 00:31:06,320 Speaker 3: break any inspiration you might have had. 635 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:10,280 Speaker 1: Very quickly. You have to figure out which one is it. 636 00:31:10,960 --> 00:31:13,600 Speaker 2: But maybe it was that survival mode that was the 637 00:31:14,080 --> 00:31:17,200 Speaker 2: that was what was pushing you. Right, maybe if you 638 00:31:17,240 --> 00:31:19,520 Speaker 2: were comfy and that would have happened, maybe it would have. 639 00:31:20,400 --> 00:31:22,440 Speaker 3: Well you have to find where is the hunger going 640 00:31:22,520 --> 00:31:25,720 Speaker 3: to play a factor? Where is their ambition going to play. 641 00:31:25,560 --> 00:31:27,120 Speaker 1: A factor in it? 642 00:31:27,280 --> 00:31:27,440 Speaker 2: You know? 643 00:31:27,680 --> 00:31:30,240 Speaker 1: And my dad had the drive. 644 00:31:31,000 --> 00:31:33,320 Speaker 3: Yeah you know, he gets up a four, went to 645 00:31:33,400 --> 00:31:37,080 Speaker 3: sleep at ten, yeah, you know, and not until he 646 00:31:38,560 --> 00:31:40,760 Speaker 3: he you know, his car got stolen. I saw the 647 00:31:40,840 --> 00:31:44,400 Speaker 3: fear in his eyes. What now the feared in my 648 00:31:44,480 --> 00:31:46,800 Speaker 3: mom's eyes right now? That kicked my ass into like 649 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:49,440 Speaker 3: I got to put it in gear. Now I'm next. 650 00:31:49,640 --> 00:31:53,040 Speaker 3: I gotta go, I gotta get in the game. That's 651 00:31:53,080 --> 00:31:56,920 Speaker 3: a reality that you know, that is that can either 652 00:31:58,400 --> 00:32:02,920 Speaker 3: create uncertainty and fear or it could create motivation and 653 00:32:03,520 --> 00:32:07,160 Speaker 3: somehow it eliminates a path. Yeah, right, like it kicks 654 00:32:07,200 --> 00:32:09,040 Speaker 3: setting to gear for you to be like I got 655 00:32:09,160 --> 00:32:12,160 Speaker 3: to find it. And my parents, you know, were. 656 00:32:12,200 --> 00:32:13,280 Speaker 1: Did the best they could. 657 00:32:14,080 --> 00:32:15,600 Speaker 3: You know, they did the best they could and I 658 00:32:15,760 --> 00:32:21,040 Speaker 3: and I'm so grateful because they sacrificed themselves they sacrificed 659 00:32:21,080 --> 00:32:25,200 Speaker 3: their relationship. You know, there was so much heartache, so 660 00:32:25,320 --> 00:32:29,080 Speaker 3: much stress that my mom was experiencing that I could 661 00:32:29,120 --> 00:32:31,320 Speaker 3: tell that it was drifting them apart in ways to 662 00:32:31,480 --> 00:32:33,160 Speaker 3: just like you really really hard. I mean, they were 663 00:32:33,200 --> 00:32:35,880 Speaker 3: putting the happy face for us. But you know, I 664 00:32:36,000 --> 00:32:38,320 Speaker 3: was at that point too aware at thirteen, At thirteen 665 00:32:38,400 --> 00:32:40,280 Speaker 3: years old, you come to America, you're not you're not 666 00:32:40,440 --> 00:32:43,400 Speaker 3: just looking at cartoons. You're looking at your parents's faces. Yeah, 667 00:32:43,400 --> 00:32:44,680 Speaker 3: you're looking at like what are they thinking? 668 00:32:44,760 --> 00:32:45,320 Speaker 1: What are they saying? 669 00:32:45,360 --> 00:32:48,640 Speaker 4: Body language, all that energy, you're you're and. 670 00:32:49,040 --> 00:32:51,600 Speaker 1: I was the oldest, you know, so I was very 671 00:32:51,640 --> 00:32:52,880 Speaker 1: aware of everything that was happening. 672 00:32:53,080 --> 00:32:56,280 Speaker 2: And and and you're the oldest, so there's there's also 673 00:32:56,400 --> 00:32:58,120 Speaker 2: that added responsibility for you. 674 00:32:58,320 --> 00:33:01,760 Speaker 4: So not only was trauma and survival. 675 00:33:01,320 --> 00:33:04,640 Speaker 2: The motivator, right, you're the oldest, or there's like a 676 00:33:04,760 --> 00:33:08,480 Speaker 2: parent component I think to being the oldest, it is. 677 00:33:08,600 --> 00:33:11,320 Speaker 3: And also you somehow have to be the first one 678 00:33:11,360 --> 00:33:16,040 Speaker 3: to break ground and new terrains, right, you know, for 679 00:33:16,160 --> 00:33:18,600 Speaker 3: your sisters, you know what path are we taking? 680 00:33:18,640 --> 00:33:19,400 Speaker 1: And my sister and I. 681 00:33:19,440 --> 00:33:21,920 Speaker 3: Did everything together, right, Like we were very lucky because 682 00:33:21,960 --> 00:33:24,240 Speaker 3: she learned how to read because we were you know, 683 00:33:24,400 --> 00:33:26,000 Speaker 3: she was in kindergarten. I was in first grade, and 684 00:33:26,040 --> 00:33:27,720 Speaker 3: she learned how to read because I was doing homework 685 00:33:27,760 --> 00:33:29,600 Speaker 3: with her. And then so they skipped her up a grade. 686 00:33:30,400 --> 00:33:33,480 Speaker 3: So we were in the same classroom until like high school. 687 00:33:33,840 --> 00:33:36,480 Speaker 3: Really yeah, it was really cool. I mean she will 688 00:33:36,520 --> 00:33:38,760 Speaker 3: tell a different story that, like she did all my homework. 689 00:33:38,840 --> 00:33:44,760 Speaker 1: You know, there were some times where I like, what 690 00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:46,240 Speaker 1: did you say for that thing? 691 00:33:46,640 --> 00:33:46,880 Speaker 2: Yeah? 692 00:33:47,240 --> 00:33:48,680 Speaker 1: What did you write for that desk? 693 00:33:48,840 --> 00:33:49,000 Speaker 4: You know? 694 00:33:49,160 --> 00:33:51,920 Speaker 1: And she was very smart. She was actually very very smart. 695 00:33:52,040 --> 00:33:53,280 Speaker 4: So what what do you attribute? 696 00:33:53,720 --> 00:33:56,040 Speaker 2: Because you were saying that that you all of a 697 00:33:56,080 --> 00:33:58,040 Speaker 2: sudden were on this path to learn English, and you 698 00:33:58,080 --> 00:34:00,720 Speaker 2: would you would listen to the tature and you would 699 00:34:00,760 --> 00:34:04,400 Speaker 2: process it. Was that like the was that sort of 700 00:34:04,560 --> 00:34:07,840 Speaker 2: the driving force behind you learning English? 701 00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:10,080 Speaker 4: Or was it like TV? Was it movies? 702 00:34:10,440 --> 00:34:13,480 Speaker 3: Was it like, well funny because I wanted to My 703 00:34:13,600 --> 00:34:17,320 Speaker 3: first job at home was to pick up the phone, 704 00:34:18,000 --> 00:34:22,279 Speaker 3: answer the door, read the manuals, read the menu at 705 00:34:22,320 --> 00:34:23,520 Speaker 3: the restaurants. 706 00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:27,680 Speaker 1: Right, ask for what was for dinner tonight? Yeah, bro, 707 00:34:27,800 --> 00:34:28,719 Speaker 1: that was my first job. 708 00:34:28,920 --> 00:34:33,400 Speaker 3: So like immediately that was my first responsibility. Yeah, I 709 00:34:33,520 --> 00:34:37,439 Speaker 3: remember when they remember when they would knock on the door. Yeah, 710 00:34:37,719 --> 00:34:38,920 Speaker 3: and my mom and everyone was. 711 00:34:38,920 --> 00:34:41,480 Speaker 1: Like, he's gonna answer. 712 00:34:41,719 --> 00:34:46,760 Speaker 3: Yeah, Yeah, okay, I'll go, I'll go, yeah, can you lit. 713 00:34:48,200 --> 00:34:49,440 Speaker 1: I opened the door and I was like. 714 00:34:50,680 --> 00:34:56,520 Speaker 4: Hello, right, hello there, Hello there, what can I do 715 00:34:56,680 --> 00:34:57,080 Speaker 4: for you? 716 00:34:58,200 --> 00:34:58,360 Speaker 2: You know? 717 00:34:58,600 --> 00:35:01,000 Speaker 1: And it's not like you put in an accent to 718 00:35:01,120 --> 00:35:02,680 Speaker 1: pretend that you have an American accent? 719 00:35:02,920 --> 00:35:03,680 Speaker 4: Right right? 720 00:35:04,320 --> 00:35:06,520 Speaker 1: But yeah, so that that was kind of my first gig. 721 00:35:07,200 --> 00:35:08,160 Speaker 4: That was my first gig. 722 00:35:08,280 --> 00:35:10,480 Speaker 3: Yeah, that was my first Yeah, I did it for free. 723 00:35:10,600 --> 00:35:13,879 Speaker 3: You know, it's just unfortunates sag. No, it wasn't sag, 724 00:35:14,000 --> 00:35:14,720 Speaker 3: but it was sereal. 725 00:35:15,400 --> 00:35:16,560 Speaker 1: Yeah, it was cereal for sure. 726 00:35:17,719 --> 00:35:19,359 Speaker 3: But yeah, I mean that's so that's a little bit 727 00:35:19,400 --> 00:35:22,560 Speaker 3: of like my trajectory and and up my family's trajectory. 728 00:35:22,640 --> 00:35:24,560 Speaker 3: I mean, this is really a love letter to them, 729 00:35:24,920 --> 00:35:29,239 Speaker 3: you know, and as American uh in Venezuelan, Colombia, and 730 00:35:29,320 --> 00:35:32,320 Speaker 3: you know, it leads me to this the theme, you know, 731 00:35:32,640 --> 00:35:34,040 Speaker 3: which is one of the reasons why I wanted to 732 00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:35,960 Speaker 3: write the book at a time right now, where lat 733 00:35:36,000 --> 00:35:38,680 Speaker 3: you need that is in question? Where are you one 734 00:35:38,719 --> 00:35:41,160 Speaker 3: hundred percent Latino? Are you a one hundred percent American? 735 00:35:42,320 --> 00:35:44,080 Speaker 3: And honestly, I can tell you you don't have to pick. 736 00:35:44,160 --> 00:35:46,319 Speaker 3: You can be both one, you can be a two 737 00:35:46,440 --> 00:35:49,799 Speaker 3: hundred percenter And if you don't speak Spanish, you're still 738 00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:51,839 Speaker 3: a Latino and you should be proud of that, right 739 00:35:51,920 --> 00:35:53,800 Speaker 3: like you we should talk about that, you know. And 740 00:35:54,239 --> 00:35:56,200 Speaker 3: and I learned that growing up because I know there 741 00:35:56,280 --> 00:35:58,759 Speaker 3: was perception even for my own community, like if you 742 00:35:58,840 --> 00:36:02,080 Speaker 3: don't speak Spanish, you're not a real Latino. That was 743 00:36:02,160 --> 00:36:04,239 Speaker 3: a generation of the nineties, or just like it really 744 00:36:04,400 --> 00:36:08,440 Speaker 3: sets us back because Latinos that were breaking around in 745 00:36:08,520 --> 00:36:13,279 Speaker 3: different industries and entertainment, we're not giving the actual universal. 746 00:36:12,880 --> 00:36:13,800 Speaker 1: Love from our people. 747 00:36:14,400 --> 00:36:18,319 Speaker 3: That's interesting, you know, And so that stuff like kind 748 00:36:18,320 --> 00:36:20,880 Speaker 3: of leads us a little bit more into into that world. 749 00:36:21,440 --> 00:36:24,480 Speaker 3: I think a lot about you know, where did we 750 00:36:24,600 --> 00:36:28,880 Speaker 3: draw inspirations because they weren't that many, and like what 751 00:36:29,040 --> 00:36:32,160 Speaker 3: inspired us to say, like, hey, you know what, I'm 752 00:36:32,200 --> 00:36:36,520 Speaker 3: going to be this against absolutely a tsunami of odds 753 00:36:36,840 --> 00:36:40,759 Speaker 3: that your parents proved to be very hard to overcome. Right, 754 00:36:41,640 --> 00:36:43,759 Speaker 3: So you think a little bit about like, oh, okay, 755 00:36:43,760 --> 00:36:44,719 Speaker 3: well where are we going next? 756 00:36:44,880 --> 00:36:47,960 Speaker 1: Like what is what's next? And what can it be me? 757 00:36:48,880 --> 00:36:51,400 Speaker 1: And what is that moment that says, yeah, why not me? 758 00:36:52,600 --> 00:36:54,239 Speaker 1: If somebody else did it? Why not me? At a 759 00:36:54,320 --> 00:36:58,520 Speaker 1: time where like somebody else perhaps hadn't done it the 760 00:36:58,600 --> 00:37:01,400 Speaker 1: way you could have done it, we'll do it or 761 00:37:01,520 --> 00:37:04,160 Speaker 1: did it? But who were those inspirations? 762 00:37:04,400 --> 00:37:04,560 Speaker 2: You know? 763 00:37:04,719 --> 00:37:06,160 Speaker 1: What? What what triggered us? 764 00:37:06,440 --> 00:37:10,480 Speaker 2: So when we're before, before I turned pro, I was 765 00:37:10,560 --> 00:37:13,960 Speaker 2: on a Saturday morning TV show, I was I was 766 00:37:14,040 --> 00:37:17,759 Speaker 2: eating bites of Kentucky fried chicken on a commercial. 767 00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:20,239 Speaker 1: Did you like fried Chicken? I did? 768 00:37:20,280 --> 00:37:23,480 Speaker 2: You know? It was? It was a campaign that had 769 00:37:23,600 --> 00:37:27,360 Speaker 2: remember chriss cross everybody, so it was like jumps, like 770 00:37:27,400 --> 00:37:30,200 Speaker 2: everyone's just jumping like chicken, you know, and I was 771 00:37:30,239 --> 00:37:30,719 Speaker 2: one of the guys. 772 00:37:32,080 --> 00:37:32,680 Speaker 4: We gotta. 773 00:37:33,960 --> 00:37:38,120 Speaker 2: Uh. But but that eventually, you know, it was serendipitous, 774 00:37:38,239 --> 00:37:41,000 Speaker 2: right because I was happy being in Chicago and and 775 00:37:41,280 --> 00:37:44,480 Speaker 2: and getting little gigs here and there, and and making a. 776 00:37:44,480 --> 00:37:46,319 Speaker 4: Living at it and living at my parents' house. 777 00:37:46,400 --> 00:37:51,360 Speaker 2: But little did I know that that those stepping stones 778 00:37:51,560 --> 00:37:54,960 Speaker 2: was going to lead to my professional career. What was 779 00:37:55,719 --> 00:37:59,239 Speaker 2: so you know, you took us through high school and 780 00:37:59,280 --> 00:38:01,200 Speaker 2: your high school I'm a class and the stuff that 781 00:38:01,239 --> 00:38:03,600 Speaker 2: you did in Venezuela, Like, what was what was that 782 00:38:03,880 --> 00:38:05,520 Speaker 2: moment before you turn pro. 783 00:38:08,040 --> 00:38:12,200 Speaker 3: I mean I never thought I would be turning pro, 784 00:38:12,360 --> 00:38:14,319 Speaker 3: but I had the ambition of doing all these things. 785 00:38:14,440 --> 00:38:18,120 Speaker 3: When my dad's car gets stolen, I saw my mom 786 00:38:18,200 --> 00:38:19,920 Speaker 3: in my dad's eyes and I went up to them 787 00:38:19,920 --> 00:38:24,520 Speaker 3: and I said, Dad, Mom, don't worry, because I'm going 788 00:38:24,560 --> 00:38:25,160 Speaker 3: to be an actor. 789 00:38:25,280 --> 00:38:26,399 Speaker 1: I'm gonna make this money. 790 00:38:26,600 --> 00:38:28,560 Speaker 4: So you had decided at that moment you were going 791 00:38:28,640 --> 00:38:29,320 Speaker 4: to be an actor. 792 00:38:29,360 --> 00:38:31,480 Speaker 3: Because I have been told like, oh, you're kind of 793 00:38:31,520 --> 00:38:33,880 Speaker 3: funny in high school, Well you should do some commercials. 794 00:38:33,880 --> 00:38:35,719 Speaker 3: And I told me that I'm gonna do some commercials 795 00:38:35,760 --> 00:38:37,520 Speaker 3: and make some money. Well, buy a new car, we 796 00:38:37,680 --> 00:38:39,840 Speaker 3: want to buy a house and whatever. I was fourteen, 797 00:38:39,920 --> 00:38:40,720 Speaker 3: yourself in from yourself. 798 00:38:40,719 --> 00:38:42,840 Speaker 2: So it was because of what people were telling you 799 00:38:42,960 --> 00:38:46,000 Speaker 2: in high school, and they you saw something in their 800 00:38:46,080 --> 00:38:47,200 Speaker 2: eyes that they saw in you. 801 00:38:48,800 --> 00:38:49,839 Speaker 4: Convinced you. Yes. 802 00:38:50,160 --> 00:38:52,279 Speaker 3: You were like, at the very least, I can do 803 00:38:52,360 --> 00:38:55,319 Speaker 3: a commercial and bring that money home. And I said, 804 00:38:55,320 --> 00:38:57,680 Speaker 3: I'll have restaurants I'll put over there. And I started 805 00:38:57,680 --> 00:39:01,520 Speaker 3: with my dad, you know, at these of tears of 806 00:39:01,600 --> 00:39:07,560 Speaker 3: my mom over a crying. My dad literally said to me, uh, okay, Majo, 807 00:39:08,400 --> 00:39:12,160 Speaker 3: you can do that, and uh, which by the way great, 808 00:39:12,239 --> 00:39:15,320 Speaker 3: great segue into our next episode, What what is you know, 809 00:39:15,400 --> 00:39:17,800 Speaker 3: what was that moment that that told you that you 810 00:39:17,920 --> 00:39:20,440 Speaker 3: could or that you had to? Yeah, you know, and 811 00:39:21,800 --> 00:39:25,200 Speaker 3: you know what other inspirations came into play that said 812 00:39:25,239 --> 00:39:28,680 Speaker 3: that maybe you could, which I'd love to hear that 813 00:39:28,840 --> 00:39:30,480 Speaker 3: from you, and I'd love to share on that too 814 00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:33,560 Speaker 3: in the next episode of Uh Those Amos. 815 00:39:34,320 --> 00:39:41,920 Speaker 2: Salute Those Amigos is a production from WV Sound and 816 00:39:42,280 --> 00:39:47,520 Speaker 2: iHeartMedia's Michael Tuda podcast network, Hosted by me, Freddie Rodriguez, 817 00:39:47,680 --> 00:39:49,600 Speaker 2: and Wilmer Valdorama. 818 00:39:49,360 --> 00:39:54,120 Speaker 3: Those Amigos is produced by Aaron Burlison and Sophie Spencer's Levels. 819 00:39:54,600 --> 00:39:59,440 Speaker 2: Our executive producers are Wilmer Valderama, Freddie Rodriguez, Aaron Burlason, 820 00:39:59,680 --> 00:40:01,840 Speaker 2: and o Clem at WV Sound. 821 00:40:02,000 --> 00:40:05,520 Speaker 3: This episode was edited by Ryan Posts and Aaron Burlison 822 00:40:06,000 --> 00:40:09,640 Speaker 3: and features original music by Madison Devenport and halebord Our. 823 00:40:09,760 --> 00:40:13,879 Speaker 2: Cover art photography is by David Avalos and designed by Deny. 824 00:40:13,760 --> 00:40:18,200 Speaker 3: Holtzclaw and special thanks to every single interview for joining 825 00:40:18,239 --> 00:40:20,480 Speaker 3: this journey and I hope you continue to enjoy us. 826 00:40:20,840 --> 00:40:23,680 Speaker 2: For more podcasts from I Heart, visit the iHeartRadio app 827 00:40:23,960 --> 00:40:27,160 Speaker 2: Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. 828 00:40:27,480 --> 00:40:30,239 Speaker 1: See you or hear us in a week or so.