Assignment 22-- Daniel Mendoza Vasquez -- Meandering Nonsense

The nature of my origins is probably what shaped me and thus what makes me most unique. I was born in New Orleans to immigrant parents and then spent a couple years bouncing back and forth between Colombia and the US. Eventually, I spent six consecutive years in Raleigh and I thought that that was where I would stay, but then my dad got a new job and we moved here to Lexington. I’ve been here for six years since. So my problem, then, is that I don’t know what to call home or what to answer when people ask where I’m from. Sure, my house is literally in Lexington, but I don’t feel a connection to the city or state like others do. If I’m completely honest, I don’t even like it that much--and I’ve warmed up to it exponentially since I first moved here. Raleigh could qualify, as that’s where I moved from, but that was also temporary and I have nothing left there. I was born in New Orleans and it’s a great city, but I only spent a couple months there. Then there’s Colombia, where I lived for some time and of which I am a citizen along with my mom. Of course, children with parents in the military would probably scoff at this dilemma and it sounds sadder than it is. The point is more so how that issue and all that movement, combined with me being an only child, has given me a sense of self-sufficiency and independence. Not in regards to my parents or family, but otherwise. I am all that I need. People often ask me if being an only child feels lonely, and I always respond with an emphatic “No”. I feel perfectly fine by myself and as I’ve grown up I have seen how much of an advantage that is compared to others who become dependent on other people around them.