My parents let my sister name me, Julian Jerry Rojas. I am the youngest of three children. My dad, Margarito, and my mom, Guillermina, are both from Mexico. Their lives sound different than mine. Even though my mom and dad were from the same city of Guanajuato, they met here in the United States. They met at El Pollo Loco restaurant and since then they have been together. Growing up, we spoke a lot of Spanish. I learned to speak, read, and write in Spanish. My dad is happy I learned Spanish because it will help me stay connected to my culture. They tell me stories of how they grew up in small towns and how life in Mexico was so difficult. This makes me grateful for everything I have and everything my parents have done for me.

Since I can remember, my Dad always liked watching soccer on television. There are pictures of me as a baby where I am wearing soccer jerseys from my Dad’s favorite teams. When I got older, I started watching it with him and I fell in love with the sport. Even when I was younger I enjoyed it. At around 8 or 9 years old, I played soccer at David M. Gonzales Park in Pacoima, CA. I remember my older brother Alex would go watch my games every weekend. I would like to be a sports commentator when I grow up because of the love my family has for soccer.

My grandma would also tell me stories of when she lived in Mexico. She would take care of her younger siblings, and I’m lucky because when I was a baby she would also take care of me. I remember that I would watch cartoons with her and she would sing along with me. She passed away, but I know she loved me very much. I will always remember when she would kiss me on my cheeks or hug me tight as soon as she saw me. Every night, my grandma would call me to pray with her. I come from a Catholic family, she taught me how to pray the rosary. My faith has always been important to me and my family. My parents would take me to Catholic mass and church services. One of the things that I loved was the church music. I was told stories about how I would dance and jump around happily every time I would hear the music when I was little. At church, my Dad was one of the people who would lead the church group in prayer or motivate them. Seeing him with a microphone in front of everyone made me proud that he was my dad. When I grow up I want to be like him.

In January 2020, I remember visiting Tijuana, Mexico with my family to meet my grandpa. My grandpa had flown from Guanajuato to see us. I had met him once before and he looked so much like my dad. Everyone would say they looked like twins. I remember we went to eat at a seafood restaurant by the ocean. After we finished eating, we went down to the sand near the sea. My grandpa has never been near an ocean and wanted to touch the sand and the water. He picked up some seashells that day because he wanted to take them home. My grandpa said about the seashells: “That way people back home will believe that I went to the ocean.” My grandpa was so happy because we were all together and we went to see him. My grandpa also passed away, but I will always remember him and how loving he was.

A lot of the important moments to me are with my family. I hope that we can always be close like we are now because they have all helped make me who I am today.

© Julian. All rights reserved. If you are interested in quoting this story, contact the national team and we can put you in touch with the author’s teacher.