Personal Cultural Project

Artifact #1

Cruz M. Garcia

College of Southern Nevada

EDU 280-Professor Connie Christensen

Photo 1.0 My family picture in a reunion with all my brothers and sisters in April of 2014 in
Sonora, Mexico.
 Personal Cultural Project

Our culture creates a bond in families and a unique culture. Our culture sets our thinking

and our inner identity. Our personal culture is part of the importance of a family shape.

Where do I belong? That is a good question. It is a question everyone asks including

myself. I was born in the Northern part of Mexico half of the time I spent in Arizona and the

other half in Sonora Mexico. Thanks to my parents I speak fluent English. The culture that

surrounded me permeated my way of thinking and living. I lived a Mexican life and at the same

time I kept making a continuous comparison between Arizona and Mexico. As I am in my eighth

year living here in Las Vegas Nevada I have realized that I still have a blank hole from moving

here even though I visit Mexico once a month, at least.

My life experience is different and unique in many ways. The food I ate as a child

influenced my identity because it reunited us. I look different from the children I went to school

with just the same in every culture, and it impacted myself by knowing that there is only one me

and that makes me unique. Looking at my present; my past influenced in becoming educated and

finishing a career. The houses all were built from bricks (fig 1.1). The life I was raised in was

surrounded of hard working people that did not have much education. My parents never

questioned their values and simply just brought it to us. My cultural values are most the same as

I grew up and I have discarded some now that I have become a mother. Our history our past to

our present and the future. The traditions that are most memorable are; the dead were

ceremonially prepare and buried days later. Some possessions were buried or place in their
graves. Dia de los Muertos is a tradition passed on to us from our ancestors. It starts on the night

of October 31st and ends on November the 2nd. It is a celebration of a vigil to offer food and

celebrate the life of our deceased loved ones.

For fun I would ride my older brother bicycle, because of my big family my parents

could not afford more than one bicycle or expensive toys. I would spend my afternoons and days

off from school and vacations outside running and playing. With mud I would create many food

and plays.

Meanwhile the economy was surrounding agriculture. Most families were farmworkers

because of the soil factor that allows many fruits and vegetables.

The Language spoken at home is Spanish. My culture revolves around the catholic

religion. The main and most important catholic building is called the Inmaculada Concepcion

(Fig. 1.2) and is located in the main street in Sonora Mexico. Family is especially very important

for our culture and are usually large in size (photo 1.0 ). Children were raised with not a gentle

guidance and a harsh discipline. Divorce was relatively rare within my family and in our culture.

Politically talking the government is not trustworthy because of a lot of corruption,

extortion, not many jobs and manipulates the city. People don’t really trust police in our

community.
 Due to my life experience I am educating my son with gentle discipline and passive

guidance. I do not take him to church every Sunday neither we celebrate Dia de los Muertos

because of our busy schedule.

When I would visit friends and family I would be able to see that the photographs

documents manuscripts, traditional craftsmanship, rituals, and music was very similar. Most

families were very attached to pictures that were from ancestors.

The Holidays we would celebrate was Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), Christmas Eve,

Christmas, New Years, Mother Days not Father’s Day, and Birthdays. Only five celebrations per

year we would celebrate.

The food I grew up eating was pinto beans, carne asada, tamales, beef stew, red rice,

machaca, menudo, handmade flour tortillas and hot peppers. On cold nights we would drink hot

cocoa drink with a sweet bread named conchas or drink a hot Leche con Arroz (rice with milk).

Cultural heritage has passed down to us from our ancestors and builds a bond in the

connection of our cultural diversity. It helps us understand and should be preserved for everyone

to understand cultural diversity.

Photo 1.1
A house is being built by bricks. (image from
https://www.google.com/search?q=brick+houses+in+mexico&rlz=1C1GGRV_enUS769&tbm=i
sch&source=iu&pf=m&ictx=1&fir=coyxbaCqTyotYM%253A%252C05l7MNX3rlTSCM%252
C_&usg=__GTi0TpC4lGV6o37l4CowWwxYxtU%3D&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjxrNGK5qPXAh
Uf0IMKHfElDQcQ9QEILDAC#imgrc=ZmkYka05300NjM:)
Photo 1.2 Parroquia Inmaculada Concepcion was built in 1946.