This is my story. 

Part I

I was born in Muzquiz, Coah. Mexico and at the age of two, my family migrated to the Texan border. That’s where I was raised in the small town of Eagle Pass —where I began my life feeling like a big fish in a small pond. 

Part II

I was happy when I graduated from high school in 2011, although I went to community college right after —still, in Eagle Pass and living under my parent’s roof, I was safe. But my ideology and desires for something more led me to move to San Antonio —with a few of my personal belongings packed onto my father’s Silverado, I was ready to take off on my own. I had been accepted into The University of Texas at San Antonio and was to start in the Fall of 2012. My family has always been humble and at the time without credit or extra cash, my father who has always been (and still is) our family’s only provider couldn’t help me in any way, financially —although he helped me more than he knew, with his words of encouragement and appreciation for who I was.

With no place to live, no GPS, and zero fear, I arrived to San Antonio, Texas in a couple of hours and with mascara streaks down my face.

For six months I bunked with Jessica (one of my best friends) —she lived in a two bedroom apartment with her brother and as generous as she was she shared her room and her bed with me, it took me three months just to give in and unpack my stuff from my truck after I couldn’t find a place of my own without a job or without more than a month’s rent. With a few dollars left in my wallet, (from my Pell Grant and student loans) I knew I had to find a job for the first time in my life.

So, I got a job, *I found a place to stay and received my degree in the Summer of 2016  (*events from Part III) —let me just rewind for a second, and say it wasn’t as easy as I just made it sound. I stumbled onto a lot of challenges and learned far too much in the years in between.

I am however very proud to say,

I was the first person in my entire family (nuclear and extended) to graduate from college.

I graduated from a 4-year university with my Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the Liberal and Fine Arts College at UTSA. 

Part III

In 2013 at the age of 20, I convinced my boyfriend whom I was living with to quit his job as a salesman at a local roofing company and start his own company. That conversation led us to start our own roofing and remodeling business, called Cody Renovations (LLC). I have never said this out loud before but… I DID THAT, I made that happen —I saw the potential, I recognized his talent and I had the ambition, and vision for more! It all was an extraordinary journey in which I learned so much —with his expertise and my determination and ability to learn quickly, we started a small business from the ground up and it took off like a wildfire and we were along for the ride. This was the first time I experienced doing business as a young (very young) Hispanic women —the construction and business world was cruel. Men wouldn’t take me seriously and women tried to discredit me, over and over again —I won’t lie I was often filled with feelings of rage and frustration and I cried (only in front of my partner of course) but I never let myself feel discouraged for very long and I kept trying, and doing, and didn’t give in to everybody’s suppressing words and actions towards me as I ran our business. By 2014 at the age of 21, I had had it all, the man I loved by my side, a house (a boat, Sea Doos, a motorcycle), a cat, a dog, loving friends and family, and so much adventure. I still remember a day that year, looking down at my phone and seeing $83,000.00 in the bank. That was a time of bliss and promise. By that time, money was just a game to me —plays you make, yield different amounts of money or in other cases take it away. This was all an accomplishment I treasure dearly, but a story I have told very few.

After parting ways from Cody and Cody Renovations in 2015, I got two jobs, one as a G-Force student mentor which was basically a high school mentor and another as a New Home Sales Assistant traveling to different up and coming communities in San Antonio, the outskirts and Hill Country area. Both of these jobs taught me even more about different people, different cultures and people in different walks of life, and more importantly, taught me how life would be on my own —this time without a white man by my side. I learned how to deal and communicate effectively and make it on my own —by that I mean play the money game, this time at the poker table by myself.

A lot of dramatic events happened in my life after parting ways with my ex-boyfriend and business partner Cody. On the day of January 11th of 2016, Cody took his own life. The tragedy, his death, shattered my life and hopes into a million pieces. Who I was, before that moment didn’t exist any longer, and what I wanted in life didn’t mean anything to me anymore.

I survived this part of my life  —it changed me and my whole world forever but has played an essential part in my personal evolution.

You can read more about this chapter of my life in my book How to Make Him Obsessed: A Memoir (Coming soon).       

Part IV

I had always been self taught and always sought out to learn new things —this side of me beamed through my dark times (with help from kind people), this burst of light led me to attend a Social Media for Small Business 101 class that Summer before graduating college—that’s where my life took another turn.

There at the class, the man sitting next to me introduced himself and invited me to learn more about his company. He said they were looking to hire very soon. At first glance, I didn’t think much of it —after all I wasn’t looking for a job.

Life had thrown me the ultimate hard ball and I didn’t want to play any longer.

To be continued….