Value Yourself. Nobody Else Will.

Then one day, I was at work, serving a coffee, when I lived through a scene that tens of thousands of people put up with—people who are considered too old for this kind of job. A mother at one of my tables used me as an example. A bad one. She told her daughter, in Spanish, that if she didn't study, she would end up a waitress, like me. She didn't know I had friends from everywhere. I understood ninety percent of what she said, and I understood she was talking about me. I acted like I hadn't heard anything and kept waiting tables. Until they left the restaurant, I kept looking at her, like I needed to prove it to her—to myself, to everyone who thinks I have no ambition or just doesn't get me—that I could do it. For a long period of time, I had to repeat to myself how smart I am, what I have achieved so far, how mentally strong I am. It sounds like a movie. But not long after that, I started looking for a university for the fall semester. I went back to my old teachers to ask for recommendation letters. Some said no because, among other things, I had been a real pain in the ass. Others said it was too short notice. Two teachers who had seen some potential in me agreed to write letters, and even helped me with my university applications. I got my place. But again, I wasn't serious enough to understand how serious studying was. Some teachers still believed in me, while others gave up on me. Sometimes I was so rude—chewing gum, showing up late with my coffee in my hand. But when I gave it everything, I was among the best.