"From Rags to Riches"My father faced difficult times as a child in Mexico, such as not having much medicine for illnesses, not having a school, and not having job opportunities. His father only wanted the best for him. So, when my father was about 11 years old, he decided to go to the United States to find work with his brother. My father came from an area that had no public education system and was very poor. My father wanted an opportunity to work for money and improve his life a little. In 1971 my father was 17 years old and decided he wanted to come to the United States and live with his father and uncle in Aurora, Illinois. He didn't want to wait until he was 18 because it would take a long time to get his Green Card. He took a bus from his hometown of Tepehuanes, Durango, to a town called Ciudad Juarez, which is right before the interstate border United States and Mexico. For him it was a 16 hour ride as the roads down there are very twisty due to the mountains. The roads are also not of high quality. When he got there he took a cab across the border to El Paso, Texas. El Paso is where he took a plane to Chicago's O'Hare Airport. My grandfather went to get it. He immediately noticed that America was full of work. He noted how advanced the United States was and the quality of its roads, buildings, and automobiles. It was also the first time he had seen snow since arriving in January. It was a huge change, but he was very excited and wanted to make money. It was my grandfather who brought him to the United States. He sent an application for my father so that he can come to work to make money. My grandfather worked in a factory in Aurora. When my dad arrived he immediately found work in Lombardy where they make cardboard boxes. There he earned 2.25 cents an hour! It started at 7am until 3.30pm. Fortunately, gas prices were not as high as they are now, otherwise my father would have had big problems with money.