Assimilation is a reflection of my experience of adapting
to American culture at the age of eight, when I moved from
Colombia to the United States. The story is illustrated and
narrated from the perspective of my younger self, whose
experiences may seem small or trivial, yet exist alongside
the far more visible sacrifices of adults who leave behind
entire lives to begin again. This project seeks to honor a
quieter, often overlooked narrative: that of children
navigating displacement at an age when they are expected
to absorb two cultures simultaneously, without fully
understanding either. In that in-between space, the idea
of “home” becomes uncertain.
Ultimately, Assimilation is a reconciliation with that word. It is
an acknowledgment that I do not belong to just one culture,
but to both, and that together, they shape the entirety of who
I am, and who I was always meant to become.
