Journal Entry #2

Amy Tan's heritage is based on all the moments she has lived and her mother's history as well. It helped me realize what helped her made the story Mother Tongue and what convinces her to write about her stories. As she talks about the small parts of what makes her and the things her mother would do and say, it helps better understand her as a person and how she functions. For example, when she began talking about her family, how they functioned with meals, daily work, and how they lived, it felt more relatable to most people because that's exactly what makes all of us who we are. Later she reveals her mother's side, her story and the background of her nationality. She tells us what makes her heritage and what makes her herself. I got to learn more about why she writes and the reasons behind the stories she creates.

My heritage consists of many things, but most of it is just from work. My father is a hard worker, who never takes a day-off, while my mother makes sure that none of her children become a failure and live a good life, never taking a day-off. They both grew up having to work for their family so that they can survive, hoping that something my change but never getting it. As I grew up they always told me that in order to get something I would have to earn it, that I work for something I need, not something I want. They never gave me false hope, most of the time my father would tell me to just deal with it or stop complaining, that that's how life is. As I grew up my father would tell me that maybe I would have to take care of the family, and to make sure that I would work harder than he would. Nothing would ever change that mentality all of us have, being Mexican and all. The meals we have in my opinion has no effect on me, only the culture my parents had.