Guadalupe Vargas

One word to describe my mom is “fighter”. For as long as I can remember she has been a fighter. She had always had an unfair share of hardship yet she has faced each and every challenge with dignity, strength, and above all, faith. She was born in Mexico on October 27, 1974. They were a large family and while they were well off they were never rich. She was taught humility and modesty at a very young age. She came to America when she was just sixteen years old. She began her freshman year of high school not knowing a single word of English. In time she managed to overcome that obstacle as she did all others and became a top student, especially in math. She graduated high school in 1995 and began taking Child Development classes at Palomar College in the fall; her dream was to become an elementary school teacher. Her higher education would be put on hold however with the arrival of a baby girl, me. She and my father decided to get married and start their family after this, both were nineteen years old. My mom had always planned to return to school when I was older but she would never get that opportunity again. They got a divorce three years later and she became a single mother. She had to work much harder now although she didn’t mind it in the slightest. She did everything for me. I was her motivation to live and succeed in life. She was my best friend and I was hers. When I was nine years old my mom was in a relationship with a man that resulted in the arrival of my brother David. Unfortunately this man did not want anything to do with his son so the relationship ended there. At the same time, my grandparents came to live with us from Mexico. The whole time she was pregnant she worked full time to provide for her new extended family. She even gave up her bedroom for her elderly parents and came to sleep with me in my room. She did all of these things with the greatest happiness and with much love. She had the biggest heart that I have ever seen in anyone. My grandparents were here for a little over a year before returning to Mexico. In the short time that they were here, they had everything they needed at all times. My sickly grandmother got much better while she was here. My mom had the ability to motivate people to live and live happily. She was a great woman. Two years later she began a relationship with my future sister’s father. That lasted three years and resulted in the birth of my little sister. They had been planning to get married but mistakes in his past caught up with him and unfortunately, he went to prison. When this happened my mom was unemployed due to a back injury she received at work. She was forced to find a job immediately in order to provide for all of us. With that fighter instinct that she always had, she fought against the odds until she found a job delivering newspaper for the North County Times. The expenses for three young children and herself were greater than the income from the paper route and she decided she had to get another full time job. She was hired as a cook for KFC and eventually, through hard work and determination, was promoted to shift manager. These two jobs she held until the day she passed away. The day she died, she was leaving the Union Tribune warehouse in San Marcos and was on her way back to Escondido to begin delivering her paper when she was crashed into by a wrong way driver who was committing suicide. Unfortunately she died a few minutes later. She was only 38 years old. My mom was an amazing woman, always so full of life with a contagious laughter and wonderful smile. She was a very kind woman and always thought of everyone but herself until the day she died. Heaven gained another angel when she died. We all know that she deserved heaven, and I know that one day I’ll see her again there.