America Part 2

I was born in Quito, Ecuador, in the 1990s. In 2001, my mother moved my sisters and me to the USA. As a child, I experienced culture shock and often felt confused. One example is my relationship with numbers—I used to say it changed when no one explained the switch from the metric system to the imperial system. Ever since, numbers have felt challenging for me. Now, as an adult, I am taking responsibility for having a better relationship with numbers.

When I was an enlisted Soldier in the US Army, many people would ask me where my last name “Guayanay” is from. I would say it's Spanish. I remember this day clearly, it was a non commissioned officer, E-5 sergeant type who wrote the time on the board 17:05 rather than 1700. I was taught in the service, how you do the little things, is how you do the big things. I was taught to be observant. 

Little did I know, by saying this to him I was denying the truth of my last name due my ignorance of my own culture, because this information is not taught. I got out of the service and understood a little more. I had more time to understand myself.

I have a native last name. In my observation, many people that are mixed or "Mestizo". Mestizo is European mixed with Indigenous, are not proud of their native last name and hide their indigenous last names because of what I perceive as racism in Ecuador and seeing the indigenous as less.

Someone in my own family once felt embarrassed by my last name, this was the beginning of my journey. There’s so much more I could say about this, but I also know that stories unfold best in their own time. So, I’ll leave it here for now—until next time!