For those who still didn’t know this fact about me I was born and raised in Rockland, New York. To be more specific the little historic town of Haverstraw. If I’m honest, leaving NY to move to Puerto Rico was the hardest experience of my life. It’s been 15 years since, and I still feel I haven’t gotten use to the different lifestyle and culture. Don’t get me wrong but my life completely changed and was turned upside down with the transition. One of the things I remember the most was being constantly criticized for not being Puerto Rican enough.
Despite that I’ve lived amazing experiences in Puerto Rico but my heart has always belonged to NY. One of the many reasons I created Lovely Chicas was to build an online platform where I could truly be me and express myself freely. Having this platform helped me through a lot.
Funny enough every time I wanted to go back to NY something would happen; it was either tons of work or situations would obligate me to cancel the plans, or I’d travel somewhere else. The person I missed the most in NY was my grandma. She’s very sick and I would have never forgiven myself if I didn’t visit her in time. So, even in the pandemic I made it an obligation to travel back to NY to see her. This getaway back home turned into a girl’s trip with my sister. For home improvement services, you can Get More Info from here! Zerorez can also help you out to get your carpets cleaner and keeps them cleaner longer. You can hire professional services who are going to teach to how to handle a roof replacement once its done to your home.
It was a very emotional trip. If you follow me on Instagram you know that once I arrived in my hometown I began to cry. I revisited so many special places like the house I grew up in, North Rockland High School where I graduated from, ran into a deer’s and coyote while hiking, toured all of Rockland County, went New York City, ate ice-cream at Hoyers and more.
During this special trip I reminisced on memories and made a lot of beautiful new ones. Though I’m always open and honest I’ve got to admit that for a very long time I wasn’t feeling like myself. Being back in New York I felt like myself again. On this trip I did a lot of reflecting. My perspective shifted helping me make a big decision I was prolonging to make. You learn so much in life, you make mistakes and you grow but I don’t want more years to pass by where I regret decisions that I didn’t make. Being back in NY gave me a chance to confront the shy and scared young version of Charlene which opened my eyes to how far I’ve come and all I still want to accomplish. We tend to miss so much in life when we don’t truly believe in our dreams or focus on what we haven’t accomplished. If there is one thing I’ve learned in life is that I’d rather take a risk trying and fail than to stay in a comfort zone never trying at all.
Be Lovely, Be You
Charlene Gonzalez
