Melissa Guadarrama Reflection

Melissa Guadarrama was 16 years old when she found out that she was pregnant, at her local police station, in Elmwood Park. She had not been home for days, which caused her family to worry about her whereabouts, which resulted in them calling the police. She was brought to the station and didn’t know any excuse other than to tell the officers that she ran away because she was pregnant. This was just a lie that she told to get pity from the officers, little did Melissa know that during this time she was two months pregnant, she blew up in laughter when she found out because she thought it was a joke.
Before Melissa found out that she was pregnant, she wouldn’t show up for school, she was constantly around bad influences. When talking about
Melissa decided to distance herself from the people that negatively affected her life so that Matthew can grow up in a happy and safe environment. The father was no longer present, but his absence was a reflection on the sacrifices that Melissa would endure in order to protect her child. Her family needed to get along and communicate more so that whenever Melissa needed the extra help they were available. During the pregnancy, Melissa finished school online and graduated a year earlier than her classmates. She also got her first job working at her local Walgreens, which helped her be more responsible with her money. Her mindset was different during and after her pregnancy because she learned to put her son before
It was snowing that morning but the job of being a mom never ends. As I walk to the front door of her home, she comes to the door and lets me in, greeting me as usual. She takes my coat as I follow her to the kitchen, where she is trying to feed Matthew a bowl of rice as he runs around the kitchen with his toys. She starts to call out “Matthew!” every time that he leaves the kitchen, I can tell that she is juggling too many things at a time because while she is still trying to feed him, she is also serving herself some rice and tortillas so that she can eat. Matthew is currently two years old, but he calls Melissa by her first name, “Mesa” he says as he asks for something to drink. When I asked why he doesn’t call her mom, she said “he calls me mama whenever he wants me to hold him, its normal to me now,” Melissa says as she is sitting herself down in the dining room where the rest of her family is at, her mom was the one end across from her, which was next to her father. Her older sister and younger brother both took Matthew’s high chair and sat him with all of us. Melissa is now eating without having to worry about her son going around the house with no supervision as to what he is doing. The family start talking about their plans for the day, Melissa tells the family that Matthew’s aunt wants to take him out to the museum, the rest of her family starts to tell her no because of the flu that has