It was in middle school that I really first started learning U.S. history and civics. One thing that stood out to me was everyone had their own culture but everyone held the same values.

The funny thing about my situation is that after many different processes, my parents were able to become U.S. citizens. Most of my siblings also became U.S. citizens. And I’m the one who’s been left out.

My family lives in Florida. I visit them once or twice a year. I always go back home for the special holidays like Christmas. We do the Columbian style Novena, where nine days before Christmas we read the story of Joseph and Mary and how they traveled through Nazareth to find a place to give birth to baby Jesus. It’s nice family time we spend together, singing songs and making Colombian meals.

DACA should not be a permanent program. However, it should be a step toward a solution.

If the plan is just to strip us of our DACA status, it’s not a fair thing for us given that the past 5 years we’ve demonstrated we are contributing to society. DACA provides the basic documents someone needs to start a career or to enroll in school. We, as DACA recipients, have shown there are gains to everyone when we can work and study.

The next step logically should be allowing us to adjust our status. There should be some pathway to citizenship based on the record we have maintained and kept.