Gallery • 8 Photos

Maya Contreras

Pedro Perez takes in the sun of the evening, while he watches his two grandsons play football in the backyard and has a conversation with his granddaughters. On Oct. 13th, 2009, Perez walked outside to partake in one of his favorite activities, sitting on his patio. “Throw the ball farther,” he shouted to his grandsons. “Step away so you don’t hit me. I have to look good for this photo.”

Pedro Perez, my grandpa, is an inspiring, thoughtful and humorous individual – always ready with a comment for every possible conversation. With 433 miles in between us, it is those sarcastic comments that I find myself missing from time to time.

Born in Robstown, Texas, my grandpa always worked for everything he has today. At the age of 7, he started work in the fields, picking cotton, onions, cherries and sugar beets to help provide for his family. His days started at sunrise, and he picked until sunset. His memories from his youth consist of “hard labor.”

“When it rained outside, it rained more inside the house,” he said when talking about his childhood home. “I remember my mom put buckets all around the house.”

At the age of 14, my grandpa and his family packed their belongings and headed for Michigan to pick cherries. As migrant workers, they traveled where they could make money and stayed until the season was over before they could return home. While in Michigan, my grandpa and his six siblings lived in a barn near the cherry field. When there was spare money, they would go to the convenience store on the weekends and buy candy and soda for a movie. Soon after, he would finish his education at Robstown High School during the 10th grade by getting his GED. From here until the army, he got a job and “learned mechanics in the work” he was doing.

At the age of 20, my grandpa decided he “wasn’t learning anything with his grandpa in the fields,” so he decided to go into the army “to learn something different.” He served in the army for two years and earned the rank 1st class specialist.

After his time in the army, he went to work in the county and then got married to my grandma, Aurora Perez. Later he went to work for Goodyear for 10 years. Then he headed to the Texaco Warehouse as a truck driver for 12 years, driving petroleum and gasoline. He ended his work career back again at the county as an equipment operator. Today he spends his time fixing lawnmowers and tractors right in the backyard of the home he built for his family.

My grandpa has always taught his children – and grandchildren – about hard work and being brave. His story demonstrates everything he believes in and carries throughout his life. As a migrant worker, it is hard to tell yourself to be brave when you are constantly in an uncontrollable state and never know what the next day will bring. One of the greatest things I admire about my grandpa is his ability to maintain a positive attitude even after all the hardships he has had to overcome.

My grandpa is one of my biggest supporters and fans of my art. He has inspired many of my best pieces and continues to encourage me to pursue my skills. It is through his love and support that I continue to push myself and find joy in the art I create. His love tells me that he hopes I can have everything I have ever wanted – and that I have the ability to do so.

There is no doubt I can say my grandpa is one of my best friends. He is my rock, my inspiration, and my photography model. Even from miles away, he continues to encourage me to stand up for myself and to be me. His humor is one of his greatest strengths, and it is his jokes that I find myself uncontrollably laughing alongside him.