My dear and precious home country, I thank you and everything and everyone you represent and are home to, for the person I’ve grown up to become and for the person I dream of becoming, for my family, my friends, my memories, your foods, your environments, your richness, your architecture, your treasures, your landmarks, your resources, and much, much more.
It’s because of you that I strive to be an enviable ambassador of all that you’re about because let’s face it: people only have a sh**ty view of you. So I want to break all those stereotypes and show them that Colombia’s one of those places they won’t want to miss out on. You deserve it, after all. You rock, therefore we rock.
(Wouldn’t it be cool if I actually became your real-life ambassador at some point though? Just a thought. You’d love it!)
So today, on your 202nd birthday (woohoo!!) I promise I’ll keep fighting to achieve my highest potential. You know the U.S. has become my home too, but you have nothing to be jealous about, I promise. In fact, as I wrote recently,
… Colombia, to me, will also forever be the place that I first called “home.” Just watch me any time there’s a Colombian artist on TV showing the world what our country is capable of; I guarantee you I’ll be bawling. Same happens when I see Colombian athletes during televised Olympics specials (can’t wait for London’s upcoming Opening Ceremony!). MANY of the friends and relatives I grew up with still live there, and although I haven’t been back in almost ten years, I still feel the pull of my home. It’s a lovely country full of an unimaginable amount of natural resources. It’s not a superpower, but it sure is a mighty power within Latin America. And it’s mi hogar.
See? ; )
Today is a holiday for you, obviously, but not for me. So enjoy it (responsibly) on my behalf and I love you! I wish you many, many blessings and many more centuries of health!