New appreciation found for hometown

I guess you could say I've been a bad Brownsvillian. Four years ago I zoomed down Interstate 37, headed for college at Texas State University in San Marcos, and never looked back. I was beyond ecstatic to finally be leaving the grasps of the Rio Grande Valley, especially Brownsville, and experience a completely different environment where "Spanglish" wasn't the native tongue and where taquerias couldn't be found on every corner.

I thrived up at college, savoring the change of scenery and lifestyle. I was nestled in the Central Texas Hill Country and appeared to be quite at ease floating the Guadalupe and shopping at the outlet mall. I quickly forgot about my far away hometown while I traded resacas for rivers and Mexican food for barbecue. Whenever anyone asked me where I was from, I grudgingly responded with, "Brownsville," very quietly and always felt a little self-conscious.

Being a Brownsvillehater definitely developed in high school. My friends and I would constantly whine about the lack of activities and places to go on the weekends. Aside from the occasional rebellious adventures to Matamoros, we usually ended up going out to dinner, watching movies, or hanging out at someone's house. All the while we complained about our monotonous, uneventful town, wishing we lived in a shinier and brighter city.

A last-minute decision to decline an internship opportunity in Dallas caused me to quickly regroup and assess how I would spend my now wide-open summer. Apprehensively, I decided to come back home. Worried I would spend the entire summer watching trashy TV and eating fried foods, I took a chance and applied to be an intern at The Brownsville Herald. Luckily, they called me back and I quickly began working as a reporter, grateful I wouldn't be bored out of my mind making a dent in the couch.

I was assigned to write mostly for the Life & Arts and Scoop sections, which overjoyed me since I never truly saw myself as a hard, cutting-edge investigative reporter. My new job entailed having to do lots of things I would never normally do.

I attended art exhibitions at various galleries and museums in town and interviewed interesting people like Yolanda Gonzalez and Don Breeden. I got to re-visit the Gladys Porter Zoo, ghost hunt the spirits who linger around Fort Brown and the Old City Cemetery and check out hip, local bands.

I also met a lot of fresh faces who encouraged me to actually explore the city I had neglected and ignored for so many years.

As time went by I found myself having a truly pleasurable summer and discovered a side of Brownsville I had never really seen; or more importantly, a side I had never really allowed myself to see before. The city revealed to me her unique Tex-Mex culture, festive and eccentric traditions and myriad localized, rare restaurants and spots like Rutledge, Michoacana, El Cid and the Alonzo Building.

This newfound love for my hometown sprang upon me when I was walking downtown with my mom researching a story I planned to write about the ropa usada stores available for fashionistas. Under the blaring sun I glanced around at some elderly ladies munching on pan dulce at the bus stop while a young Hispanic man played guitar on the street corner. At that moment I felt completely immersed in the unique Brownsville culture and a sense of intense pride surfaced.

I will no longer be ashamed or embarrassed to say I'm from Brownsville when people ask where I'm from. That sense of dread or nervousness I always carried whenever I thought of returning home is gone. This summer and job opportunity made me appreciative and feel fortunate to have grown up in such a distinctive, colorful place that definitely helped shape the person I am today. I now choose to focus on the extraordinary characteristics of the city I always took for granted before: Charro Days, raspa stands, palm trees and flautas.

I graduate in December and as I prepare to embark on my journey in the real world, I am clueless as to where life will take me. I don't know what I'll be doing and I don't know where I'll be, but I'll know exactly where I came from.

Cassandra Delgado is a senior at Texas State University and a Brownsville native.