There's eight,nine, look there's another one. Every time I go to Mexico, I see so many Border Patrols. In the town where I live, we never see any. I have never really gone to Mexico for any other reason than to go and party. Now that I am older, I realize that there is so much more in crossing the border than just paying twenty-five cents. To me the Mexican/American border represents change. The change that particularly strikes me is the change in how Mexicans look and Mexican-Americans look. I am Mexican-American. The people that I see in Mexico are my people.

Why is it then when I go to Mexico and see these people that live along the border, they make me feel uncomfortable? I walk right by them and try not to even look into their eyes. I think to myself, how can they live like this? They wear clothes that don't fit them and have holes. I know not all of the people from Mexico are not like this because one of my roommates is from Monterey, Mexico. Her family is well off though. I asked her what most of Mexico is like. Is it like the people you see along the border or the people that live deeper into Mexico? To her the whole country is beautiful and the people that I turn my head to are the people that she says are just having some bad luck. I feel bad for feeling the way I do, but my roommate says it OK because I am an American. If I lived in a border town, perhaps I would be more adjusted and used to the environment. But, I am from a town near San Antonio where even the poor people are doing pretty good. As I travel further south the changes from America to Mexico increase. Most of the change starts when I pass a town named Cotulla. Some of the people from my home town won't even go that far south because of the change. As I pass Cotulla, the number of Border Patrols begins to increase and the number DPS Troopers begin to increase. You see more vehicles on the highway with Mexico license plates. The land along the highway becomes less urban and more rural. There is nothing along the road except cacti, grass and trees. As I near Laredo, I see buildings, a mall, and houses. This is it. The border is within actual feet from me. The bridge is full of Mexicans and Americans, people walking and people driving. Each wanting to experience the change, whether its just for the day or to try and make it permanent.

There are people that want to leave Mexico permanently, but they are often discouraged. The constant change is happening everyday. The border is always there. Not too many people are affected by it unless they are crossing it. To me, the border is simply a change and a border. It is a border that Mexicans are discouraged to cross. If they do cross the Mexican/American border, there are still the borders of the Border Patrols that they must pass. When Americans cross the border to Mexico, they are going to visit and have a good time for less money. When Mexicans cross the border to America, they are coming to feel the change, the choices, the freedom. I don't really understand why the border is so tight. Maybe it's because of fear to make permanent changes. But the changes are obvious when you cross the border. The changes are noticeable whenever I head south to the border.