A few months ago I was walking to a meeting in Midtown, NYC and saw a coffee truck with some tables. Always up for trying new coffee and with Spring in the air, I decided to sit down and enjoy a cup of joe.

Sipping my coffee and taking in my surroundings, I saw a 12 year old boy who was on a class trip. He was being bullied by his classmates and he just lost it and started crying. His mother, one of the chaperones on the trip, took him aside. Seeing an open seat at my table she asked if he could sit down and I said of course. I gave him my napkins so he could wipe away his tears while she consoled him in Spanish and he slowly calmed down.

When my newfound friend’s mother walked over to the other chaperones to explain the situation, I learned that his Mom came to this country as a single mother trying to make it in this land of opportunity. He told me that he was embarrassed to have his immigrant mother on the trip as she was so different from the other mothers, and his friends were making fun of her accent.

Being the child of an immigrant parent myself, I shared my own struggles with my immigrant father. I was often embarrassed by my father’s use of the English language and I can never forget how I dreaded seeing him constantly losing his temper at what I would call “cultural misunderstandings.” Before my little league games, he would receive personal warnings from the umpire due to his past outbursts. It was hard, but ultimately this made me stronger. My loving father meant well, and he was so thankful to be in this country. That appreciation for the United States carried over to me and now to my children. America is great, has always been great, and despite the current high levels of anti semitism, I am so thankful to be a Jew in this amazing country.  

I told this boy to be strong and ignore the negativity. Having immigrant parents is sometimes challenging when you want to fit in, but I could see his Mom is resilient, caring and well meaning. This country has a lot of great people in it if you just drown out the noise.

He smiled, thanked me, and went back to his group.

Happy Fourth of July!