Portera, Selina

Hi, I'm Selina.

I'm a fourth year Anthropology major and a transfer from Moorpark College. I was born in downtown LA, and I grew up in Korea Town, East LA, Compton, Long Beach, the San Gabriel Valley, the South Bay (El Segundo), Atlanta, San Francisco, and San Jose. I've been in diverse, as well as not so diverse settings during my entire school experience. I'm a free spirit, but unlike other free spirits that I know, I'm a terrible artist (so far). Also, I wanted to take this class to be more connected to my heritage.

My dad is from Mexico and I grew up getting to visit his "Pueblo Mágico" at least once every other year. His small town is tight-knit, and it was always an incredible experience to be out of my element and in such a different setting than what I've known here in CA. I am a first generation college student; after having taken a huge break from school after HS graduation.

My exposure to La Virgen came mostly from my paternal grandmother during my visits to Mexico over Christmas holidays. She walked to church every single day at dawn and kept a Virgin statue on her night stand. She would pray with a rosary every time she sent us off to the airport to come back home.

My mother went through a short religious phase where she brought the Virgin into our house and we'd go to catholic mass. Still, no one had ever explained the Virgin's story to me. I remember resenting being in church and having a cast of all-males standing on a platform looking down and preaching to me. It never felt right. This is where they worshiped the Virgin, so for a long time, I resented her too.

Today, I'd consider myself somewhat culturally Catholic since I had both of my children baptized. I wanted to keep family tradition and their roots to Mexico alive.

One more thing: On Wednesday after our lecture, I took a shortcut through traffic to get my son to soccer practice on time. I drove through a neighborhood in my town that is slightly isolated. At one of the stops, I looked to my right side and saw this Virgin mural painted on the side of a house. I was pleasantly surprised considering that it was something I'd never expect to see where I live (Simi Valley), and I had just left a lecture dedicated to her.