After reading the introduction of the book, America, América, by Greg Grandin, I’m left wondering if all my knowledge and interests, ranging from American history, Mexican history, Latin American history, Catholicism, and all of their notable figures, were a precursor for understanding all of it not as fragmented parts but as an inevitable whole.
That somehow, someway, all of my past knowledge, identities, and experiences have led to this. And perhaps once I finish the large 600+ page book, the question will be posed:
Am I ready to play the role that is asked of me?
It won’t be easy, nor will I get to see my vision come to fruition in this lifetime, but, like my predecessors of both the English and Spanish America, as an American born to Mexican parents and as a translator of both worlds that make up the idea of America, I must play my role for the future of the New World— so that they aren’t disrupted by the problems of the past and can focus wholly on the issues of the future.
I don’t know exactly what my role is. But I believe possibilities will reveal themselves as I continue reading, and as I keep working on the projects that guide me toward my North Star.