My Life Sabor Latino

By Roberto Torres

With all the mayhem in todays society there is a must that this world has a positive role model in hip hop for all cultures.In febuary 28,2013 Sabor Latino released his first album titled "Observations of my life vol1.To be able to fullfil his mission Sabor realized that his life is more than just a song on a radio so he transcribed his life into something the people can read.Inside his book there are twelve chapters.In these twelve chapters the reader will be able to learn how to write a book,how to create a completed music cd,the value of a college education,and many more detailed experiences full of inspiration. As we all know that in this society that we are living in creating positive minds is a very difficult thing to excel at. Sabor Latinos major in pshycology and education as well as his experiences as a social worker has allowed him to trully see the importance of helping other and being a role model.Since music can be used as a therapy,it is also a powerful tool when it comes to coping with challenges of all magnitudes.In summary, you will be able to understand that nothing in life is easy but as long as you work hard you will be able to have success.The legacy of Sabor Latino will live for ever as his album and book are the blueprints left to many more generations to come.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Dec 15, 2014
• ISBN: 9781631925344

Book preview

Introduction

I decided to write this book in order to motivate individuals in continuing in the right path of life. As most of us are aware, we all make mistakes in life. We are all capable of making wrong decisions; the point is to learn from our mistakes in order to never commit them again. We need to teach the ones in need of our learning our observations, because we are living in a world where a lot of clarity does not exist. Many individuals have lost hope in their dreams. They have let the system dictate their decisions in life. It is extremely important to believe in yourself and never let anyone tell you that you cannot be successful. My book Sabor Latino: My Life will allow everyone to see what my life has been beginning from childhood. The 12 observations in my book are crucial to the learning process and development of youth of today. We all need love and leadership in our lives. What is the sense of having a lot of knowledge when we don’t share it with anyone? Learn to share your experiences with others, as it will help them to understand certain situations. In other words, don’t be selfish with information and learn to be honest. My book contains 12 chapters. I selected these 12 life experiences in which I truly believe will help many individuals in motivation and leadership, but more importantly to understand that life is not easy.

In order to be successful in life, one must work extremely hard. Opportunities are decreasing due to the financial crisis our country is going through, college tuition is increasing, and the job market is becoming a nightmare. We need to stay focused on what is really important in life. The choices we make today determine our future.

One of the things lacking in our neighborhoods is leadership. How do we expect our children to do well in school when some of the schoolteachers are not truly qualified to teach? How do we expect our children to be active when a lot of the recreation programs are being diminished due to financial situations in New York City? Society puts so much pressure on children and youths to be successful, but most of the time we don’t even support them. We expect excellence in the classroom, but the reality is that not enough love is given to all the children of the world.

We need to understand that all children are tomorrow’s future. When we teach them with dignity they learn motivation. When we teach them with clarity we open their hearts to new horizons. When we teach with love they become productive members of society. When we work together as a unit we will change the world for the better. It all starts by taking full responsibility for our own actions.

A child’s identity begins to grow from what he learns at home. We need to be good parents to our children. We need to love our children unconditionally. We need to understand that the most important thing in life is creating positive minds. It all starts at home. Children learn from observations, just like I did when I was growing up. Everything that went on at my home was a learning experience. I thank God everyday for blessing me with good parents that understood the basic necessities a child needs. For example, kids need love, time, support, and understanding, but more importantly a parent’s presence at all times. Let’s always remember that we are responsible for our children’s development in the future.

Sabor Latino: My Life the book will teach you about relationships, the value of a college education, my time as a social worker, recreation for happiness, and many other interesting observations. Being a college graduate with a bachelor’s degree in education and minor in psychology has taught me that in order to motivate individuals in general, it is important to begin by having a positive blue print that has a strategic plan for success. For example, if an individual is writing a book, the book needs to be explained clearly in order for everyone to understand and learn from the book. The same concept goes for a music artist. The lyrics have to be clear in order for the creation to inspire any soul. Teaching takes patience, motivation, and leadership skills, but most importantly it takes dedication. To be a good leader you have to understand your purpose in life. You have to respect everybody’s opinions, values, and points of view.

In conclusion, change starts with believing in yourself. If you believe you can be successful, you will become successful. The point is that life is short. The best reward in life at the end is feeling satisfied and content with all your accomplishments and decisions. Use me as an example—it does not matter where you come from, or what nationality you are, because dreams can become a reality. My dream was to one day become a recording artist and to publish my own book. Today in my life I present to you my album titled Observations of My Life Vol. 1 and my book Sabor Latino: My Life. I hope my album and book can help everyone to continue on the right path in life. Always strive to do better and never give up on your dreams. God bless and stay positive.

Love,

Sabor Latino

Chapter 1

Early Childhood

My memories as a child growing up in Jamaica in southeastern Queens, New York will never be forgotten. It all started when my mom, dad, older brother Carlos, and I first arrived from Puerto Rico in the early 1980s. My parents decided to reside in a small apartment in southeast Queens. I recall only being five years old. My brother was 2 years older. As we settled in our new apartment in the winter season we all had to get accustomed to a new environment. Coming from a hot environment in Puerto Rico, NYC seemed intimidating. Everything in my small eyes seemed weird. The only thing that made sense was being around my family. My brother seemed a bit lost as well. As for my parents’ point of view, this new journey was a life changing experience for the better of our family. The only question that remained in my parents’ minds at this point was where our financial revenue would come from. As my parents created a strategic plan on how to create revenue, a job search was the final option. My father instantly recognized that without any college education, finding a career job would be very difficult. In the meantime my father found work at a pizzeria. My mother decided on working at a factory as a seamstress. My dad worked 50 hours a week while my mother worked 40 hours a week. After the two paychecks were added together, the total amount weekly profit was not even $300. Individuals may ask themselves, How do you support a family with this kind of weekly revenue? This is why I have so much respect for my parents. Even though life seemed difficult, they never gave up on their dream to one day own their own home. As the years went by their salaries eventually became a little better. Even so, we were still barely getting by. My parents’ main concern was to make sure that even though we were struggling, we still were able to have a positive outlook on life. As time moved on, my brother and I became closer. We each started to realize that all we had was each other. To occupy our time we would play all day long, or watch television together. We were best friends.

One interesting thing about my early childhood was that my father’s brother, Uncle Louie, lived right next to us with his wife, Aunty Yoly, and my four cousins, Elizabeth, Luisa, Osvaldo, and Ingrid. They all had good hearts. My uncle Louie was a trip. He had so many stories about Puerto Rico; he could go on for days explaining them. Aunty Yoly was special. I would always go next door to see how things were going. My cousin Eli was so interesting. She was always very motivated to do well in life. Her beautiful heart is what makes her so unique. She would go out of her way to help anyone. As for my little cousin Luisa, she was special as well. Even though she was always quiet, her eyes showed that she was going to be an inspiration one day. My cousin Osvaldo was a great man. He was always full of energy. Once he joined the Marines he became an even better man. Down the road he married a great person named Emily. They made a great couple. My cousin Ingrid was special as well. She always had a huge smile in her face.

One of the biggest concerns my parents had was where to register us kids for school. Eventually, my parents decided to send my brother and me to Public School 95 (PS95) in Queens, New York. I must say that was quite an experience. I felt a little bit lost my first time in class with so many different students. My homeroom teacher, Ms. Virzi, made it so much easier. She would always ask me, Are you okay, Robert? I would always answer her with a smile, replying, Si. Ms. Virzi was a great teacher. She was very motivating, but more importantly she had a lot of patience. As many of us know, dealing with children can be very overwhelming. The interesting thing about being in this public school was that I was in bilingual classes. This benefit truly allowed me to excel as a student because some of the teachers spoke two languages. Even though I was the shy type, I always got my point across. Everyday going to PS95 was a tremendous challenge, learning English, math, reading, and how can I forget art class?

Time passed by quickly, and third and fourth grade became easier to handle. Even though I wasn’t the greatest student, I was able to pass my classes. Slowly I started realizing that school is a cool place to be; I met so many good friends and teachers. Before I knew it, fifth grade was right around the corner. During all this time my brother was doing his thing as well. He managed to pass all his classes and graduate from PS95.

As for me, fifth grade was also a good experience. Each class that I passed I became more confident in school, and slowly started to realize the value of education. School gave me motivation, dedication, and most importantly, a positive attitude. I made sure my homework was completed before I went to bed each night. Math was always a subject that really didn’t motivate me. I did the best I could. At the end of it all I passed the class.

Overall, elementary school was interesting. I learned a lot until June finally came around. All my classes were passed with good grades and my parents were proud of me. Then graduation day arrived. My parents, brother, and Ms. Virzi were present. When the graduation ceremony was over we all took pictures together. PS95 will always be an important part if my life, and I will always cherish the great memories I had there. I will always be thankful to Ms. Virzi for helping me become a better student.

As I looked forward to summertime, I began to look for a sport of my liking. One day as I was walking home I noticed some young guys playing basketball. As I stood by the gate, I began to see how they played the game. After they were finished, I ask one of the guys if I could shoot around for a little bit. He passed me his basketball and said, Go for it. I started to dribble the basketball and there was something special about the sound of the ball bouncing off the ground. I dribbled to the rim, and for the first time I took a shot. Even though I missed, I continued to shoot. The guys on the court were so tired from playing all day that I took advantage of the time and made the best of it. As I was walking back home, deep down in my heart in fell in love with the game of basketball. I promised myself that that summer was going to be dedicated to becoming a better basketball player.

As time went on, the more I played, the more I felt complete inside. As my neighborhood continued to get worse due to drug activity, violence, and criminal activity, I felt that I needed an escape to get away from it all. That summer I also fell in love with poetry. At night I used to write about everything I was experiencing. As I started to show my basketball friends my talent in poetry, many of them used to say to me that the poems were very good and emotional. Now I had two ways to deal with my emotions; if I wasn’t writing poems or music I was in the park playing basketball.

That summer was also special because I got my first time pet, my dog. One of the guys from the building a few blocks away from my home was giving away a puppy. One day he saw me walking home and offered it to me. As soon as I saw him I knew that was going to be my best friend. He was a male German Sheppard mixed with Dobie, only two months old. I took him home and named him King. At first my parents said they did not want an animal at the house, but as time went on everyone at my home fell in love with King. He was adorable. He had a big face, paws, and body, and was black and light tan in color. In six months, he was one of the biggest dogs in the neighborhood. Everyone knew King. Every night you can hear him bark in the backyard. No one would dare try to jump the backyard fence because they knew we had a large dog back there. At times, I would even take him with me to the park to play basketball. Little by little, I started training him to sit, fetch, and bark. In three months King was trained. He became a legend in our neighborhood.

That summer was one of the best summers in my life. I understood the value of having a pet. In addition, I found basketball as a way to relieve stress and learn to communicate with others. Also, I found poetry and writing as another way to cope with my emotions. Things seemed to be heading in the right direction. My father decided to apply for a position as a paraprofessional for the Board of Education. If he landed this job we would all have medical coverage, and would be able to see my dad more often since he wouldn’t have to work as many hours. Time would tell if he was granted the position, as this process took some time.

Chapter 2

Entering Junior High School

My parents decided to register me at junior high school I.S. 238 in Queens. This was my zone school. As my father was hoping for a career change, I was hoping for an opportunity to try out for the school basketball team. I was confident I could make the team. I knew I was prepared because I had worked so hard this past summer on my game. Deep down inside, I knew that this was just the beginning of what was to come in the future as a student athlete. I knew that school and basketball was a winning tool that I can use to better my life.

The time had arrived when school would begin in one week. As the end of the week approached, I became more and more excited about this new chapter in my life. That weekend, my mother took me school shopping. We went to the famous Jamaica Avenue. We hit the VIM store for some sneakers, jeans, and a couple of hooded jerseys. Our next destination was the 99-cent store for school supplies. We even picked up a book bag at Models with a couple of hats. Within a few hours, I was all set. My mom even took me to McDonald’s for some burgers and fries and a small diet Coke. As I was sitting in McDonald’s with my mom, I thanked her for her generosity. Her only words were, Please do the best you can in school.

I woke up the next morning at 6 a.m. and took a nice, hot shower. It was then I began to feel a little nervous because this was my first day at a new school. A new adventure was about to begin. While I was getting dressed, I could smell my mother’s oatmeal. Corn oatmeal had always been my favorite. As I walked into the kitchen and said hello to my parents, my mother said, Your oatmeal is ready. I replied, Thanks, Mom. Good morning. In ten minutes my oatmeal was finished. When it was time to leave, I told my parents to have a nice day, and they replied, You too.

As I start walking down my block to school, I could see other students walking to school as well. I followed behind quietly. In the back of my mind, I was saying to myself, This will be my walk to school for the next three years. As I reached my destination, I.S. 238, I took a deep breath before walking inside. Once inside, a public safety officer asked