Journal Article — The Quinceñera Rising: Self-Discoveries on the Heels of City and Rural Town — by Krystle Santana

When a Hispanic young lady turns fifteen, there is usually a huge celebration in her honor to welcome her into adulthood. This ceremony is called the Quinceñera. After the dedication portion of the ceremony, the father of the quinceñera makes his own speech. At this time, the father switches the little girl’s white flat shoes into her white high heels. When I became a teenager, I was living in Revere, Massachusetts. With much of my family in Boston, I was mainly raised in the heart of the state. However, in the middle of my adolescence, at the age of fifteen, I was moved out of Massachusetts, to Franklin, New Hampshire, where my whole life changed. Everything I once knew and understood didn’t matter anymore because the country lifestyle in New Hampshire was completely different from the city. Once I had the opportunity to leave New Hampshire, I took it. I am a city girl to the core, and the rural atmosphere was never adequate. However, after reflecting on how different my life in Massachusetts and New Hampshire was, I see that there were many benefits to living in New Hampshire. In this article, using various sociological concepts, theories, and literature in the sociology of youth, I explore how I grew, and continue to grow, on the heels of my experiences of living in both the city and the rural town.