The Mango Tree in my Canoe

ABSTRACT

The author explores her own immigration story from Colombia to the United States, starting with the political context and influences related to her move eighteen years ago. She explores how she and her feelings have changed in the course of this experience.

KEY WORDS:

• acculturation
• color
• Colombia
• culture
• drug cartels
• guerilla groups
• immigration
• Pedro Ruiz
• poverty
• US involvement in Latin America

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Natalia El-Sheikh

Natalia El-Sheikh, MFT, is a licensed marriage and family therapist with a private practice in Castro Valley, California, where she sees children and adults. She graduated in 2006 with a master’s in counseling psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute and is currently a candidate at the San Francisco C. G. Jung Institute. She loves traveling with her family and learning about different cultures and is interested in how immigration shapes and guides the process of individuation in her patients. Correspondence: [email protected].