Embracing Your Bicultural Identity and Writing Your Own Story

Sylvia Gallardo: I had met my best friend in first grade, so we had been friends for three years. We were playing in her backyard on her swings and she goes, Sylvia, I have a confession. And I’m thinking like, what are you going to say? And she goes, this whole time I thought you were Mexican. It’s so diverse. Even though we share so many similarities. And so that’s what this story is about, is just embracing the shared similarities, but then also honoring my family’s roots, claiming both cultures. When I read a book to a kid, you know, who’s from India or Ethiopia or Puerto Rico and they see their culture on the page like they see either the food or like something about the music or the way they dress. Their eyes light up. I think back, like when I was growing up in elementary school, I can’t remember a teacher sharing about a bicultural kid. You know, I didn’t see that in picture books. I didn’t see Central American culture or South American culture in a picture book. It wasn’t until probably 6 or 7 years ago, and I and I was just like, I think it healed a part of me, you know, because I’m like, oh my gosh, this is, this is out here. But you know, why is it not, you know, available at a bookstore? That is the urgency.

 

Andrea Diaz: Hola and welcome back to the Latina Leadership Podcast. I’m your host, Andrea Diaz. And in today’s episode, we’re sitting down with Sylvia Gallardo, an educator, author, and proud daughter of immigrants. She spent nearly two decades in the classroom supporting multilingual learners. And now she’s about to release her bilingual picture book. I am from aquí and alla, we talk about growing up between two worlds, why representation in children’s literature matters, and what it means to finally see yourself in story. So let’s head to the conversation.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Hi, Andrea. My name is Sylvia Gallardo and I am an educator. I’ve been in education for 18 years and I am writing my first children’s picture book, called I am From aqui and allá. So I’m excited to be here. Thank you so much for this opportunity to share my writing journey and to share what it’s been like. You know, just throughout the whole process.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah, I’m super excited, especially, you know, seeing your background and seeing everything you’ve done to get to your book. And, you know, you mentioned your upcoming book is titled I Am aqui. I am from aqui and allá. And can you share what inspired you to write it and why telling this story feels so urgent?

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yes. So I, my dad immigrated from Ecuador when he was 19 years old, and my mom, she immigrated from Salvador when she was about 18. And so they met in New York, actually in an ESL class. So which is really neat because it’s kind of, you know, fast forward now, I’m an ESL teacher. So, they met and, you know, years later, I was born and my dad’s first job was in Juarez, Mexico. And so we moved to the border city of El Paso. And if anyone has ever been to El Paso as or talk to somebody from El Paso, we are very proud to be from El Paso. And it has such a rich Mexican culture. Right? So growing up there, having two different cultures at home and then also just embracing, the culture in my city was very, very special and such a unique experience. So, you know, I would, go to school and I would hear different Spanish words, and I’d come home, and then my mom and dad would always, like, playfully debate of what Spanish word to use, because the language is, you know, it’s all Spanish, but the language is different. And just in experiencing the food, you know, my mom and my grandmother would cook Salvadoran food in the kitchen, you know, Pupusas Platanos Fritos. And then my dad constantly played Ecuadorian music. And so but then I would go out in public, you know, and, you know, we have mariachis and we have, you know, the traditions you know, of. I have a quinceanera. And so at a very early age, like, I was navigating all of these cultures, you know, and, so this is where that story was inspired by, because I at an early age, I felt, okay, I’m a part of this world. I feel very Salvadoran and I feel very Ecuadorian. Right. And so I was kind of just embracing that identity and embracing both cultures. And that’s where the title comes from. You know, I’m from here and I’m also from there. And, I think when I, when I think back about like a certain moment, I was in third grade and I had met my best friend in first grade, so we’d been friends for three years. We were playing in her backyard on her swings, and she goes, Sylvia, I have a confession. And I’m thinking, like, what are you going to say? And she goes, this whole time I thought you were Mexican. Oh my God, we we. Like, burst out laughing. We. It was such a funny moment. Right? We talk about it now and and so that’s where this, you know, this, complexity of like being Latino, right? It’s not a how can I say that? It’s like, it’s so diverse, like. Within the Latino. Community, even though we share so many similarities. And so that’s what the story is about, is just embracing the shared similarities, but then also honoring my family’s roots. Right. And claiming both cultures.

 

Andrea Diaz: No, I, I love that too. I also am part Salvadorian.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yeah.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. From my mom’s side. My dad technically is also born in El Salvador, but he most of his family’s in Mexico, so I was like the that you know that inter you know, you’re, you’re trying to fit in and then I see when you’re born here too, it can feel like that disconnected like, okay, I love my culture, but I’m also part of this culture. But how do how do I especially, you know, especially when you’re young, you feel kind of like thrown out of the loop. You’re just like, okay, like my family does this thing, but like, I have this whole different culture, you know, outside of that, like, you know, at school or, you know, hanging out with friends, sometimes you can feel like, oh, we’re like, we’re we’re kind of we’re kind of different worlds. Where do we fit in? Like where do we go?

 

Sylvia Gallardo: And I and I think that’s where the urgency came to write, you know, to write a picture book, to write a story. Because I think back, like when I was growing up in elementary school, I can’t remember a teacher sharing about a bicultural kid. You know, I didn’t see that in picture books. I didn’t see Central American culture or South American culture in a picture book. It wasn’t until probably 6 or 7 years ago where I picked up a picture book, and it was from an Ecuadorian, author, and I, and I was just like, I think it healed part of me, you know, because I’m like, oh my gosh, this is this is out here. But, you know, why is it not, you know, available at a bookstore, right? Yeah. So that so that is the urgency is to is for, you know, I guess sharing that story for other bicultural kids because it’s so common.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. You know. Community. Right. You know. Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Kid who grows up with a parent from Peru and then another parent from the Dominican, you know, it’s just and as I as I’ve had these conversations with people, they realize it too. They’re like, you know what? You’re right. Like, this is so common, but there’s no picture book to reference to or to read to kids to kind of share that experience.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. No. And I really like that. You know, your your book brings this topic into like into the forefront because like it is like such a hard topic to like even like go about because like even we sometimes will get confused like, oh my God. Like you’re right. But like, how do we go about like healing from that or from understanding like, oh, we were part of both. Where were you? We fit into both of these. It doesn’t have to separate us or disjoined us because we’re part of both. Right? Right.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: I think that’s the most important thing I had, recently met a friend who told me something that was just so impactful and stayed with me, and it said, I think she said, you know, you don’t have to feel less than. You don’t have to say, I’m 50/50, you know? And when she said that, I realized, you know what? When I’m, you know, eating pupusas or like, with my mom, I feel 100% Salvadoran.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. Right.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: And I don’t I’m not 50, I’m not less. And when I’m with my dad and he’s playing his Ecuadorian instruments and he’s, you know, that music is playing and we’re dancing, I feel 100% Ecuadorian. And so when she told me that and this is, you know, I’m in my 40s now, like just realizing this. And so it’s been such a special journey to just, you know, keep learning. you know, keep learning.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. No. And I’m glad your friend, like, offered those comforting words. We sometimes our friends give us like, they don’t think like they’re like, oh, like I just said that, you know, because it came up to mind. But, like, bro, like you helped me out so much just by being there and hearing me out and then giving me that type of response. It just appreciated, you know, like, but I’m glad, in terms of, you know, you spent 18 years and education and with the last five years as an ESL specialist, how has your work with multi multilingual, learners shaped the way you think about, you know, representation and identity?

 

Sylvia Gallardo: I would say it has been so influential in the last I would say. I mean, when I became an ESL teacher, I was like five years ago, but even just being in the classroom for so long and teaching, different students from various cultural backgrounds, I started to realize, you know, there are not a lot of books out there, right? And I especially working with our multilingual learners, I started to be more intentional of finding books that represent their culture. And the sad part is, is that I would, you know, I’d go to Half Price Books, I’d go to Barnes and Noble, and they’re not there. So so I’ve had to go on to social media platforms, you know, to find you know, diverse authors and like, what are their books? You know, for, for my students. And what I realize is, when I do when I read a book to a kid, you know, who’s from India or Ethiopia or Puerto Rico, and they see their culture on the page like they see either the food or like something about the music or the way they dress. Their eyes light up, like, and they get so excited. They they stand up for their chair, they raise their hand because they know and they recognize that and they want to share. And so that, that that is probably what has inspired so much of my journey, because I realized how impactful that is for students, because it seriously builds confidence in them. You know, maybe a child who didn’t necessarily won’t speak up in class, but when they see that in a book, it’s life changing and it brings so much joy. So, my, my school has been open for about nine years, and we opened the school and I started realizing how diverse it was. And so I organized their first multicultural event. And I was scared. At first, I didn’t know what the turnout was going to be like. I didn’t know if families were going to show up or anything, but I, I went with it. I knew we had to do this, especially for the community, just to know how diverse the school is.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: And, you know, it was great. And we had a lot of turnout. Families showed up with their traditional dress, their traditional clothing, their food, their music. There was dancing in the gym.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. And. Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: And the kids, the kids were so, so joyous and, like, sharing with their classmates, like, where they’re from. And, you know, they were teaching them, like, with their poster boards and everything. But what was so interesting about the whole experience was not the night. It was the day after. The day after was the one that will always, forever be like in my mind. Because the day after my ESL students and even other students who participated, who are not in the ESL program, they I felt that they were walking down those hallways with their chin up and a little bit more, you know, and so they were all raving about how great the night was and all the kids who didn’t make it, they were asking questions. They’re like, what are you talking about? What did we miss? And so they would say like, oh, yeah, we tried, you know, so-and-so’s food last night, or we tried so-and-so’s coffee and it was amazing. And so they had an opportunity to talk about their culture and to be a little bit more confident and so I think that has all shaped and influenced and kind of is kind of like the driving force for me to keep going. You know, anytime I get doubts or I feel insecure, I just think about those moments and they they reassure me to like, keep going and keep sharing the story and keep writing.

 

Andrea Diaz: So I love that. And the I love I’m so proud of you two for taking that initiative. You know, to to like, you know, we’re going to do a multicultural event. You know, we’re going to do it. Especially, you know, having it been like the first one, right of its kind, at the school. And it really does happen like, like I remember having something similar happened in the college where you did like a multicultural event and you can tell like people like, especially like explaining their culture or, you know, bringing somebody like, hey, try this. Like, you’ve never tried it, like, oh my God is amazing. And it just it brings it builds a community because you would think like, oh, be separate type of, you know, thing because there’s different cultures. But no, I think it builds a community together. And also we we see are are similar. You know what we’re in similar in or differences. And then it just helps us feel more connected to each other. Like, okay, like I really appreciate what you’re doing and you’re a culture of like, that’s amazing. Or like, oh my God, I never tasted this food, but I’m going to be craving this for the rest of the time. But yeah, I know, I’m I’m so glad I know those kids are like, yeah, I’m going to flex my culture. Let’s go.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yeah, they’re super excited. It happens in April. And so we’re getting ready. But yeah, you’re right. It it brings understanding you know. To a lot of other students and I think that affirmation and like that, validation of like who they are like it just it does so much for them.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. And I’m glad that experience also, you know helps build out, you know, your journey to, to to this book and is just really, you know, like sometimes you don’t realize the small things in life or the ongoing things that happen in life or those initiatives you take lead you up to something you’ve been. We didn’t know or you’ve been wanting to work for, you know. Yeah, some really, really good. Yeah. You know, and you chose to self-publish, which is a very daring step. And can you walk us through that, this decision, what the journey has been like bringing that book to life on your own terms?

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yes. So I did quite a bit of research comparing, you know, the pros and cons of going, the traditional route versus the self-publishing route. And I don’t know if it’s just my impatience or to be honest, like because I was like, we got to get this story out and I can’t wait three, four or 5 or 6 years because I’ve heard, you know, it takes a long time to get representation, to get a literary agent. Yeah, I’ve heard it takes two, three, 4 or 5 years. And I was kind of like, I don’t have that time, you know? I mean, I’m not putting it off. I don’t I mean, if traditional publishing does come my way, I’m open to it. And so I feel like self publishers, you know, there’s a lot of differences, right? You are doing everything you are upfront. The cost, your, you’re doing your own marketing. You’re doing your own branding. But what I do like about it is you have creative control.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: And you can hire who you want to be, your illustrator, you can hire who your editor is. And I feel like in doing that, you kind of have like a little team going who are also investing in your story and want to see your story, be successful. I, I’ve heard that in traditional publishing. You write your manuscript, right? And your literary agent has to pitch it to editors and marketers to see if it’ll, sell. And that does take a long process. And when it gets to who gets to illustrate it or how it’s marketed, yes, the publishing houses are finding those costs, right. And saying you don’t have to upfront that money, but you get less control. Oh, so that’s amazing. Like I feel like for me, like that was kind of like a major tipping point, to go self-publishing because I wanted an illustrator who would understand, our cultures. And so with that, I was able to hire an an Ecuadorian illustrator. Her name is Nadia Bronquio

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: So I knew that she would do a justice that she would put her heart into it because, you know, it’s her culture as well. So I think there’s a lot of pros and cons either way. It just depends, you know what? You know how you want to go about your journey. There’s a lot of, a lot of learning as I move forward, you know, in a lot of research. But I’m excited about it. You know, I come home from work and I work on a little bit more. You know, there’s always something every day to, like, learn about how to self-publish, how to market, how to get out there. But I would say the coolest thing out of this whole self-publishing journey would be just the community that I found. I did not expect, to be surrounded with other self publishers to to make connections at all. These book fairs that, you know, we have in Dallas, like the lit. What is it called? Lit Fest, books on tap, all of these markets around the Dallas area. It’s just so neat to connect with so many, authors, self-published authors, you know, book lovers just. And and then you can also kind of sell you have more, more control over your profit. I think that’s another, another pro is you can set your prices how you want them. You can market it the way you want it.

 

Andrea Diaz: So I think that also plays into deciding which way to go. No. And I, I love that you brought the both comparison too, because I know a lot of our listeners are gonna be curious, like, what’s what’s the difference? And I really like the, you know, especially for I feel like for our stories to being told, we have to have that control over it. So, like, especially, you know, the story, your book, I feel like it’s makes it more meaningful when you have, like, most of the control, you know, you got the Ecuadorian like illustrator, you know, you’re controlling how it’s being marketed and, and how much it’s going to cost because it’s it feels kind of sometimes like your baby is like out of place of, you know, you you let somebody else take control of it. So no, I appreciate you going into detail like comparison difference, obviously one could work for another. It just depends. I see also it depends on the story. You’re, you’re doing as well from. But yeah, I’m glad you I’m glad you went with self-publishing because I do believe, like this story needs to be out there and like, you know, kids need to see themself represented, like with their stories, too, since it’s kind of uncommon now.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yeah. And I and I think the other, influencing factor for going self-publishing is also just looking at the statistics and the data for Latina Latinx publishers. It’s I think 6 or 7% of people in the publishing industry who identify as Latinx and, you know, I almost kind of felt like, I don’t know that that’s a very where, like 20% of the population. Right? So there’s an underrepresentation, in the publishing industry. And so to get into that traditional publishing industry seems very seems out of reach.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: So I don’t think it’s impossible. I think I think in the last few years there has been an increase, and I feel like our stories are probably now being told by ourselves. And there are more authors that are coming out, that are writing more stories like that. So I, I’m not against traditional publishing whatsoever. And I hope that maybe one day like that will happen. So we’ll see.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. No. And you know, you made you also made a point, you know, that especially like when you, when you first introduce yourself to, and you know, when you send your request to be part of the podcast, but you support a lot of Latina small owned businesses like, like and did that come like, you know, growing up and seeing small business owners or like, was it like, you know, I get to support a community that’s, you know, trying to trying to prove themselves that yes, we are here and we, we can own our businesses. Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: So I think it goes hand in hand. I’m at first I was you know, I was thinking like, how how does this connect, you know, this that’s such a great question. And I and I do I had to think about it. And I do think it goes hand in hand because being a Latina, being a writer, my main focus was like, I want other Latinas to know that this is possible, right? But then I was also in community with others, you know, who are Latinas, who are owning businesses and who are leading with their culture?

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: And then I started to realize, like, we’re doing the same thing, right? Just in different forms, you know? And I felt like for them, like they they are, business owners and they’re also showing other Latinas that you can be your own boss. Right. So I feel like in that sense, like it goes hand in hand and it makes me want to, it makes me want to support them too, because visibility is very important. Right. So and I value, I now value, you know, products and things that have stories behind them that, that share pride in the culture. So that’s my mission also is to go into the community, support Latina owned businesses, small businesses who are leading with culture, who are leading with pride. Because I feel like I’m doing the same thing. So, let’s go get it. Yeah.

 

Andrea Diaz: I feel like we have to support the culture, even if it’s like, even though I’ve seen, like, small businesses from, like, different cultures, like, I always go to support, I’m like, hey, like, we gotta we gotta help each other out. Because as a community, especially minorities, we have to stand together and and give support and show like, hey, y’all are being successful. We’re going to help you keep being successful, right? And I feel like we don’t succeed.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Individually. Yeah. I feel like we succeed. And when we succeed, it is for the community. So that I value that.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. This is just, like, coming up for me, but, like, you know, going back to, like, you know, comparing, like, self-publishing towards the traditional route. What is something you wish that the traditional route understood more especially, you know, the demand for Latino books and representation. What do you feel like is like something that’s kind of missing in that, traditional sense, where it’s harder for for us to get in.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: I think the one is the bi cultural experience. Right. I think, more books that show more of the complexity of being Latino. Right. And we all just don’t fit in one box. I think I would love to see that increase in children’s books. I think, also, just like navigating the road to being traditionally published, I feel like I would love more, you know, just more information out there. So, yeah, just more access, I guess.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. No, I love that. And I do agree there needs to be more access or more understanding. And, you know, what do you what do you hope for this first release for your book? What do you hope will, you know will happen or I see this is, you know, looking to the future. But what do you hope for it to, to, to do for our community?

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yeah, specifically for the Latino community. I do hope that this book just kind of shares that celebration of, you know, that of similarities. Right. And then I think specifically for, you know, Ecuadorian culture, Salvadorian culture, like for them to see themselves represented in a picture book. Right. I feel like there’s a very unique and special, distinctiveness, you know, with our, our food, our, you know, our music, our rhythm “el sazón”, like, everything is different. And I feel like that needs to be celebrated. Right. But even not just for the Latino community, I think these bi cultural books should be for other students. Right? So they can kind of get a peek into what our world is like, right? Because we need stories and I feel like we understand each other better. When we share stories.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: And I think it also builds not only confidence, but I think with other kids it builds empathy. And I feel like my hope would be that it’s, you know, once this book is out, that kids and adults, who read it just get the message that they should be proud of who they are and where they come from, no matter where that is.

 

Andrea Diaz: No, I. I love that, I love that, and, you know, you mentioned just a little tidbit for our listeners. This is Sylvia’s first podcast experience, and you’ve already done an amazing job, by the way,

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Aw Thank you.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. How does it how does it feel now? Like, I feel like this is just a great way to, like, get your background and get the behind the scenes of you know, what goes into like, you know, publishing, publishing your book.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: I, you know, this is my first podcast, like you said. And, you know, at first it’s like, oh my gosh, can I speak? I don’t know if I can speak, you know, but the fact that it’s very like just a relaxed conversation, you know, is, is helping a lot. I appreciate like, any opportunity I get to talk about this, I think it’s important I, I think, talking about representation, especially now in this climate is so important. And I do want to talk about the Bad Bunny halftime show.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. Let’s go have you know, but I was about to ask, like, is there anything that you wanted to talk about? We can talk about it right now. Yeah.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Because I had I mean, the connection to like, writing picture books, like with the halftime show, definitely have to get into it because, Yeah. Because, Yeah. Talking about representation in children’s literature, I feel it’s so important, right? Because they’re such they’re when they’re young, like, they’re so formidable and so impressionable. And I feel like we need to do a better job, of just exposing them to more diverse stories and more multicultural stories, because I honestly feel like that’s where it starts, right? That’s, you know, that’s where it starts, where you start to build confidence in who you are and to have pride in who you are. And so I think championing that representation in the classrooms and in libraries is super important.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. No. And I agree with you. Somebody should do a picture book for Bad Bunny’s halftime show because it’s it’s so amazing. And I feel like, you know, seeing representation even from all avenues, seeing that such a big platform because we see it in music, you know, people will listen to Bad Bunny. Maybe I don’t understand what he’s saying, but I love what he’s doing right. And and just getting because we have to like for us to get that representation. We have to support it from all angles, be it news, be a music, being pop culture, be be writing literature books, and just yeah. No, I, I agree with you though. Like it was like that was such a good halftime.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Oh my god. Okay. So I’m watching the show, right. Yeah. And I’m looking at all of these elements, all of these Latino symbols. Right. Yeah. And I’m pointing to the TV and I’m like telling my husband I’m like, that was me. That’s look, you know, I was falling asleep, you know, at the wedding, you know, in the middle of a big party, right. And at the very end, when all the flags came out. Right? Yeah. And he started naming all of the countries. And when he named Ecuador and he named a Salvador, I stood up and I was like, what? Like you wish like we got that’s me. Right. And then when all of the, social media posts started flooding through of like, families reacting to hearing their country and to and to seeing their flag being flown. Right. I made the connection that, that that’s what my students feel like. That’s what kids feel when they see a book that represents their culture. So if we are all adults and we are reacting to seeing our culture on the TV screen, you know how impactful that is for, you know, adults who are feeling this pride, right? This or who to be to for the world to see our flag or just validation of like who we are. And to me, I’m like that. That’s the mission here. That’s the the goal here with this kind of book.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. No and I love that is it’s just like also seeing you’re like oh my god. Like that’s me. Like that’s the, that’s the emotion. That’s the what we want to evoke. We’re, we’re, we’re we’re trying to develop that representation. Show people like, hey, you’re you’re here. We exist. Yeah. We’re here.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yeah. That’s that’s the thought that came to my mind is like, we’re here, you know, and I think about, you know, the work that I do on the daily, like, I think about little Sylvia in elementary school. Like, what if there was a teacher who showed South American culture on a book, in a book or central American? Like, what would that have done for little Sylvia? Like, maybe I would have walked into rooms more confidently if I was, you know, the only Latina maybe I would have had more confidence in my own voice. Right. So I think it’s just super important.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yeah. No, I agree. And I’m going to go to our last question, and it’s a question our founder, Anjelica Cazares, always likes to ask when she does an interview. And I like to ask this one to, which is do you consider yourself a leader? Why or why not?

 

Sylvia Gallardo: I think my journey to considering myself a leader has taken a long time. And I feel. Like I. You know, I’m normally shy, introverted. I don’t normally speak up in meetings, but I feel like in the last 6 or 7 years, my job has given me plenty of opportunity to, you know, give professional training at a district level to share about our multilingual learners. And I feel like all of these experiences have kind of just built up to kind of help me with that confidence to say, you know what? Like I am a leader, a leader in education, leading these students to, not just academically, you know, but also to just learn how to preserve their culture, like, learn how to preserve their first language as well, you know? Yeah. So, yeah, I, I think now I consider myself a leader in that sense. So, but it’s taken me a long road, a long road to get here, to finally say yes, like, I am a Latina. I am a leader, in education and so I that’s why I, I, I feel like I align, I align myself with your guys’s values, you know, just inspiring other women and inspiring others to thrive and lead.

 

Andrea Diaz: Yes. Yeah. No, for sure. And as we are ending this and this was amazing conversation, thank you for this because I feel like our listeners are really going enjoy this one. Where can our listeners find you and when is the book going to release? Where can they find to purchase a book?

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Yeah. Okay. So you can follow me on Instagram at Stories By Sylvia Gallardo I’m also on TikTok, under that same tag, and you’ll find my link to my website there. You can subscribe, sign up so that you can get, first, first, announcements of preorders and the release date. So I don’t have a specific, release date, but it will be released by April. Yeah. Let’s go. Yeah. April or May. So definitely before June.

 

Andrea Diaz: That’s amazing. Thank you so much, Sylvia, for this conversation. Thank you so much for, you know, being inspiration for other Latina writers. So thank you so much.

 

Sylvia Gallardo: Thank you so much, Andrea.

 

Andrea Diaz: All right. Hasta la proxima amigas. We’ll see you. Bye. Today Sylvia reminded us that the stories we tell our children matter. That growing up between two worlds isn’t something to overcome. It’s something to celebrate. And that writing your own story, literally or figuratively, is one of the most powerful things you can do. You can find Sylvia’s book I am from aquí and alla it on sylviagallardo.com And if you’re an educator looking to bring more bilingual books into your classroom, follow her on social media for recommendations. Thank you for listening. If this episode resonated with you, please share it with another Amiga. Leave us a review and tell us what you want to hear next. I’m Andrea Diaz and this is the Latina Leadership Podcast. Nos Vemos!