Failure. What is it for you? For me, failure is the lack of change when I make a mistake. My third grade teacher, Mr. Ramirez, had used the quote “Un error es uno que no se no corrigen” throughout the school year, but I never understood what it meant. On the final day, Ramirez explained the phrase this way: “A mistake is only a mistake if you don't fix it.” I didn't really understand the importance of it that day, but at the end of fifth grade, and I was preparing to leave elementary school, I realized the meaning of Mr. Ramirez's proverb. I grew up in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood, where I was one of twelve Asian students in my class of three hundred and fifty and the only Chinese student in my class. I had a hard time understanding what my classmates, friends, and teachers were talking about because outside of class they mostly spoke Spanish and I could barely count to ten. Integrating was difficult not only because of the language barrier but also because of racial and cultural differences. Making friends with people who have little or nothing in common is difficult, so I tried to copy whatever my classmates did. I ate what they ate, watched what they watched, and played whatever sport they played. I took Spanish lessons from the family who lived below me and in return I taught them some Mandarin. By second grade I had integrated into the community around me despite having only two close friends. They helped me embrace my Chinese side as I was assimilated. I could stop being someone I wasn't, and I wasn't afraid to be myself around them because they were fascinated by my unique characteristic of having Chinese ancestry. I enjoyed living in Corona, as everything I needed was so close, and that's...... middle of paper ......, but no traces of tears. I suppose, then, that your heart cried blood?'” (344). When I left my room, my mother knew I had been going through a hard time and I didn't want to talk to her. Even though my school year was only a month away, I promised myself that I would be completely honest with my friends, my family, my heritage, and myself. I expected all my friends to leave me, but I was fully prepared for it. However, none of this ever happened. My friends didn't abandon me, I wasn't alone at the table, I wasn't even seen differently by those around me. I had failed my family in this way and I wanted to stop acting like someone I wasn't before. This is one of the few mistakes I've made that I consider a failure because it took me almost a year to fix it, and that's why I consider it my most successful failure.