Sofia Garcia discusses her school years and growing up.

She also talks about her quince that is coming up and her emotions and thoughts about it, along with the different steps in planning a fifteen.

Transcript:

Fernanda Garcia: Ok umm, hi what’s your name?

Sofia Garcia: Sofia Garcia.

FG: What grade are you in?

SG: I’m in ninth grade, I’m a freshman.

FG: Oh period. Um how old are you?

SG: I’m fourteen years old.

FG: Oh, um how has your year been so far?

SG: Um it’s been really different, like yeah like I have a lot of mixed feelings about this year.

FG: Like what?

SG: Um I felt happy, sad um overwhelmed, stressed, excited.

FG: And what things caused like the sad, overwhelmed and stressed?

S.: Um well I had to go through a lot of changes this year like I had to culminate middle school, I started high school and I’m preparing for my quince!!

FG: [laughs] So how was it um leaving middle school?

SG: Um it was it was like um it was fun it was like sad but it was like good because um middle school was just like a bad place for me cause I felt like a lot of people were fake there and like the teachers like some of them would help and then some of them would just like irritate me.

SG: [laughs] Sorry and, but I was like but it was also like really sad because what’s it called um I met no like I made a lot of friends that like I wasn’t ready to leave and it’s like middle school is just like its really short.

FG: And then also I feel like you got comfortable in the last year. 

SG: Yeah like eighth grade, seventh grade, like new people but I really didn’t, I wasn’t like I don’t know. 

FG: Like they weren’t your friends basically?

SG: But I was just dumb, I was doing a lot of dumb stuff and then in eighth grade it’s just like, eighth grade there’s no beef with anybody, nobody’s trying to have problems or nothing so you get along with everybody its like you make like better friendships with people during eighth grade and it’s just like harder to let that go.

SG: Cause like you barely met them and you barely really got to get to know them and that’s when like everything is gone. You know?

FG: Yeah. So then how was it going into high school then? Was it like the same thing or was it different?

SG: Um I think high school was a lot harder for me cause I feel like around eighth grade towards the end I really isolated myself like I had friends but I wouldn’t talk to them as much no more.

SG: And starting high school was really different because its just its harder, like I went to Santee. 

FG: Mhm. 

SG: Like that was the first school that I went to and it was a lot different, like you don’t know nobody, and it’s just nobody judges you. It’s different but its just, I feel like I wasn’t ready to like let go of –

FG: The current friendships you had?

SG: Yeah, so I decided to go to ARB and I like it but I think I’ma move again.

FG: Well, is there anything you’re looking forward to this year? 

SG: Um yeah my quince’s coming up and that’s just what’s like keeping me like excited because I get overwhelmed a lot like feeling like I didn’t make the right choice in staying or going to AB like I feel like right now I’m just trying to figure out a lot of stuff. 

SG: Cause it’s really hard shifting from one thing to another?

FG: Mhm.

SG: But my fifteen is like getting me like really excited and it’s making me stay focused and high school too, it’s just a time to like really stay focused for your future and that’s what I’m trying to do. 

FG: Mhm. So how is the planning of your quince going so far?

SG: Um it’s going really good, like at the beginning of the year it was just I wasn’t focused on my fifteen a lot because you know it’s not like its happening already and but now I have my dress and it’s just really exciting I have like the salon and like the hall you know the salon hall. 

SG: Um, I like my shoes and stuff like that. My family from like other places are ready to fly over here or like um today was my first practice.

FG: How did that go? 

SG: It was fun. I was stressing out yesterday. I was crying because I thought I needed another person in my court but no it turned out fine, today was really fun and I learned my dance. 

FG: Um, do you like the people that you chose for your court?

SG: Yeah I really like them, they’re my friends and I’ve known them I’ve known some since elementary and like the rest I’ve known them from middle school and my cousins are in it and its just its fun there a fun court.

SG: I thought they were going to be really like serious but they’re really outgoing and like silly and like goofy and stuff and I feel like you just need people that you’re really comfortable with.

FG: Mhm. 

SG: You know? Because if you don’t have somebody that your like or people that your comfortable with and you just –

FG: You can’t really be yourself.

SG: Yeah you just feel like it’s going to be boring but like when you’re comfortable with them it’s just funner. 

FG: Mhm, so how close is your quince?

SG: Um it’s in a month and eighteen days. Yeah like November 18 y’all. Mark the date.

FG: How would you describe your quince in one word?

SG: Um I would describe my quince as like special.

FG: Um why?

SG: Because um because like ima be with all my friends and family and like my whole family is really excited about it and it’s just really special to me because i’ve been waiting for it for a while now.

FG: mm, has the process of your quince been stressful? 

SG: Yeah it has like at the beginning not really because my mom is planning it so like I wasn’t really like involved that much but now I did get stressed out for a bit because I had to look for like people to dance with like in my court. 

SG: And I was stressing out because I thought there was going to be kids canceling last minute and a lot of people were saying no because they were a little bit embarrassed but it’s like it’s ok it’s understandable you know? 

SG: But yeah I was stressing out because I thought they were going to cancel on me but in the end it ended up working out fine.

FG: Um did you feel mad or sad or like any emotion when people said no to you? Like did you like to take it like personal in a way?

SG: No I didn’t take it personal it’s just I did feel oh I did feel maybe I did feel like I didn’t feel upset it just make me stressed out more and like for a minute I was saying why can’t they just do it like its not a big deal it’s just a dance but then again a lot of people are really like their probably like aren’t that social and they like get more scared to do it. 

FG: More shy?

SG: But yeah I did get a little bit upset for a minute and stressed out but then again you can’t  force anybody to do anything, they’re just missing out I guess.

FG: What are you most excited about in your quince?

SG: Um I’m excited to dance. 

FG: Yeah me too.

SG: Because I’m not like I don’t really dance that much so for a minute I was dancing like I get really embarrassed to dance but I started dancing with my family and it’s just fun it’s like really fun and yeah I just want to dance.

FG: It’s tiring.

SG: It is really tiring.

FG: But it’s very fun.

SG: Yeah.

FG: What advice would you give to future quinceaneras?

SG: Um some advice I would give to future quinceaneras is to obviously it hasn’t been my quince just yet but from like from what i’ve experienced so far is to just plan early it’s never too early to plan.

SG: It’s good to plan early to like have things set out because sometimes um something may not work out like you want it to and if you plan early you have a back up plan for it.