Article begins

A woman I know crossed the sea
At the age of only nineteen
When times were cross and barren to thee
If I could only imagine, if I could only imagine

She crossed the sea with the smell of smoke
And only she dreamt of her lover and woke
The splash of the sea was foreign to thee
If I could only imagine, if I could only imagine

A woman I know felt very safe
In a place with no war or the city’s decay
She started to build her new life with fleet
If I could only imagine, if I could only imagine

She told us that you can make a living
If you work hard and give all your giving
But you should always be grateful that you are free
Just try to imagine, just try to imagine

This piece was selected as a winner of the AAA’s AnthroDay Student Unessay Competition in the middle school division. Inspired by the World on the Move exhibit, this year’s unessay competition focused on migration. Selected prompt: “Do you or your family have any stories about moving? If so, share one.”

Authors

Gabriella Valdez Hasselstrom

Gabriella Valdez Hasselstrom is a sixth-grade student at The Classical Academy in Colorado. In her free time, she enjoys fencing, golf, history, reading, and writing. Her exposure to anthropology is through extensive family travels, most recently to several European and Latin American countries where she explores various aspects of different cultures.

Cite as

Valdez Hasselstrom, Gabriella. 2022. “If I Could Only Imagine.” Anthropology News website, September 14, 2022.

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