Linda’s Childhood Memories – A book by Dr. Sofia Castro
“If I die during this journey, please tell them that I love them and explain that I want what’s best for them.” Dr. Sindie S. Castro wrote in her book titled Linda’s Childhood Memories. With this quote, Dr. Castro is referring to crossing the border to the United States in search for a better life, which is what her book is about.
Dr. Castro and her siblings emigrated from El Salvador to East Boston, Massachusetts. She graduated from East Boston High School and moved to Florida after graduating with a double major in Elementary Education and Psychology from Salem State College, now a university. She continued her education earning a master’s degree and later earning her Doctor of Education. Dr. Castro also holds a Certified Prevention Professional certificate.
Although her book is fiction, Dr. Castro’s childhood personality is reflected in the main character, Linda María. The idea of writing a book based on her childhood experience derived from a paper she wrote in college about pupusas, a Salvadoran dish. Writing a book challenged Dr. Castro, since she only wrote during inspirational moments.
Dr. Castro feels she has accomplished her lifetime goals: graduate from college, earn a doctorate, get married, find a career she loves, and write a book. Her next journey focuses on writing part two of Linda’s Childhood Memories and translating it into Spanish.
Although life seems like an easy journey for Dr. Castro, it has been rather difficult. She was the first in her family to graduate from college and navigate the system, she had to learn to speak and write well in English. There were times she wanted to quit her master’s and doctorate program. One professor told her and the entire class that she was disappointed with everyone’s writing skills. Another professor told her that she didn’t posses the doctorate level writing skills the program expected. Dr. Castro failed the teacher’s certification test in Florida by one point. She overcame heart-breaks, low self-esteem, body-image, anger issues, and the difficulties of navigating the immigration system for her husband’s Legal Permanent Resident status.
Dr. Castro counts her blessings and feels her determination kept her focused. She believes that if a little girl born in El Salvador into a poor family can become successful, then so can others. She also believes that success measure varies from person to person; in her case, meeting her goals. She wants to inspire others, specifically Latinos to never give up because there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Her secret is to disregard situations beyond her control.
Dr. Castro’s book is available for purchase at: http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/DrSindieCastro
Dr. Castro is available for public speaking engagements that relate to her life-journey and her book. She is fluent in English and Spanish. She can be reached at [email protected].
