"I secretly wrote essay after essay, which I would later piece together into a book-length memoir."
Rigoberto explains how he had been writing personal essays since his early twenties but has been censured by an "older friend" for suggesting that he should write a memoir. However, he kept these essays and later published them. Here, we see that Rigoberto has a talent and passion for writing personal essays, which is proven in this text.
"I am no Anne Frank, but that young woman's creative impulse gave me courage. I too had a vision of the world I wanted to commit to the page and, eventually, share."
Here, Rigoberto explains how he had been inspired by Anne Frank. Like Anne Frank, Rigoberto had a new perspective to offer, one that had been marginalized and rejected by traditional discourse. Although Anne Frank was young, her perspective was by no means trivial, which inspired Rigoberto to share his unique experiences growing up as LGBTQ+ in a Mexican-Catholic household.
