Compléter Listening activityVersion en ligne Recording about the family par Paula Rojas 1 It has been said that learning about the past is a process of learning about oneself , and the study of family histories can help us understand the past and prepare us to meet the challenges of today . Some North Americans can their histories back to Mexico , and this presentation is about one such individual : Ana Maria Cavazos . Ana Maria Cavazos was born on June ninth , 1908 , in Reynosa , Mexico . She was the eleventh of twelve children . Her father , Jesus Cavazos , was originally from Victoria , Texas , but his family moved to Mexico around 1855 . As was common at the time , Jesus spent much of his life cattle and farming cotton . Ana ? s mother , Juana Castro , was the oldest of six brothers and sisters . Juana and Jesus were married in 1880 . Ana ? s family moved to the United States during the Mexican Revolution in 1913 . Their family experienced much , both financial and physical . Yet in spite of , many of them triumphed over the forces of and poverty to as successful farms and businessmen . Ana grew up in Texas and met her future husband , Abel Contreras , in 1929 . Ana and Abel Contreras were married in 1931 and were the parents of eleven children . The principles of faith , , and family oneness their lives , and have given their posterity a great legacy . Indeed , we can benefit greatly from our family histories . Thank you for joining this short presentation .