Article begins This piece was selected as one of the honorable mentions for the AAA’s  AnthroDay Student Unessay Competition . This year’s competition was inspired by the Annual Meeting theme, “On the Verge.” Holding tight to Mami’s hand, at the entry of the food pantry, I felt even more scared than hungry.  “It will be ok.” I reassured myself. It didn’t matter that I was only 8; I had to be strong, not just for myself, but for my mom who was trembling and still learning English.  We stood together, in an unforgiving winter, united by fear and anticipation. By the time we got to the lady with the laptop, my heart was pounding.  “ID?” Mami produced a well-worn paper. It looked official but, whatever it was, it wasn’t enough. We weren’t enough.  I became a ghost, floating between the world of the living and the undocumented. Undocumented: a razor sharp line between acknowledged existence and invisibility.  “I’m sorry,” the pantry assistant replied robotically.…