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barbizon wrote:If you give me feedback, I will gladly return the favor. Thank you.



They had an agreement: I would be raised both a Catholic and a Muslim. My mother, a Mexican-American, was born in the San Joaquin Valley. She worked as a farm laborer from an early age until she turned twenty. My father, an immigrant from India, moved to Fresno at the age of nineteen and paid his way through college by working at convenience stores. They met and fell in love at Fresno State University. I don’t think they realized the extent to which their cultural and religious identities differed until they planned to start a family.

Even as a child, I could tell that my upbringing was not typical. I would go to both catechism and Arabic school, church on Sunday and Mosque on Friday. It wasn’t easy. There was a constant battle between my parents over which culture and religion would influence me – over whose identity I would ultimately claim as my own. All the while, I was experimenting with my own sense of self. As I matured, I participated in activities that were unimpeachably American. I went out to rock concerts, and even started my own band. I fell in love with reading, specifically American literature. I became active in politics by interning for a local politician. As my parents observed my various activities and how I’d developed as a thinker, they knew that my identity encompassed more than one nationality. I am Mexican, Indian, and American.

My family has a much more relaxed relationship today. My parents do not expect me to claim one of their identities exclusively, but rather, to carry both while creating my own. We have taught each other to understand and appreciate our multitude of identities. I would like to bring this understanding to _____________