My Cultural And Cultural Experience

I cannot exactly remember when I started feeling different from my peers because I was never bothered by the idea of being multiethnic, until the moment I could not categorize my background into a box for a school form. My parents always made my brother and I feel proud about our multiethnic and cultural heritage. I was never ashamed of my background but at times I felt too diverse due to the fact that my dad’s ethnic background is Indian and my mom’s ethnic background is Chinese and Portuguese, though they are both from Guyana. There were moments I was uncomfortable with myself because I felt I did not look a certain way or that my cultural and religious practices might be considered unusual to the American norm. These experiences made me weary on the way I

I did not want my background to restrict me from educational or professional opportunities. In certain environments, specifically school and professional settings, I would distant myself from my culture and my Hindu religion. Even though I was immersed in cultural and religious activities, such as playing the harmonium, which is an instrument comparable to an accordion, and sing bhajans, which are religious or cultural songs. I made sure I did not have an accent when I spoke and I discussed more American activities instead of mentioning my cultural or religious activities that I participated in. All to ensure I was not negatively defined or labeled as the typical first generation kid. It was not until I visited my parents home country of Guyana and experienced their way of life that my perspective changed about sharing my heritage. Saying I was excited would be an understatement to describe how I felt to finally see the country I had heard so much about.