My Cultural Identity, My Culture, My Culture And Personal Growth

Over the years I have been asked many times to talk about myself, my culture, and how the latter has influenced me. After many of these papers, one might think it would get easier, but it does not. Conversely this time I feel better armed to tackle this task per our discussions during the first two class meetings. I had always thought that culture was based around one’s ethnicity, racial background, and the traditions associated with them. Now I realize that there is much more to culture than what I thought. With that knowledge, I feel better able to talk about my own culture and how it has influenced my personal growth. The most significant aspects of my cultural identity are my religion, my education, and my ethnicity. (1) I identify as a progressive Lutheran, college educated, and half-Hispanic. Despite the fact that my ethnicity is a large part of my identity, it did not play a large part in my childhood since my

Due to the fact my mom’s history with her family and that my dad’s family lives in either Florida or Puerto Rico, we do not have any large family traditions as most families appear to have. Yet, we have our own rituals within our immediate family (my parents, sister, and I). Recently, before school started, we had started watching a couple episodes of Gilmore Girls a night and catching the new episode of America’s Got Talent on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Other than that we do not do many things religiously because we are all so busy. (2) We do not continue any cultural traditions my dad may have brought from Puerto Rico and my mom was not raised in any of the traditions her ancestors may have brought from the UK, Switzerland, the Netherlands, or Germany. We have developed our own culture. A mix of Spanish and English, with its own unique traditions, rituals,