Book 1 (1) - American Like Me

Reading the preface to American Like Me stimulated a feeling of nostalgia from my childhood. Like Ferrera, I struggled early In my life to capture my American identity – constantly feeling like a stranger in a land I called home. Learning to speak english late in my childhood didn’t help, and jumping from one identity to another created a sense of disarray. In addition to being lost, I also experienced conflict about how to show up, whether I should be a Latino or an American. At home, I was a soccer-loving, spanish speaking Latino – and at school, I was a baseball-loving, english-speaking American. Split between two cultures, I yearned to be accepted, so I chose to read this book – to learn how other children of immigrants eventually found their identity in America.

With some of the stories, I reflected on the undertone that Padma Lakshmi took in struggling to accept her roots, particularly her religious roots. I remember early in my life being consumed by my pastoral responsibilities to the Catholic church; the truth is, I never quite understood why I did – simply wanting to be a good son, I suppose. But after a few years, I started to question everything - The bible, our customs, the world; it didn't make sense to me. And I was unwilling to accept the answer that things are the way they are because of 'God's will.' I struggled to accept my religious roots, similar to the Padma, and felt alienated from my own culture because of it.