Personal Narrative: My Responsibility To America

“Do you like your job mom?” My son Matthew asks me casually looking up at me from his wooden desk chair. I’m working on cooking our family dinner and he’s currently working on a 10th grade essay, where he describes what he wants to become when he grows up. I always have thought that term “growing up” was funny, because through everything I certainly never have. I smiled down at him and answered “Yes, Matthew, I love it very much.” “Can I interview you about it please, it’s part of the assignment?” he replied. I nod and make my way over to the matching desk chair and sit down. “Just answer my questions about your job” He said. “Wait Matt, don’t you have to write this down?” “UGH mom this isn’t 2016, no one writes anymore. Gosh. My IPhone 17

Studying in a foreign country is an interesting experience of an individual lifetime. One tends to learn a number of things relating to ways of life in a foreign land. Social, political and economic values and aspects are usually different from one region to another. Therefore, through studying abroad one is able to learn different issues about another society such as gender and sexuality issues, social class and race/ethnicity issues. Having come from a developing country studying in the U.S.A has been a great experience personally. This paper will attempt to provide a reflection of my personal experience on studying in the U.S by comparing the history of Angola and the U.S.

Growing up in Ghana, I had heard a lot of things about the U.S. This was a country I had always wanted to visit; my prayer was answered when I got the opportunity to travel there. Arriving in a new environment came with many experiences. Adjusting with food, language and the weather was not easy. With the passage of time, however I have been able to0 adjust and fit it. This write-up therefore is to elaborate on my experiences since coming to U.S.

I didn’t believe in aliens until I was abducted by them. I was put in some kind of contraption and I’m not sure what happened exactly, but it’s clear that I’m not where I was. Everything in 2016 is different, I don’t know if I’m in a different state or not but people are dressing differently and acting differently, and the cars, the cars are all different! I’ve been here for quite some time now and have noticed a lot of differences from where I lived in Oceanside, California in 1940. I’ve been transported to the year 2016 and there are so many things that have changed and evolved and among them are political, economic, social, and cultural changes.

I felt that I could relate myself to the pilgrim she saw in her vision. I came to this country for the freedom of worship, to appreciate diversity, and to have opportunities to utilize my talents without being discriminated.

Theodore Roosevelt once said, “Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the president or any other public official, save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him insofar as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country. In either event, it is unpatriotic not to tell the truth, whether about the president or anyone else.”

In class we watched a video over a very opinionated male who explained the reason why America is not great. I have a lot of respect for this man and I think that he brought up some extremely valid points that I have never thought about. What I mainly want to touch on is the fact that he accused my generation of being apathetic. He basic says that we could care less and are lazy good for nothings. The best response I can think of is, look at who raised us. Now, I am not saying that it is entirely our parents fault or their parents fault for the reason why teenagers do not care about school, grades, or the world. I am just saying that it is unfair to put the entire blame on my generation saying that we are the reason why the America is not great. He makes it seem that as soon as my

Moving to the United States is a huge step for an immigrant. As an international student, I have been passing through this event that most Brazilian desire to. However, it is hard to adapt with the new culture and lifestyle, knowing that I have my own values. The “Two Ways to Belong in America” illustrates two views of getting used with this new culture, in which I identified myself with one of these ways: my nationality cannot be change with a simple paper called green card. Thus, starting a new life in a foreign country is tough because I have to find a way to readjust to this new culture, not ignoring

It’s been 2 years, 35 days and 22 minutes, and I’m still peeking through the dismal, damped window to just have a look at my family. Though years have passed but I still see my mother stepping out of the door every morning with the hope that her daughter Selina Dimp, would arrive. If only she knew that our separation would result to her survival, the urge and temptation to step in my house, smell the aroma of my ever favorite lasagna, tease little Jason and be in the arms of my mother has grown extremely more. No matter how many years have passed but the plague is still out there on our streets, infecting every person I love , my own brother and my entire Nation. As always, the newsboard flashes “The Republic of America war against the Democratic of America is still in progress” , the same old news by the government but for the first time it shows something that gives me a leap of faith for a second. The

As I stepped off the plane, the frigid air sliced through my face, just as the cold, harsh reality hit me: I’m an American now.

I never cared for the United States and now they feel entitled to embark on my country. I do not appreciate their intervention and overbearingness from the United States. I felt like John F. Kennedy disliked me or felt that I was incapable of being a leader. There was not anything notable about my family, but I quickly found my interest, social activism. After getting into social activism, I eventually became a rebel. In 1953, I was part of a group of rebels who raided Moncada Barracks, which are inhabited by the Cuban army. I was captured, but while I was sitting in a jail cell for two years, I had become a national hero in Cuba. My group of eighty rebels, including me, traveled to Cuba, with the end goal being overtaking Batista and making it to the city of Havana. We succeeded, and I even gained patronage from the United States. I dethroned an ostracized leader in Cuba, and I was happily accepting the praise from Cuba and the United States (13-14).

I listened as they called President Obama a Muslim (as if it were a bad thing). I listened as they called him a monkey and his wife is not a woman. I listened as they said he wasn't born here. I watched as they blocked every single path to progress that they could. I saw the pictures of him as Hitler. I listened as they openly said that they will oppose him at every turn. I watched as they did just that. I listened and I watched and I paid attention. Now, I'm being called upon to be tolerant. To move forward. To "Get over it." To accept this.

In Middle Eastern culture, the process is often more important than accomplishing the goal. Manner and style are extremely important, along with showing respect to co-workers and even opposing individuals when negotiations are involved. It is my family tradition to consider each human being to have infinite worth and so to be treated with ultimate respect, dignity and concern for the preservation of one’s self image. Yet being born in America and reared in Pennsylvania and California, I am the product of American culture. In America, time and money are often considered more important than the feelings of people. This can be metaphorically detailed when comparing American football to bullfighting in Spain. In football, when the end is running out for a pass like a beautiful gazelle, the ball is thrown, and he is cut in half by the defensive player, thus he does not score and the crowd rooting for the other

I have always been interested in global affairs and politics coming from a family where politics and political views are a topic at the dinner table. My parents have always been open and honest about their standings, in doing so they have encouraged/enabled me to learn and realize how important our relationship with America is. In addition, I have quite enjoyed law, civics and social justice and I see it as an opportunity that will help me change the world.

The day I arrived May 12, 2011. It was an important date for me. On May 12 I set foot for the first time in the United States. The weather was incredible enough to fell in love with the United States. I still remember the season because of the pleasant atmosphere, even though in that moment I was sad, the incredible nature help me to feel better.