INSULTING MY MOM?!!? *NOT CLICKBAIT*

Every immigrant child dreams of living the American lifestyle. Whether that be hanging out with boys or going to sleepovers. I’m sure Thi Buong can vouch for this statement. My biggest struggle when assimilating my family into the American culture was eating American food. 

When I was no older than 5 years old, I remember my mom losing her mind the first time I asked for McDonalds “Why would you want that? We have food at home.”; she thought I was insulting her Middle Eastern food. Since I was young, I didn’t realize why she would have taken this offensively. I wasn’t aware there was a difference between foods, whether they were cultural or not, I thought the food my mom was cooking was American because I was in America.
Not too long after this traumatic event, I was hanging out with my friend and my sisters. My sisters were there because if one of us goes somewhere, we go together. Apparently, we were strong enough to fight five 200-pound men, if necessary. Her parents decided we were going to the forbidden, unspoken horror central zone-- McDonalds. This was a day to remember, I ate my first McDouble. Although I felt like my mom would not support this new daring experience of eating McD for the first time, I couldn’t hold myself from telling her. And when I did, she didn’t react. No tears of joy or sadness. All I got from her was nothing. 
The morning following this cliffhanger-like reaction from my mom, I wake up to a burger. No ordinary McD burger. This burger was made with love, specifically with my mom's love. My mom’s gesture showed me I did not have to fight against the American culture I lived in and the Chaldean culture of my life.



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