From the dirty looks while shopping to media-portrayed sterotyping, trying to explore who i am and who i am going to be seems to have become a matter of public opinion.

I am used to having complete strangers look at me as though I have offended thier ancestors. However when the stranger begins taking pictures -- that crosses a line. The first time he passed me he ocule not help but stare, mouth agape, tapping his friends and pointing at my hijab. Moments later, he rounded the corner with his cell phone. After the flash went off, I looked straight into the camera lens and asked him if he gota a good shot. He was shamed into leaving.

While I can recount many negative occasions, there have been numerous positive experiences. Walking through the hall, I was stopped by my school janitor. He pulled me aside to apoligize for the slanderous words the media used to depict Islam. Angrily, he expressed to me how he was saddened that the world could think such horrible things about someone like me.

Growing up in Springfield, The Buckle of the Bible Belt, has taught me an abundace of things. The first is that not everyone agrees with what you have to say, the second is that not everyone will care, and the last is that no one can choose who you are going to be.

So even though, there are a lot of bad things happening in this strange world, not everyone is bad. I highly appreciate those who aren't.