My whole life I have struggled with loving myself and my identity. Growing up Indian was definitely not easy. Rules were different. Clothes were different and food was different. I had constantly watched shows that had zero Asians and I developed a love for blonde hair and blue eyes. Every friend I had looked exactly like the dolls I had at home, blonde and blue eyed. I hated being a different skin color, and I wished I was white all the time. I still loved doing the ceremonies and attending events in my fancy clothes, but it still felt weird coming back to school and not a lot of people knowing what I was talking about. Not everyone is born loving where they come from, and I had to learn to love myself and my heritage.

The one plus side of living where I do is that there are a lot of Indians in my community. Slowly I started to realize that I wasn't alone. Knowing that started to help me love my culture. As I got into middle school I started to make more Indian friends and that really got me thinking. Why was I so ashamed of being Indian? I started realizing that wearing the beautiful garments wasn’t something to hide. I started to fall in love with being Indian. I realized that my skin color was just a color, and that my culture was something that I had to embrace because it is what has made me who I am today.

I would never trade my family for anything because honestly they are such inspiring people. I know that a lot of people struggle with loving their skin and culture, but I want them to know that they are not alone, and that even though I am embracing and loving myself, I still have those days where I wish I was someone else. But I honestly wouldn't change a thing.

My culture is beautiful. My clothes are enticing, the food is delicious. There is nothing wrong with being different. It is actually pretty cool going to school and telling people about something interesting in my culture.

Now that I am in college, I find myself missing being around my family all the time, and missing eating the food. I've realized that you should be proud of who you are and where you come from. Without that we are all carbon copies of each other, and that means we have nothing interesting about ourselves.

Going to India also really helps me connect to my culture, and I find myself learning new things about my culture everyday. I make it my mission to remind myself about who I am and to take time to connect with the people around me. I take time and watch the movies, listen to the music, and I try to involve myself in the culture that i come from, and that helps me love who I am a little more.

Beauty comes from loving yourself and being proud of who you are. And I have definitely realized that I am Beautiful, and so is every person out there.