Cultural Diversity: Growing Up In The 21st Century

Cultural Diversity / Family Project

Growing up in the 21st century is very different from when my parents did. Many people did not have the rights or views that we have today. Over the years many traditions were lost and values changed due to the worlds cultural expansion. My family is half Jewish and half Catholic causing my siblings and I to be involved in both religions. One tradition on my mother’s side when we get together for a holiday is to say a prayer in polish before eating dinner. My mother’s side is very small now so we are thankful for everyone that we have left. We give thanks for what we have, hope for a healthy year and reminisce about our lost loved ones. At these occasions we tend to drink which is probably not a good idea according to my genogram.

Once a year I travel to Florida to see my father’s side of the family. During my visits we tend to relax, eat, sleep and catch up on everything throughout the past year. A tradition we have always kept with us is getting someone in the family in trouble with my grandfather. My grandfather is strict and does not like when we use our cellphones at the table or slang

words such as “yea”. My Aunt Cindy tends to target me for texting under the table. Last year my brother got in a great deal of trouble because he rolled his sleeves up and forgot he had a tattoo. The lectures from my grandfather were never ending.
A tradition that I found most interesting while conversing with my mother is her growing up on the farm. My mother is one of four and grew up in Connecticut with my great grandparents. She told me stories of how she would watch her grandfather prepare the chicken by decapitating them. My mother would get freaked out because the chickens would run around with no heads. My great grandfather and grandmother would cut the feet right off the chicken and turn them into some sort of meal/stew. They would always regret opening the fridge for the sight of the feet in a jar would scare them. As my mother got older, she found out that it was a tradition though she did not continue it.
After constructing my family genogram, I obtained a better understanding of my families’ medical history.

The health pattern and or risk that stood out to me most was my predisposition for cancer. I noticed that on my father’s side, my grandfather and aunt had breast cancer and my sister had ovarian cancer. This is an eye-opener for me because I found out that the BRACA gene runs in my family. Unfortunately, doctors have told me that I take after my father’s side more than my mothers. I discovered that my sister was diagnosed with ovarian cancer when she was only 17. I am 21 years old and have never been to the doctors to get screened. Not only am I more conscious about my health risks, but I will now take preventative actions to preserve my health. Perhaps consuming less alcohol on family occasions would also be a

benefit.