Personal Narrative: My Community Of First-Generation Pakistani-American People

I belong to a community of first-generation Pakistani-American teenagers. It's a unique community composed of kids whose parents were born and raised in Pakistan, while we were born and raised on the opposite side of the world. In my instance, my father came to America to get his masters in engineering at the University of Detroit, and my mother moved to Houston with her family when she was in high school.
Growing up with foreign parents who were not raised in the same way that most American kids are raised today has been an interesting experience. Explaining the significance of football games every Friday night, going all out for spirit day, and why seniors write all over their cars during homecoming week, among other things, has been interesting.

It is sometimes a challenge getting across cultural barriers because my parents are more strict than the parents of my friends whose families have lived here for generations, and this is something my other first-generation Pakistani-American kids can agree with is a major difference. No doubt both sets of parents want the best for their kids, but to Pakistani parents it is taken very seriously; however, I wouldn’t want it any other way. Being a mixture of such different cultures lets you choose the best aspects of each and combine them to create your own unique identity. For example, I know my traditional Pakistani clothes always come in handy around Halloween and I know my knowledge of American customs can always help my parents out in their lives, so it's no doubt worth it!