How My Culture Influenced Me

Although I grew up with an American influence in my household, my family and Vietnamese culture has encouraged me to attain greater aspirations for myself and to become a better influence for a younger generation. Growing up with a very predominant Vietnamese influence within my household impacted every aspect of my daily life, from how I was raised as a child to how I see the world currently. Many things played a role in shaping me, for example my family and culture. I was raised by a single mom giving me a different outlook. My mom taught me that no matter what happens in the course of life, I have to be able to count on myself; she raised me to be independent and to stand on my own two feet. She did not want me to grow up dependent on anyone …show more content…
She inspires me to want to obtain bigger and better opportunities for myself; she has displayed to me that I should not settle for anything mediocre, instead I should reach for the stars. I grew up with my mom telling me that if I am determined and put my mind to it, I can accomplish anything. This may sound like something every parent tells their kid, but that’s not the case for me, because my mom acquired her goals from scratch. At the age of nineteen my mom immigrated to the United States from Vietnam, to escape the communist influence. She started out with nothing, no job, no money, and no knowledge of the English language, and was still able to earn her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Computer Science at Arizona State University. Now she holds a steady job and is able to provide a comfortable environment for my sister and I. Learning what my mom went through has taught me that I can and will be able to reach my target. No matter what the circumstances are, I can grasp my goals if I am dedicated and …show more content…
It’s ridiculous to think that something so minor can impact your growth in so many ways. I never thought that my students could change my outlook. Within my community I teach little children traditional Vietnamese dances to help them keep in touch with their culture and to give them a sense of where they come from. I’ll admit that at first, I saw this as an opportunity to get volunteer hours. However, as time started to pass, it slowly turned from volunteering into a passion. I never thought that those little kids would ever look up to me, because when I taught, I was the “mean teacher”. I was hard on them for a reason. I wanted them to be the best they could be, and when they went out to perform, I wanted them to be proud of themselves. I never considered myself to be a role model to them because of how hard I was on them. Normally, kids don’t look up to the mean teacher; they look up to sweet and caring teacher, and that was not me. They had weeks leading up to their first performance, and let me say it was not going well, at all. We would practice for hours at times, and the dance was still not getting any better. I continued to get frustrated with them, and made them run through the dance over and over. In simpler terms, it was a hot mess. I did not know if they were going to be able to pull it together in time. However, they did. After their first performance, their parents told me how much