In the story, “from if You Are What You Eat, Then What Am I?” by Geeta Kothari, it reflects on how one can feel as if they don’t fit in because of their culture.
In the story, Geeta is at a young age barely experiencing life when she realizes that people that surround her are not like her because they eat different food than what her and her people eat. At some points, things are taken to the next level when characters close to Geeta try to fit in by eating food that they personally might not enjoy but do it for the sake of feeling the sense of belonging. The basic moral of this story is that sometimes you do things that you might not enjoy just to feel as if you belong.
Such example can be seen in the text on paragraph 11, where the Narrator’s sister experiences pain after trying to eat a hot chili only to be like the adults. “…my sister reaches for his plate and puts a chili in her mouth. She wants to be like the grown-ups who dip green chilies in coarse salt and eat them like any other vegetable. She howls inconsolable animal pain for what must be hours.“ As can be seen, one will do anything to fit in even if uncomfortable with the circumstances/results.
Another example shown in the text is on paragraph 1 when Geeta’s food cravings are being influenced based on what kids in her school eat. “ I want to eat what the kids at school eat: bologna, hot dogs, salami—foods my parents find repugnant because they contain pork and meat by-products, crushed bone and hair glued together by chemicals and fat.”
Clearly, being surrounded by people from different cultures can affect you deeply to the point where you want to do something that is seen as unacceptable to important people in your life. Life can sometimes tempt you to make choices caused by peer pressure that might seem inapposite to people close to you.
This text connects my thoughts and makes me relate to a story called, “Kaffir Boy“ by Mark Mathabane. In the story, Mark believes he is not meant for school because of his troubled past and origin. Later on, Mark overcomes all self doubts and continues to strive for a better education. In the end, all his hard work pays of because he passes the humiliation and wins a scholarship to an American University.
Both of these texts can help realize that no matter your origin, culture or past, you shouldn’t be pressured into changing certain things about yourself that you simply can’t. Whether you desire a scholarship, or to simply fit in, it is important to never think that being different is wrong. We are not all the same. We are all different yet equal. Living in a foreign place shouldn’t determine your lifestyle. One can not change who they are or what they have done in the past. If such capability was given it would be inhuman because we are after all what we eat, and if what we eat is determined on our culture we just simply can’t change even if we chose to.
