I took a whiff of the hot,steaming chicken curry my mom had made. My mouth began to drool as I saw the boiling brown broth being served as the side for the chappati. Chappati is basically the indian version of a Taco shell,except it's thinner and lighter. It's practically tasteless on its own and needs a delicious side to accompany it. 

As I took a bite out of my main course, I heard a buzzing sound coming from my phone. My friend Jessica had texted me about the delicious fried rice and homemade spring rolls she had ate. Jessica was chinese and the smartest girl in our english class but sucked at math, which shocked some people because they thought that chinese people were all supposed to be good at math. 

Personally,coming from a community and school were racism is almost non-existent except for the few playful jokes we teenagers crack now and then. My school was extremely diverse with people all the from Asia to Latin America existing in perfect harmony. My friend group loves to visit each other's houses and I've personally tried a wide range of cuisine from Thai to Russian. 

It bothers me that even though America is so diverse,not everybody lives in peace and happiness like my community. People judge others on the basis of their skin color rather than what's inside of their heart. Race or ethnicity should not be the become someone's character.I remember walking down the road with my mom in India and we needed directions. I saw a woman in a saree coming our way.I was hesitant at first to ask her for any help because I wasn't fluent in the native language and immediately fell into the assumption that she didn't speak english because of her traditional clothing. 'I'll just give it a shot,' I thought to myself. I asked her and to my surprise she didn't just speak fluent english,she had an american accent! She told us she came here from California.

That moment,I realized that you can't judge see the good or bad in a person just by knowing their nationality or by the way they look. You need to talk to them and get to know them before jumping to conclusions. If I had judged the current friends I have right now in the same manner,I would have never had such  wonderful people in my life. People are stopping themselves from exploring different worlds and different cultures. Also,they are blocking out the adventures they could have. 

Remember to not only remain open to all kinds of people but also embrace your own culture. Wherever you are from,your culture is a part of you and you must never forget that. It mkes you unique and sets you apart from everybody else. Culture is one's identity and also one's greatest friend.  Never shun it or be ashamed of it,because if you do that,it's like shunning yourself.