“Why I Hid My Lunch” (Caroline D.)

In this writing, the main character is a Vietnamien who moved from Vietnam and into the United States, who is very shy not only in school but in many cases she fears mostly being in the cafeteria since not only does she sit alone, but she also has a food from China that is very uncommon in America. Rice, rousong, and dried up pork was her favorite food, but as she looked around, she saw that the common American meal were apples, sandwiches with some juice. A first grader came in and made fun of her favorite meal, calling it dried up carpet. The story explains how she moved on from that motive with feeling ashamed of where she came from, by others helping her move on. She eventually got brave enough to not care about what others thought about her and made some friends of her own and even helped those who were new to her school, reminding each and everyone of them that it didn’t matter what the students thought of her. 

This piece got my attention because it shows how people who are foreign move on from their old life and aren’t ashamed for where they came from. It not only showed her confidence in moving on, but it also showed how she helped others to conquer their fears from being ashamed of their origins.