American at Heart | Teen Ink

American at Heart

August 21, 2008
By Anonymous

There are various people in the United States that vary in religion, culture and many ethnic differences. To every person, an American is a dissimilar concept and idea because there is such diversity of life.

An American in the eyes of an immigrant is someone who is free. This land in which we live is known as the Promised Land, somewhere where freedom and dreams can be fulfilled compared to a life in which was restricted in another country. Some natives live in a country where their government restricts its people on what they can wear, what religion they can practice, or even what they can do with their lives. We as Americans are lucky enough to live in such a nation that has a stable government that allows each individual to be who they are. Of course we have laws of restrictions that can be fair and at the same time unjust, but without restrictions the nation would crumble of human destruction and hazardous actions. Coming to America, there is an unlimited amount of opportunities that one can achieve. It is here that motivation and drive is encouraged when it comes to accomplishing a goal or dream. Anything is possible and can be reached in America, and I feel that immigrants view this country as just that.

An American, in the eyes of a citizen born in this country, may be viewed differently than that of an immigrant. After writing that sentence and repeating it back to myself, I realize there is no true meaning of what an American is. This world is made up of billions of people, each with their own uniqueness, minds, and overall lives. Some people in the United States may consider being an American just living everyday in a routine where you wake up, go to work, and sleep; living in such a vigorous and never-ending cycle. At another look through different eyes, teenagers for instance look at the world as one question, for all they know is that of their town and the limitations that they have been compelled to respect and follow. They know only what they hear of the world through television, such as corruptness, war, and crime. Is that what an American is? Isn’t that the question that is here for me to answer?

There is no answer. There is no complete and definite answer to such a question. America is diversity; America is freedom; America is every word in which your mind can think of. It is corrupt, yet it is peace. It is filled with acceptance, yet there is racism. Being an American is no more than living your life in a land. You are who you are, and whether it comes with the title of being an American or not, the life in which you live is still going to be unraveled. Maybe there will not be technology reliance’s or fast food addictions, but one thing is true and that is that being an American is all in how you live your life. We all have stereotypes and we all criticize each other for being different, but dissimilarities is what makes us Americans; makes us people that come from such opposite background and yet can live together in, not always in harmony, but one can think of it as just that.

What is an American? Such an answer is in the eye of the beholder. Whether you are white, black, or any other race, the answer is within yourself, for everyone living in this country is an American at heart.


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