Overview of My Cultural Identity Essays

Overview of My Cultural Identity Essays Overview of My Cultural Identity Essay Overview of My Cultural Identity Essay My parents were born and raised on the tiny islands of Tonga located in the South Pacific. My father worked alongside his father for most of his early life fishing and tending to the family farm before and after school. My mother lived in the city. She was a bright student and had many opportunities to excel during her middle and high school years. I was born and raised in Oakland, CA. Oakland is home to a large Tongan community and most of my early life was spent in this tight knit circle. My earliest memory of Oakland will always remain with me and is a reminder of how Oakland was then, and how it is even today. On our way to school one morning there was a commotion in the street as we walked towards the school. Two men began to fight and I remember each of them drawing knives and one of them stabbing the other as he laid lifeless in the street. This was my introduction to the environment I would be raised. Even today I am still proud to call Oakland, CA my home. I was raised in a very religious, strict and cultural home. My father was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, better known as the Mormon church during his first year of high school. To him, it became an even better decision when he found out school tuition would be less expensive. My mother was born and raised in the church. We attended church regularly, had family prayers daily, and many of the activities in our home were family oriented. The Tongan language was used in our home and English was only spoken outside of our home at school or at work. My mother tells me I had a difficult time the first few years of school becoming used to the English language. Family connections in the Tongan culture are very important. Cultural practices that were common during the early years of Tongan culture still exist today in the islands and in any part of the world you find us. I interacted with distant relatives as if we were brothers and sisters on a