Poem

Disappointment
To who?
To you, to my family, to my religion
I've lost track.

Do you not remember that little girl
that would always look up to you?
Does she mean nothing to you anymore?

I've worked so long
and so hard
fighting for your approval
and this time
I'm the one who's disappointed.

But now I quit
Wasting my life on you
isn't worth wasting my happiness

But I can't help but question why I was never good enough...

Family Story

My family is from Pakistan. Both of my parents were born in Karachi and later on moved to America. My mom didn't live there long. She ended up moving to America when she was only 4 but she would go back to visit every year. However my dad stayed there until just before his 17th birthday. He came here for college by himself. My dad was on his own for a while and had to find ways to be independent and his story of coming here on his own will always be an inspiration to me. While here he also stays very true to his culture and tries to instill those values in my brother and I as well which I am very grateful for.

Letter To My Child

Dear Future Child,

I've never been the greatest with kids but I hope this letter helps you out a little bit. I guess the biggest thing I want you to do is to not regret not doing something. Don't miss out on opportunities that could end up being once in a lifetime chances. Soon you'll be out of high school and trying to focus on college and then after that working at a job and before you know it you'll be in your sixties and retired regretting all the the things you didn't get to experience when you were young.

Also don't forget to be yourself. As incredibly cheesy as that sounds it's true. This world has a way of forcing us to be people we don't want to be. Stay true to yourself so that when you're older you don't have to spend your time trying to discover yourself and you can spend it experiencing what life has to offer and being confident in who you are.

Love,
Mom