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Italian daughter
My husband and I were born, raised and married in Italy. We moved to Houston, TX together in 1994 and had our daughter in 1996. She currently goes to a multi-cultural school where she has befriended many Bosnian girls. I never gave a second thought to the fact that the majority of her friends are Bosnian. Well, not until this morning. She came up to me and told me that she loves Bosnia and wishes she was Bosnian.
Now, don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the people, country, or culture. I adore being around her friends and their parents. I just fear that my child is losing her Italian background. How can I get her excited about the Italian culture again?
She is currently 9-years-old.
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IM italian and i didnt really apreaicate it until i was a lil older (like 11) because i learned about how hard it was when italians 1st moved here. So now i respect that. But if you want her to know her background, do things representing Italy. Make italian meals (we italians definatly got that down). And when she is old enough... give her a chain with an italian horn on it and explain it to her. My father gave me one and ive never taken it off. Do things to influence italian culture like italian opera, food, religions. ect. Well i hope i help
-High Hopes from the sicilian, Becky
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Hmm. PeRhaps a family vacation to Italy would be just the ticket? AnotheR option: if one is close to you, you can visit Little Italy! But if that is simply out of the question, you can puRchase video tapes fRom bookstoRes and even on PBS about all diffeRent sections of Italy. And I'm willing to bet youR local libRaRy offeRs them foR check out, as well. Even pull out old photogRaphs and home videos of youR husband and youRself as childRen. Also, you and youR daughteR can tRy cooking fine Italian dinneRs togetheR; I'm willing to bet she'd enjoy that veRy much. Also, since you've happen to have gRown up in Italy, you could tRy teaching heR Italian; just make absolutely shoRe you wouldn't be foRcing the language on heR. I'm soRRie I can't be of moRe help to you. I Realize these aRe things you've pRobably alReady thought of, but I wish you the best of luck!! Hopefully I've been of at least SOME help heRe! =D
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Sry, i didnt know i thought maybe you would dress how you dressed in Italy, it just seemed right o be if i moved to a diffrent country i wouldnt try to fit in. sry i was just trying to help, i thought maybe they would all dress diffrent diffrent cultures doint dress diffrent in my school. I'm sorry i wrote welcome to america, i thought that you would appreiate that i guess some people dont like to stick out. Maybe you can teach her somthing Italian that will intrest her maybe something as a simple hands on dish that she could help you make or a song or somthing!
13/f
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Well she probley still loves the italian culture but your doughter is just trying to be like here friends.Not beacuse she dislikes here culture but beacuse she just wantes to get to know here friends better. Love dildo
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i am 14 and 75% italian. i went through this when i was 8. i wished i was french. but what i think you should do is show her pictures you have of italy and cook the delicious italian food for her and remind her that she can be friends with anyone she want but she cant change who she is know matter what. for me it was just a faze, i was out of it by the time i was 11. i dont know about your daughter but i bet that one day she will be grateful of her italian heritage
hope i helped
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Well since she's been around many girls that are of that culture, it makes you want to be like that. Like, white boys who live in the ghetto who try to act black? It's basically the same concept. Maybe you should take her on a long trip to Italy in the summer, like a few weeks, and have her bring one of her friends along so that she isn't lonely being away from her friends. You can take her to the many beautiful places in Italy, visit family that you may have there and pretty much show her how lucky she is to be Italian.
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I think what your daughter may be enjoying is the familial bonds that are shared by her Bosnian friends. They are there with their families. Most likely they have large families, or they all get together in large groups to celebrate....what...family, and family ties. I am guessing here, but you said you and your husband moved from Italy. And then you had your daughter. So what could be missing is the grandparents, the aunts, the cousins, the sharing of their history, the old country, their customs. Things like that. Don't get me wrong, it sounds like you have done a wonderful job raising your daughter and you should both be proud of her. Some parents don't allow their children to interact with someone not of their nationality. I do have a suggestion though. Since you say you love being with her friends and their parents, maybe they would be comfortable with getting together for an Italian night. I think it is wonderful that you and your husband were both raised in Italy. What wonderful stories you could tell. I think your daughter's friends and their families would like to hear them. And if you feel comfortable, you can tell them why. If not, you don;t have to. You can suggest that on another night, you want to hear all about Bosnia. Maybe even Bosnia could go first. Being with the family and with your daughter will help you to see them through her eyes. And if the Bosnian families are as wonderful as I suspect they are, because they have embraced your daughter, they may be just as excited to hear about Italy. You can make some Italian dishes on Italy night, and they can make some Bosnian dishes on Bosnian night. If there is another nationality in the school that your daughter is friends with, another night can be their turn. This seems like a wonderful opportunity for all of you to get to know each other better. And understand each other's heritage. I wish all the world could be this way, but you know what. It starts small, with a group just like yours. I was a mentor to a young girl from Ecuador. After atime I was invited to a family christening.I was very honored. I knew that the invitation did not come lightly. During my time mentoring this young lady, 9/11 happened. I was glad to be there to help her through things She had so many questions. She loved this country and found only good things when she got her. She did not understand how other people could hate us so much.
I hope this sounds like a good idea. I wish I could be there to share it also. Good Luck to you all. And if you do go through with it Tell them all that Michele from CT said Hello, and God Bless.
Michele
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