Shall I call him 'Abbu' or shall I call him 'Dad'? Shall I call her 'Daadi' or shall it be 'Grandma' in front of my friends? Shall I speak in Urdu or English with my Mother? Shall I make fun of the unusual dressing and a strange accent of those who have migrated from my mother land or shall I remain silent and think about my own distant relatives back home? Shall I enjoy the luxurious facilities at my birth place or shall I ridicule the lack of such lavishness at my parent's birth place? I am occupied with so many confusions; Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi!
You give me any gadget and I'll show how it works. You ask me all the latest about action games/movies and I'll give you each and every bit of information. You look at my music collection and you'll be amazed to find the quality of hip-hop and rock. You take away my laptop/PSP/Nintendo/Play station and I am unable to survive. You make me watch 'Gone with the Wind' and I'll say what a boring senseless movie. You make me listen to Ustaad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan or Muhammad Rafi and I'll close my ears with both hands before turning it off. I live in America in an American Style but yet I like to be known as a Pakistani - Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi!
I like the rare sunshine in my State, yet I hate the sunshine when I go to Pakistan. I hardly go there. I've just been there a couple of times for about a couple of weeks, yet I have made strong impressions about it. I have been there in summers, and I assume that the weather is always boiling hot in Pakistan. It's not my fault to make this assumption because I've never been to Pakistan in December or January. I don't like the rough condition of roads; I hate the pollution; I hate the awful smell of the feces of buffalo. This is Pakistan for me. The whole of Pakistan! It's not my fault if I haven't been to Islamabad or the posh areas of Lahore or Karachi. I assume no one in Pakistan can speak or understand English. It's not my fault if I have not been to some of the International level schools and Colleges throughout the country. I hate 'daal-sabzi' that I used to eat or the meat which had a foul smell; I hated Pakistan even more with each bolus that I unwillingly used to swallow. It's not my fault if I haven't been told about Hardees or Nando's or McDonalds or KFC chains throughout the big cities of Pakistan. I used to hate the 'lota' system in the toilets although it is much hygienic then the 'toilet paper' system back in the America. I can drink water from the sink in America but I was dependent on mineral water throughout my stay in Pakistan; Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi!
The city of Peshawar was an hour away from the village where I was staying. The chappli kababs were so delicious that irrespective of how many my stomach would allow, my hands were unable to resist. The other day I was in hospital due to dehydration caused by diarrhea. I started the blame game. Definitely it was Pakistan that made me sick, not that the case was my over-eating; Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi!
I'll look at the snaps of the beautiful locations of Northern areas of Pakistan and I'll confuse it with any location in Switzerland because no one has ever told me about such an amazing beauty of Pakistan. Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi!
No matter how much I hate visiting Pakistan, I cry whenever Pakistan Cricket Team loses a match. Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi. I live in a place where there is no load shedding of both electricity and gas; yet I hate Zardari for the stories which I've heard about his corruption and the load shedding in Pakistan although it makes no difference to my life; Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi.
For me, Pakistan is just a small rural village which is located somewhere near the glamorous Bollywood; yet I want India to lose when it is playing against Pakistan. Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi. I can go clubbing, I can have a bit of whisky, I can obligate namaz just once in a year; yet I'll ALWAYS buy a fish burger from McDonald's- the only HALAL product they have. Yes, I am an American-Born-Confused-Desi.
fact!
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