Italian | Armenian/Greek

Photo credit: provided by subject

I identify as mixed Italian, Armenian & Greek. I am Christian Evangelical & straight. My Father is Italian, born and raised in Italy, were I was born and raised as well. My Mother was born and raised in Armenia, but her Grandmother was born in Greece. I like to be identified as Greek, because of the richness of these three countries. They met on the internet; my Mom was a huge fan of the soccer team Juventus and she was on a fan group. My Father noticed her, and they started talking. My Mother had this dream to go and live in Italy and my Father wanted to help her because he loved her. Today my parents are divorced but my Mom is still grateful for how my Father helped her to make her dream come true.

My parents spoke in English when they first met, but when they started dating my Mum started to learn Italian. They didn't listen to the same music because Armenia, which was part of the Soviet Union, wasn't allowed to listen to some kinds of music, or even watch American TV and cinema. Italy, Armenia and Greece are three countries with a huge history, as well as their cuisine. I never missed a chance to eat Italian food but in Italy there wasn't a large Armenian knowledge. If you wanted to eat Armenian food you had to go directly in Armenia. But now slowly, Armenians from around the world started to bring some cultural knowledge, through their delicious food and their amazing music.

I never choose a partner based on their race or skin color. Now I'm in a relationship with an Italian boy and every day we grow from each other's cultures. I was born and raised in Italy but still there are many parts of this amazing country I have to learn about. I'm proud of my culture differences and since I was a kid I always tried to talk about my Armenian side because, there's still no complete knowledge on this huge culture and I always try to beat ignorance and share it with people who never heard of it.

My parents and Grandparents were born in a time were if your skin was Black you were the centre of the prejudices. I was born in a time were these prejudices are finally fought for the complete acceptance of every kind of people. Being the Whitest person I know (because my skin looks like the skin of a vampire) and also believing in a God who died for the sins of the world, doesn't allow me to consider myself higher than anybody else. I don't consider myself as a White person, I consider myself a human-being with the dream of leaving my future children a world of justice and acceptance.

When I was in middle school, I experienced racism because of my Armenian roots, and also for my faith, which was a little fragile at the time. Time passed by and things went for the better. Now I share my identity without any fear and if I have the chance to defend others who are experiencing the same thing, I don't stand by and watch.

I have visited all my native countries, but because I want to go a travel also in other places sometimes I miss the chance to go back and see my family. I guess my understanding and connection to each of my cultures is likely to evolve through life and growth, it's completely normal. When I was a kid I considered my race as one of the best in the world but now I understand that no race is perfect. Every race is unique in every way, but no race is better than others.

I'm currently a student, and in my school there are so many cultures and different sexual orientations and religions. Today it's completely normal to have classmates with different cultures and it is only a positive side, every person is an enrichment.

I'm obsessed with Black cats, so I guess if I had the opportunity to be reborn it would be as a Black cat! But speaking seriously, I wouldn't change a physical thing about me, but I guess some parts of my personality. I get anxious very easily, I sometimes judge people for the words they use, even my boyfriend is exhausted of me because I keep telling him not to say bad words. So I guess to be more confident in myself and to not be the judge of anyone. 

I believe that God is real. In my life, I met so many people who tried to help me during my most difficult times, but no one supported me like Jesus did. I don't want to try to convert anyone, I just want to say that if you want to be helped in some parts of your life that are not going well, you can always ask God. He might seem silent sometimes but it's not because He doesn't want to hear us, it's just that we have to open our ears and hearts, because He speaks through His Word and in little whispers. If you want to listen to those little whispers, every little thing that seem not be right will have a sense. May you find the peace you need and the way to walk through. God bless you. 

To be honest, I always lived like I was in quarantine, so this pandemic wasn't really a new thing for me. But honestly, this was different, because I've found some part of myself that some time ago I left behind. I used to write poems, play the guitar and dance, but for some reason I didn't do any of these things anymore. Thanks to this pandemic, I've found these qualities of mine again and now I'm keeping them very close.