By: Rachel Chen

Yum! The thought of Chinese food just made my mouth water. Ever since I was born, I have always thought of Chinese food as beautifully rich in flavor, hugely diverse, and so addicting. One of my favorite foods is chicken feet. Although they have so many bones and are very hard to eat, chicken feet are absolutely delicious. They are sweet and savory, and the skin of chicken feet is very chewy.

Chicken feet in Chinese is called 凤爪 (Phoenix Claws), and it is the symbol of protection, luck, and even, divination. The claws of chicken feet are meant to scratch away negativity, pushing away evil spirits and negative energy. My family and I always eat chicken feet on holidays to bring us good luck, so I was very excited when my mom packed me chicken feet, my favorite food, for lunch today.

The smile on my face spread from ear to ear, as I carefully took out my lunch box from my backpack during lunchtime at school. However, although chicken feet smell appealing to me, my classmates might have thought the stench smelled too strong. Other kids wondered whose lunch smelled like this and they soon crowded over me.

“Ew! What is that, Melissa?” Jenny asked me.

“These are chicken feet, my favorite food!” I replied with a smile.

“That is absolutely disgusting! It looks awful! I bet that is what is causing that awful smell!” Jenny said as others nodded their heads in agreement. The smile on my face quickly vanished. I couldn’t understand why my classmates criticized my food, which was so delicious and flavorful. I also thought chicken feet smelled amazing.

“But chicken feet are so delicious!” I exclaimed with shock, but Jenny and others still walked away holding their noses. I was a little embarrassed that my classmates thought my food was weird and disgusting, but I shrugged it off.

The next day, I brought in some century eggs (皮蛋), which are duck eggs that have been preserved in salt, lime, and ash. Making century eggs is one of my favorite things to do with my mom. I was so happy and excited eating my lunch until Jenny showed up next to me.

“Your lunch today is even worse than yesterday! Eggs are not supposed to be black and green. They are supposed to be white and yellow. Chinese food is so weird and abnormal. American food is so much better tasting and looking!” Jenny replied. I could feel my cheeks turning red with embarrassment as Jenny and some other girls snickered at me. This is already the second time! Maybe she is right. I should try some American food. This will stop Jenny and others from laughing at me and I will fit in more, I thought. I was so embarrassed from these two incidents that I wanted to sink into the ground with shame and never come out again.

That night, I asked my mom, “Can you pack me an American lunch, such as a sandwich?”

“Why?” My mom asked.

I didn’t know how to answer this question because I knew my mom would be too worried if I told her the truth, so I said, “A classmate of mine let me try some of her American lunch and I thought it was really good.

“Oh okay! I will pack you a ham and cheese sandwich tomorrow!” My mom smiled. I was relieved and worried at the same time because I knew my mom was a little suspicious.

That night while I was in bed, I tried holding my tears back, but I still ended up crying my eyes out. I felt that no one understood me and all I could do was disguising myself as someone else to fit in. That was the only choice if I wanted others to stop making fun of me, right?