Other than having a foreign passport and being able to travel without visa, having a foreign parent has its perks! There are some life lessons that only a foreign parent will teach you whether your Egyptian parent likes it or not! Here are 10 things a non Egyptian parent will teach you well!
“my mom taught me to make my own mistakes and deal with them. She would give me advice and let me deal with it on my own”, Amirah Shalaby
Make Mistakes
Amirah Shalaby was born to an Australian mother and Egyptian father. When it comes to the things she learned from her mother, learning from mistakes is the first thing that comes to Amirah’s mind, “my mom taught me to make my own mistakes and deal with them. She would give me advice and let me deal with it on my own”, she tells.
Live more Freely
Lousiana Faaberg, whose father is Norwegian and her mother is Egyptian remembers being taught to always keep an open mind, “my dad taught me logical thinking when I’m in certain situations and to be more open minded and not take things too personally in our daily lives. Of course, he also gave me space to be more independent”, she explains.
Women Empowerment
Born to an Egyptian mother and Syrian father, Nour Mourad learned about women empowerment from her father and his family, “my dad and his brothers always had my aunts’ backs. One was divorced and single at an early age, and they never blamed her for it or treated her badly for being a divorcee. Women in our family were always independent and strong”, she says.
Punctuality
Nelly Nagm has an Egyptian mother and a Lebanese/Sudanese father. With this interesting combination in mind, the thing that she mentioned learning first from her father is being on time, “my dad definitely taught me to be punctual, and respect other people’s time”, she tells. Not only that, but she also ended up learning to live and let live from her father, “he also taught me to follow what I believe is right rather than thinking about society and people would say”, she concludes.
“Always hold your head up high, they can’t touch you if you stand proud”, Sabrina Khalil
Respect and Pride
Sabrina Khalil was born to a Canadian mother and Egyptian father. She learned a lot about respect from her mother, “my mom taught me to respect myself, others and my surroundings. Always hold your head up high, they can’t touch you if you stand proud”, she says.
Dating is OK
Mona Tantawy has an Egyptian father and American Mother. Since both parents come from very different backgrounds, they surely think differently about dating, “my mom is OK with me dating; she understands. While my dad just wants a guy to show up and ask for my hand in marriage”, she says.
Independence and Resilience
Jwaydan Anwar’s mother is from the UK and her father is Egyptian. She believes her independence comes from her mother, “she made me recognize I never need to be with anyone to make me happy. All I need is my will, my strength and my resilience”, she tells. Jwaydan also believes her mother taught her to be strong especially in regards to dealing with people, not allowing them to walk over or belittle her.
