"I think that cultural awareness is so important in societies all over the world. In order to be able to accept our differences, we must be able to understand these differences."
-Princess (Me) ;)
I remember when I was in Kindergarten, I was about five years old and it was time for lunch. I sat with one of my classmates and took out my lunch box. In it, wrapped in aluminum foil, was my sandwich of warak 3nayb (grape leaves) stuffed into a pita bread, which my Mama (Allah yrhamha) would wrap up for me quite frequently cuz it was my favorite. My classmate took one look at my sandwich and said, "EW! What is that?!" Quite frankly, I don't remember how I felt or how I reacted to her comment but I do know that I remembered thinking, "Hey, what's wrong with warak 3nayb?"
Fast-forward to about a week ago on April 23, when I was watching Oprah and she's doing an interview with one of my all-time favorite role model, Queen Rania of Jordan. The interview was amazing as usual for Queen Rania, she's so well-spoken, poised and elegant, Masha'Allah. I would have loved to share the interview with all of you, but it's not available online. You can read about it on Oprah's website: http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Queen-Rania-of-Jordan/1
So, in this interview, Queen Rania promotes education and talks about her great new children's book, 'The Sandwich Swap,' where she shares a very similar story to mine, but with a twist. This book is great in promoting cultural awareness and understanding, especially starting at a young age, because this is a children's book. I think it's a must have for anyone, with younger siblings, parents, teachers and anyone really.
Check out this interview with Queen Rania on ABC, where she discusses the book's summary and concept. Enjoy!
-Princess
