I heard that I get to practice my English by writing on this blog. EXCITING! Where do I begin? Hmm, well, hopefully, you caught onto my name: Axelle Elise Aubain. I'm a half-French, half-Algerian girl with BEAUTIFUL curls. Most people with curly hair want straight hair, but I don't!
I'm sure you're wondering about my name, especially since I said I was half-Algerian. My dad is French, and my mom is from Algeria. For conformist purposes, my parents didn't want me to have an Algerian first or middle name. The French don't take well to foreigners, as I've been learning for years. I am a French citizen who was born and raised in Lille. However, since my parents' divorce five years ago, I've been living in Roubaix every other week and half of school vacations. It's a little living situation called une semaine sur deux. There's even a movie with that title, and I suggest you watch it. I can relate.
Let's talk about my background for a second. I live this this country called France. This country loves secularism and assimilation. Because of this, it is my dream to live in New York City. I know what you're thinking: why NYC? We French think of NYC like you Americans think of Paris. It's a magical idea. Anyway, I want to live in a place where it is okay to be different. The American Dream sounds beautiful to me.
Let's now talk about secularism. What is secularism? Have you ever heard of laïcité? Here's the deal. In France, we keep things secular. That is just a fancy way of saying that we believe in the separation of church in state. Sometimes, we believe in it so much that we think any expression of religion is bad. You cannot wear anything that indicates your faith in government-run places. For example, think twice before you wear that cross necklace to school. Most importantly, think twice before you wear your hijab, or head scarf, ANYWHERE. You definitely can't wear it in government-run places, but even if you wear it to places that aren't government-run, you are going to face discrimination and many prejudices. There is a fear that Muslims are taking jobs and the French don't like that many Muslims do not integrate into French society.
That leads us to the main problem about being a Muslim in France: lack of assimilation. Many French (not all, of course) resent that Muslims are not integrating into the culture and society. Many Muslims refuse to assimilate. Stereotypes do feed into it (thinking that all Muslims are terrorists, etc), but the biggest role is that Muslims just aren't as open to assimilation. That, in a nutshell, is why the United States sounds like an awesome country. The US doesn't push cultural and societal assimilation. Since the US was founded by immigrants, immigrants are accepted and welcomed.
How does any of this play into my problems? I'm a girl with no faith. I feel pressure from my mom to practice Islam, and I feel pressure from my dad to be a non-practicing Roman Catholic. What's worse is that I feel pressure from society to avoid Islam. They don't know the true Islam, though. The religion is about love, and it is actually more similar to Christianity than most people think. Those terrorists aren't true Muslims; they are extremists. I'm just so torn on this. I want to believe in something, but it's so hard when I'm being pulled in several different directions. Religion is important to my mom, and that is why the issue is so important to me. I eat halal foods when I'm with my mom, and after spending time with my mom, it's hard to be with my dad who likes to serve alcohol, which is strictly forbidden by the Qur'an.
I just don't know how to be true to myself AND how to be true to my parents. I don't want to upset either one by my choices.
Enough about that! Let's talk about ME!!! I'm clever, sneaky, nosy, and lazy. I admitted to my faults. I love to get into people's business and eavesdrop on conversations, all of which is HIGHLY frowned upon. I used to think it would be cool to be a private investigator. I ALWAYS find out the truth about people. My methods have yet to fail me.
I'm a dancer. I've been taking at the Ballet du Nord's studio since I was a wee little Axelle Aubain. I'm pretty good; my teachers and fellow dancers say so. However, I'm lazy and don't put as much time into ballet as I should. That sometimes leads me to get really crappy parts in productions.
I'm also lazy when it comes to school. I do just enough to get decent grades, but it's not like I kill myself over it.
I'm not as good of a friend as I'd like to be, but I'm working on changing that. Maybe.
I talked about the bad. Let's discuss the good. I am OBSESSED with writing. Writing is basically my life: it is my way to communicate my thoughts and ideas. I love creating and imagining things. I keep a very active journal, and I also write my own news articles. I want to be a journalist for La Voix du Nord someday. I even daydream about starting my own magazine for strong, Muslim women living in France. My brother, Benjamin, loves the stories that I write. I used to write stories just for him. He thinks I should be a children's author. We'll see!
That's all about me, for now! If you are still craving more, be sure to read my profile! If you have any questions for me, leave them in the comments! I would LOVE to answer them!
A tout à l'heure!
Axelle
