“What do you want to be when you grow up?”  “An artist!”  Throughout elementary school, that was my instinctive response. I knew I liked the freedom offered by a blank canvas and the satisfaction...

As a 12-year-old, I would read “How to Write Your College Essay’” prep books. My parents thought it was a good idea to expose me to these ideas, as it was never too early to start preparing for my...

The incessant noise that often fills my head with doubts and carries my pessimistic attitude towards life is briefly lost in the wind as I ride out my fantasies as an outlaw during America's gilded age...

I looked in awe at my mother getting dressed for a party in traditional Indian clothes, jewelry and makeup. It was expected of me to dress similarly, but I couldn’t help feeling that it simply wasn’t...

Magnus Carlsen received a standing ovation after winning a brilliant fight against reigning World Chess Champion Vishwanathan Anand. Carlsen secured his title as the new champion with a grueling draw in...

Note: This story contains references to content that may be triggering for those who have experienced trauma or are sensitive to topics concerning sexual violence, self-harm or mental illness. With...

Why did I apply to 25 colleges, in spite of popular advice and appreciation for my sanity? Besides competitive admissions for my major and uncertainty about my strength among the applicant field, I disregarded...

My story started in a city North of New York City called Poughkeepsie. The concept of diversity there was so foreign that a local news reporter featured me and my friend for wearing traditional Indian...

Screeching songs about jingle bells, throwing tinsel on trees, hastily wrapping last-minute gifts and baking box double-chocolate brownies for a fat white man and his fat reindeer — while my phony Christmas-infused...

It was a question that my parents had asked and one I had asked myself countless times during the summer before high school. I had quit nearly all my extracurricular activities, so as I entered high school,...

The streets of San Jose, Calif. were deserted on a stormy night in 1997 when Seetha and Sankara Sarma arrived at the lobby of Motel 6, drenched and holding a 5-year-old child in their arms. My parents...

In a second grade classroom, as winter rain darkened the window, my 7-year-old self sat at her desk and thought about how one day, she might not be Lillian Fu anymore. She would have some other last name,...