Welcome to My Ways
My name is Urmi and Welcome to My Ways
Let me tell you a little bit about myself by sharing 3 fun facts about me!
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1. Let's start by name- You can call me Urmi, Urmetta, Urmita, Urma, or Wave. Urmi is a Bengali name and means wave. Like a wave, I always try to be strong, strong enough to surpass all the life obstacles, never wanting to feel threatened by what life throws at me and ready to fight! #wavesfordays.
Did you know that Gal Gadot shares the same name meaning? Yep, Gal is a Hebrew name and means wave as well, so I guess deep down, I am also Wonder Woman
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2. I LOVE PASTA!
Pasta is my first true love. Never left my side whenever I needed a delicious, succulent, and cheesy plate of pasta with tomato sauce. I can definitely consider myself a pasta addict! I can eat it every day at every moment of the day and I have no shame to say it!
There are so many kinds of pasta shapes, and sauces that it is so hard not to give in to the temptation of mixing and matching recipe ideas! Indeed like Federico Fellini, I like to believe that
"Life is a combination of magic and pasta." - Federico Fellini
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3. I love to “leave a sparkle everywhere I go”. This quote by Kate Spade inspires me so much and motivates me to give back to the world through donations and my time through volunteering. Devoting my time to non-profit organizations is one of the most rewarding and self-fulfilling activities I love to engage with. Whether it is to volunteer in a children’s hospital, help less fortunate women to financially empower themselves, or provide friendly visits to elderly who feel lonely and isolated, there is nothing better in this world than bringing a bit of a smile to someone’s life.
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Born in Italy, to immigrant Bengali parents, I always felt the struggle of not belonging to any of the two contrasting worlds. I grew up in a household dictated by rigid rules on things like - what to say, how to behave, how to dress, or more importantly “what will people say” as opposed to the western culture that always gave you the freedom to do what you wanted; I never felt Italian enough nor Bengali. It was indeed hard for me to explain to my Italian friends why I couldn't hang out with them or go over to their places.
I was never encouraged to pursue my passions, to raise my opinions, that oftentimes, I felt a true failure and disappointment in my parent's eye, if not the whole Bengali community, when I wasn't able to meet the standards of their “perfect Bengali girl” and behaved more like “an Italian girl”. Unfortunately, till nowadays that feeling is always there; always worried about bringing shame and tainting their reputation by my actions.
The truth is I can't change my true self to meet people’s expectations. I am both Bengali and Italian. This is who I am. I wasn't born to fit a box, but rather to create my own. It is about embracing both cultures and finding beauty in one each of them. It is what makes the world so beautiful and so unique.
The world is full of people like me. Being different should be celebrated, accepted, and welcomed.
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One of my favorite quotes by Gandhi is “Be the change you wish to see in the world” and with that, I hope to make a change myself
