SHAKIRA

YES, I NAMED MY POST TODAY SHAKIRA.DON'T WORRY I'M NOT TURNING EGOTISTICAL ON YOU GUYS. ITS JUST THAT SHAKIRA(THE LATINA SINGER) IS REALLY HOT RIGHT NOW.SO I GUESS YOU CAN SAY I NAMED THIS POST SHAKIRA FOR MARKETING PURPOSES,LOL. MY BIRTH NAME IS TRULY SHAKIRA,WHICH MEANS GRATEFUL UNTO ALLAH IN ARABIC.AND I AM VERY GRATEFUL UNTO GOD.HOPEFULLY ONE DAY,INSHALLAH,I CAN TELL THE WORLD AND THEY WILL LISTEN!! BUT BEFORE THIS CAN HAPPEN. I MUST UNDERSTAND WHY WE,PARTICULARLY AMERICANS,FLEE FROM DIVERSITY? I AM AMERICAN AND I EMBRACE MANY DIFFERENT CULTURES. BUT I'M FINDING THAT AMONGST MY PEERS OF MANY ECONOMIC AND EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUNDS DON'T FEEL AS I DO!! I'M DEEMED WEIRD BY THEM,LOL. WHATS WRONG WITH LISTENING TO WORLD MUSIC? WHATS WRONG WITH EATING FOOD FROM DIFFERENT CULTURES? WHATS WRONG WITH STUDYING RELIGIONS OUTSIDE OF THE SAFETY ZONE OF WESTERNIZATION? WHATS WRONG WITH HAVING FRIENDS FROM COUNTRIES ALL OVER THE GLOBE? DOES NOT BEING WELL TRAVELED AND WELL READ BREED INTELLIGENCE? DOES NOT BEING DIVERSE BRING UNDERSTANDING? DOES UNDERSTANDING NOT RID SOCIETY OF PREJUDICE? TO BE PREJUDICE FREE IS WHAT SOCIETY NEEDS!! THEN AND ONLY THEN WILL WE TRULY BE UNITED UNDER THE BANNER OF GLOBAL UNITY.FOR ESSENTIALLY,IN THE WORDS OF ALANIS MORRISETTE,WE  ARE ALL CITIZENS OF THE PLANET!!! SO I,SHAKIRA, DON'T FIT INTO YOUR PRE-SHAPED MOLD. I,SHAKIRA ,AM DIFFERENT THAN YOUR AVERAGE "AMERICAN WOMAN" AND I MAKE NO APOLOGIES FOR THAT. I,SHAKIRA,AM WHO I'VE ALWAYS BEEN AND WHAT GOD,ALLAH,JEHOVAH,JAH,YESHUA,RA,VISHNU OR WHATEVER ONE MAY CALL THEIR SUPREME MONOTHEISTIC GOD BY HAS WILLED ME TO BE. I,SHAKIRA,AM TRULY GRATEFUL UNTO GOD!!!