I don't speak Spanish Seriously!!!

When did it become culturally excepted to just assume. I was always told don't make assumptions, but over the last 10 years of my life there have been numerous occasions i have been mistaken for someone i am not. Who is this Maria??? Because it is certainly isn't me. Yes yes i do understand that my nickname does translate to Maria but i am certainly not a Maria. Actually i am far from a Maria, I am a Maryam.

I recently had yet another hit and run of my ethnicity. I was out in Fort Collins, grabbing dinner at La Luz. As i was waiting for my order to be called, i heard one of the cooks yelling my way apparently i didn't get the memo my order was ready from him yelling Maria. Much to popular belief individuals that go by Mary don't respond to Maria. The only reason i realized he was speaking to me was from the continuous bantering in Spanish. I responded by saying Thank you and have a nice night in english. But he continued in spanish. I wanted to yell i don't speak spanish, I AM IRANIAN. I know i know why does this bother me so, well if you have known me over the years this hasn't been the first time. My annoyance all started when my 8th grade industrial tech teacher referred to me as Maria and informed my fellow classmates to refer to me as Maria as well. He was convinced that i was of some kind of spanish, hispanic, mexican blood. Still wasn't convinced when he met my parents which are clearly Iranian. It was a never ending belief, after 4 years had based i ran into him again and he acknowledged me as Maria. These are just two of the reasons why i hate being referred to as Maria.

In a final out cry to make a point... it isn't that i hate the spanish, hispanic ,mexican society and wouldn't like to be a part of it, it just that it isn't me. Even, when people come up to me and ask me where i am from... i could easily lie and say Spain. That would be the easy way to go in times like these....But that would be lying, I AM IRANIAN.