In this story by Sara Farizan, a bisexual Iranian-American teen makes her grandmother’s day by asking her to teach her to cook Persian food. Her request has an ulterior motive… to introduce the grandmother to her girlfriend. The teen had come out to her parents twelve months earlier, and her girlfriend felt left out by not being included in family dinners with her grandmother. Over dinner, the observant grandmother guesses the true nature of the girls’ relationship. Themes include family, love, sexuality, insecurity, fear of rejection vs. pride in who you are, acceptance.
Why I Learned to Cook Text / PDF (3,600 words)