U.S. diplomatic families sometimes take part in “international days.” These are celebrations by diplomats in a particular country of all the countries with representatives there. Each country serves foods of their particular nation.

The question by one American diplomatic wife relates to the difficulty of finding foods representative of the United States. Laura Keys Ellsworth , a U.S. diplomatic family member, asks “. . . each year I desperately wrack my brain to come up with something beautifully American to present.” (“International Day: The American Problem,” The Foreign Service Journal, April 2018)

So far as I know, most of my ancestors immigrated from the British Isles. However, I love Mexican tacos, Near Eastern/African stews, and Japanese teriyaki. Add to that, a Chinese meal or maybe a dessert of French crème brûlée.

Perhaps nowhere are our melting pot origins more evident than in our foods. Our various menus are a delectable variety. This variety is one example of the advantages we have enjoyed by welcoming immigrants from every country on earth. Of course, we welcome more than additions to our culinary menus.

We welcome laborers and professionals and students and refugees. Yes, sometimes the number who wish to come challenge us with the need for orderly ways to manage the flow. Yet, isn’t it better to live in a country where people want to come than living where people want to leave?