“So…Where
are you from?”
“Uh…where
do I begin…?”
Don’t
ask me where I am from.
Like
many international students, I have a very hard time answering that question. I
guess the main problem is, what exactly does it mean when someone asks you where
you’re from. Another
confusing thing about this question to me is often times there isn’t just one
answer. Whether you want to refer to where I live, where I was born or the
culture of my parents, only one answer rarely reflects who I truly am.
As an
international student I am influenced by many cultures, I don’t want to choose
one place in particular. So who am I?
I am Taiwanese, born in Los Angeles but I grew up in Thailand.
I am Taiwanese, born in Los Angeles but I grew up in Thailand.
What a mouthful! Nowadays I just stick with a simple “I grew up in Bangkok, Thailand”. But this often leads to confusion that I am Thai (which I am not) and why I am “so fluent in English”. Sigh*.
Perhaps asking "Where I am from" translates to "Where I call home"...With so many cultures and countries that I relate to, I can't pick just one place. I'm kind of suffering from an identity crisis and a lack of sense of belonging. I can't call the US home, I've never lived there longer than 3 years. I can't call Thailand my home, I barely know the culture nor do I speak the language fluently. And I can't call Taiwan my home either. I suppose international students like myself have a hard time answering "Where are you from" because we identify ourselves with so many countries but none at the same time. We can't choose one without feeling like we've cheated on other parts of our identity. We deal with the obnoxious close-minded assumptions that we don't speak English, and after some explaining I get the surprised but impressed look paired with "Oh, thats so fascinating!". What am I? A new animal hybrid discovered by German Scientists? Seriously.
So to sum it up why I hate answering this question is because in my own head, I begin to question my own identity. And jokes about my real gender (thanks to The Hangover II and their portrayal of transgender people) doesn't help really either.
Perhaps asking "Where I am from" translates to "Where I call home"...With so many cultures and countries that I relate to, I can't pick just one place. I'm kind of suffering from an identity crisis and a lack of sense of belonging. I can't call the US home, I've never lived there longer than 3 years. I can't call Thailand my home, I barely know the culture nor do I speak the language fluently. And I can't call Taiwan my home either. I suppose international students like myself have a hard time answering "Where are you from" because we identify ourselves with so many countries but none at the same time. We can't choose one without feeling like we've cheated on other parts of our identity. We deal with the obnoxious close-minded assumptions that we don't speak English, and after some explaining I get the surprised but impressed look paired with "Oh, thats so fascinating!". What am I? A new animal hybrid discovered by German Scientists? Seriously.
So to sum it up why I hate answering this question is because in my own head, I begin to question my own identity. And jokes about my real gender (thanks to The Hangover II and their portrayal of transgender people) doesn't help really either.
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