Part of Both, Belonging to Neither
It was the first day of kindergarten, and I was already crying. It all started with a simple assignment. “Write a sentence about yourself.” My teacher announced to the class. The room quickly filled with chatter as my classmates talked about possible ideas for their sentences. Staring at the first page of my new composition book, my mind went completely blank, realising that I had no idea what to write. At that time, I was behind on English compared to average kids because I spoke Cantonese at home. Therefore, I was never taught how to read or write. Since I was a naive 5-year-old, I could not comprehend why I was the only one incapable of creating sentences that everyone else was easily doing. Nervously, …show more content…
When Henry David Thoreau was asked if he ever felt lonely, in his book, Walden, he criticizes society with his reply: “I have never felt lonesome, or in the least oppressed by a sense of solitude... What sort of space is that which separates a man from his fellows and makes him solitary? I have found no exertion of the legs can bring two minds much nearer to one another.” Similar to Thoreau, while I may be in solitude being someone stuck in the middle of two cultures, I am not lonely. No matter how society wants to judge the way I categorize in life, I am satisfied with the position that I am in. As I grew up, I met more people and discovered the world a little bit more. I have made friends who like me for me, regardless of the background I was born in. I understand that I am different, but it does not change my character. Ethnicity and culture can make you different from others, but it is your personality that builds the character inside of you and makes you a unique person. While embracing my culture is good, embracing myself is better. In the end, being Chinese or American doesn’t matter as much, because I am still me. Instead of asking myself which culture I should choose, I ask myself, who is the person inside of me, because that is who I
It was the first day of kindergarten, and I was already crying. It all started with a simple assignment. “Write a sentence about yourself.” My teacher announced to the class. The room quickly filled with chatter as my classmates talked about possible ideas for their sentences. Staring at the first page of my new composition book, my mind went completely blank, realising that I had no idea what to write. At that time, I was behind on English compared to average kids because I spoke Cantonese at home. Therefore, I was never taught how to read or write. Since I was a naive 5-year-old, I could not comprehend why I was the only one incapable of creating sentences that everyone else was easily doing. Nervously, …show more content…
When Henry David Thoreau was asked if he ever felt lonely, in his book, Walden, he criticizes society with his reply: “I have never felt lonesome, or in the least oppressed by a sense of solitude... What sort of space is that which separates a man from his fellows and makes him solitary? I have found no exertion of the legs can bring two minds much nearer to one another.” Similar to Thoreau, while I may be in solitude being someone stuck in the middle of two cultures, I am not lonely. No matter how society wants to judge the way I categorize in life, I am satisfied with the position that I am in. As I grew up, I met more people and discovered the world a little bit more. I have made friends who like me for me, regardless of the background I was born in. I understand that I am different, but it does not change my character. Ethnicity and culture can make you different from others, but it is your personality that builds the character inside of you and makes you a unique person. While embracing my culture is good, embracing myself is better. In the end, being Chinese or American doesn’t matter as much, because I am still me. Instead of asking myself which culture I should choose, I ask myself, who is the person inside of me, because that is who I