Home Grows with Us
“…right as I was ready to bloom, I was uprooted and replanted in unfamiliar soil 4,130 miles away…”
The Acorns Once Asked Me
“Home is a puzzle in the warmth of the sun”
Ramen-cing Taste Buds Everywhere
“Wreathed in steam, spice, and slurping, ramen elicits in me a kind of nostalgia and longing for home. Cooking ramen thus becomes a cultural act: a way to feel better and more connected to my roots.”
I Changed My Name
“The thought of people calling me stuff like “Sergio” or “Aaron” just felt… wrong. Like they were referring to someone else.”
One Day + A Few Hours: An Overnight In Heathrow Airport
“For the first time in many years, I didn’t have to pull out what felt like a family history book because I didn’t align with people’s perceptions of me. Eva heard my three-fold identity and instead of questioning my identity, she returned with her complicated one. “
Burmese Christmas
“Moving away from home surprisingly made me closer to my culture.”
Extent of Sports Culture in American Education
“Sports are a big part of my life. It has taught me how to face failures, to be dedicated, and to be disciplined.”
Winter Dance Concert
“…despite the year upon years of living in China, speaking Chinese, and training in Chinese dance, I am still, in the other “locals’” eyes, a foreigner and an American, to be specific. However, after coming to Milton the fall of 2019, I realized that, despite the Chinese people and my passport’s hinting that I am from the United States, there was almost nothing about me that was American.”
Homesickness
“There was a community I could fall back on. They reminded me that I wasn’t the only Indonesian girl living in Saudi Arabia that forgot her native language. They acknowledged every part of my convoluted, third-culture identity.”
Chinese American Cuisine
“Thanks to my friend’s mom’s amazing culinary skills, I devoured all kinds of Chinese delicacies – sweet and sour ribs, spicy chicken, stir-fried pork with chili, you name it. I relished those home-cooked meals more than anything else, especially after a few dining out experiences in the US.”