I have a hard time accepting my Chinese culture because of stereotypes. When people say all Asians are nerds, I feel annoyed, but at the same time, impartial. Most Asians would take pride in that comment by saying that we are naturally smart, but I believe our culture pushes us to strive and do the best we can in anything we do. Living my life in a city, with everyone being as judgmental as they are, has made the struggle to accept my heritage easy and hard. Being in a city means that there is diversity, and yet, there are still stereotypes that differentiate each race.
Walking down the street and having people yell, “Ching chong chang” or “Ni hao” as I walk by is ironic in my eyes. Due to family mishaps when I was younger, I do not know much Chinese; I understand very little and barely know how to reply in Chinese. As much as it shouldn’t bother me, it actually does, which makes me respond to them. Why should I have to live like that when I would never want to make anyone feel inferior because of their culture? No one expects a little Asian girl to talk back to them and stand up for herself. This shocks most of them to the point where they are speechless and walk away, but others may add another comment. I do not understand what people get out of making other people feel bad, much less someone you do not know. There are certain instances in which I will get into an argument with someone over a comment they make about any Asian, and then there are others who just make stupid assumptions and I am just left standing there, speechless. I’ve just learned to stand up for myself, and my culture, dealing with judgmental people along the way.
Most people have said to me that their comments are not meant to be offensive, but they will never know the effect of their words on a person. Everyone has their own opinions on different matters, so how are their comments any different? Learning from my own experiences, I have learned to try not to judge anyone by anything that would be discriminating. It’s hard because oddly enough, some people might fit into their stereotype, which is probably why they exist. But even so, I would never make anyone feel bad about their culture, race or beliefs. I have always tried to be the bigger person. This has also made me appreciate the friends that I do have, that accept me for all my flaws. As the years progressed, I realized that my culture is something I shouldn’t be ashamed of.

I feel like I am very hard on myself when it comes to my grades because it was engraved into my mind ever since I started school, and honestly this is pretty accurate…

I don’t think its possible to describe anyone in just 8 pictures, even though people say pictures are worth a thousands words. First off, I would like to say family is very important to me, but not just my biological family, my friends who I consider family. My parents are divorced, and as a result of that I barely know my father; I don’t even know what his real name is! But besides that, my mother and I are not close at all. Since I do not know Chinese, there is a huge language barrier between me and the rest of my family. The only person in my family that I am really close to would be my older brother, Tonny. He basically became the father figure in my life, even though he is only two years older than me. The picture of us on Halloween from over a decade ago just shows how close we were and still how close we are now. The other two pictures are of my boyfriend’s family . I started going out with him when I was 13, and since then, his family has treated me like one of their own. The memories that I have with his family are crazy, fun, but mostly just happy. The follo wing pictures are of my friends and I. Although I may know a lot of people, there are very few people I consider best friends, people I would entrust my life with. One has been with me since I was five years old; another since I was 10 and the other I’ve recently become very close to. I would do anything for these people in my life, and I know, for a fact, they would do the same for me. The next two pictures are of my boyfriend. I’ve been with him for about five and a half years now. As some of you may know, I currently live with him. Although we’re very different people, I could not have imagined my life without him; he has shaped who I am today. In one of the pictures of him, you’ll see a little b**** on his lap. That’s our dog, Nylah. We got her when I first moved in and I cannot imagine not seeing her everyday. I love animals, but the love I have for dogs is incomparable. She’s the nicest, sweetest and stupidest dog you’ll ever meet, but I love her regardless. The last picture in my slide show is of my best friend’s dog napping on my back while I am trying to relax after a long day. I feel like this picture says a lot about me. When I’m not stressing out about school or work, I like to just chill out and lay anywhere and everywhere! It’s kind of funny how her dog, Bentley, did the same. So that’s it, my life in 8 pictures.