Tag: culture

  • The Negative Things Asian Parents Say

    The Negative Things Asian Parents Say

    “Why didn’t you get full marks on the test?” “Why do you always come home so late?” “Why no discount on the chicken today?” These sentences are often the music to the average Asian kid’s ears, the average Asian kid who lives with Asian parents. Truth be told, a lot of things Asian parents often…

  • On Not Speaking My Mother Tongue

    On Not Speaking My Mother Tongue

    Growing up in Melbourne as an Australian of Chinese heritage, my parents consciously spoke to me in English day and night. Whenever they were deep in Cantonese conversation and I toddled up to them asking for a piece of chocolate, they stopped talking and sternly lectured me in English about the negative health impacts of…

  • What Is “Asian”? How Do We Define “Asian”?

    What Is “Asian”? How Do We Define “Asian”?

    Asian. It is a word we see and hear a lot in Australia when someone refers to a person with black hair, small eyes and yellow skin and their Chinese/Malay/Indian/Indonesian etc. heritage. Asian. It is also a word that has segregational connotations. A word that means different things to different people as well. When I…

  • Asian Australian Or Caucasian Australian, We’re All Australians

    Asian Australian Or Caucasian Australian, We’re All Australians

    I was recently invited to give a talk at Kurunjang Secondary College on what it means to be “different”, an Asian Australian living in a predominantly white Australia. As I walked to the front of the Year 12 class on a crisp winter morning, I noticed about twenty odd Caucasian and Asian students staring back…

  • Hi, I’m Asian. I’m Paying In Full And By Cash

    Hi, I’m Asian. I’m Paying In Full And By Cash

    I always pay for my purchases upfront. When I shop for my groceries and chocolates, I pay for them in full. When I buy something slightly more extravagant such as a bag, chair or laptop, I also pay in full. Upfront. I thought everyone paid in full for what they bought – with the exception…

  • Why Some Of Us Wear Shoes At Home

    Why Some Of Us Wear Shoes At Home

    Recently, I fleshed out a few reasons why many Asians tend to leave their shoes at the door and go barefoot at home. In reality, some of us don’t share this love of taking our shoes off before going indoors. Some of us especially in the Western world don’t recoil in horror at the thought…