“Where are you from Laura?” “Which country do you feel you belong too?” “Do you miss your country at all?”. Being from a mixed-raced background I often get asked these questions. It’s impossible to explain in such detail what I have been trying to work out for many years. I have always struggled to give a straight forward answer to these questions. It’s only now that I realise the topic of identity and culture has many responses, which are unique to the person you are talking to. Perhaps culture isn't just defined by the country you originate from. Do we have to conform to certain traditions and customs our native country has set out for us? I think different aspects of life affect the way we naturally think, making how we live unique.
I am half Peruvian, quarter French, quarter British but born in Hong Kong. I enjoy dancing salsa, marinera and huayos, as well as doing a cha cha slide or YMCA at a British disco. I rave about the brightly coloured streets of Peru and the booming music coming from noisy motor taxis, yet I couldn't think of a cosier Christmas than sitting in front of a roaring fire, sipping at a creamy hot chocolate. Who doesn't love a good Chinese on a Friday night, but I wouldn't mind a slice of baguette and chunk of Brie before a sharp, late night Pisco. So why am I like this? Why are my customs so mixed and diverse and never consistent? After many years I have now come to realise that I don’t need to stick to one way of doing things. I haven’t grown up speaking one language, eating certain food, dancing to one tune. These things have formed how I live and view my life and what has made my own unique identity. I have my own way of doing things as any native person does. I have built for myself my own traditions as throughout my life I have never been able to stick to one. It is almost like I have made for myself my own culture, which no one can share in because no one is the same as me.
Having a mixed background left me troubled for some years as to which country I truly belong. I don’t pine for Peru, France, England or Hong Kong, yet I miss each one often. What’s helped me is the fact I know I carry my identity with me. This is not just for people with mixed back grounds but also for natives. Our home country doesn't define what we eat, how we live, how we dance or what we should think. Identity is about what’s inside you and what things in your personal life have made you who you are. For this reason I am not saddened by the fact I don’t have one country to which I can say I belong to. It’s almost like I have created myself my own country inside of me, that only I can say I belong to.
I have had the privilege of viewing the world in so many different ways. As the world is becoming smaller it is important to have an open mind and be understanding of different situations around you. As I see more and more children being born into mixed raced families, I feel as though this world will become a very different place. Perhaps traditions and customs will develop and change to be different or new ones may even be invented. Having more mixed-raced people in this world has brought with it a whole bunch of new skills such as more people being multi-lingual. The prospect of this has given me hope that the world will be able to better understand each other and work together to resolve the ongoing problems of today.
