I got a couple of comments about it, one of which was the following:
- Carlos P said...
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Perhaps a bit disingenuous, but the way I see it I was raised somewhere that is NOT the US. No matter what kind of situation you are in while living in a place like Guatemala, it is NOT the US. It is, like any other place in the world, completely unique. So moving to the US afterwards, while being much easier for me than some other people (i.e. those that don't know english, have darker skin, etc.), was still an adjustment. An adjustment that was not easy at all.
The blog would focus on those adjustments and the new life that comes with being someone who carries a culture and experience in his heart and mind while living in an entirely different place that knows very little about the experience.
Maybe I'll post more on this later. I'm in a bit of a rush but it's a good question to discuss.
More on this later.
Here is my full response to the issue of "truly" being a foreigner:
First I think it's a good idea to start with the definition of the word disingenuous:
| Definition: |
| 1. withholding information: withholding or not taking account of known information |
| 2. not genuinely sincere: giving a false impression of sincerity or simplicity |
I pride myself on telling the whole story, so here it is:
- I was born and raised in Guatemala.
- My mother is American and my father is Guatemalan
- The rest of my family in Guatemala is Guatemalan.
- I went to an "American" school until fourth grade, the rest of the time I was in a bilingual, "Guatemalan" school.
- When I was 17 I went to Boston for school (college).
- I now live in Chicago.
Now, the crux of this new blog is the following: After trying to find some unique perspective or idea that I could bring to the world (in terms of writing about it), I figured this would be it: I am a foreigner in a country that does not know or see me as a foreigner. Before I tell you why I'm a foreigner, let me show you the main reason why I started this new blog:
That is me. On the left I'm a little tan, but I still don't look anything but American. In case you're not familiar, that is NOT what a Guatemalan looks like.
That is what a Guatemalan looks like. Plus, you can't see it but I'm 6'3 and those guys at the bottom are not anywhere near that. I stand out like a sore thumb down there.
Why am I foreign?
- Whoever the mysterious poster is, I'm guessing it's someone I know (no one else reads my stuff), says it him/herself:
". . . and were schooled in institutions following US culture-based currricula, esp. your early childhood schooling when those things are easiest to learn and get hard-wired."
The "institutions" I was in matter a little here, especially the American school I went to. But unless you've lived, grown up, and basically lived your whole life in a place like Guatemala (third world, poor, beautiful, violent, corrupt, inefficient, warm, beautiful again), it's very hard to explain. I was hard wired in Guatemalan, surrounded by a country of Guatemalans and, more importantly, NOT in the US, which is important to note.
And I'll be honest, it's very weird having my "foreign-ness" questioned. But here is what I want to say:
I don't look foreign.
I am foreign.
As Olisa, another poster commented, it can be very amusing and interesting, and that's what I'm going to write about.
Topics I'll be covering include: Spying in public places, terrorism, immigration, politics, getting drunk, health care, racism, business, investing, current events, etc.
Phew! That's it.
I know this was a long, rambling post, but that's not going to be the standard post around here. I thought the discussion about the topics the Anonymous poster commented on were an interesting way to get this blog started. And, lets be honest, I got overexcited when I saw someone had posted something mildly controversial on my other blog, the first time that's ever happened to me.
Aren't you being just a bit disingenuous in characterizing yourself as a "foreigner" in the US? You are, after all, 50% US American by birth and were schooled in institutions following US culture-based currricula, esp. your early childhood schooling when those things are easiest to learn and get hard-wired.