Own Your Uniqueness

You Were Born To Stand Out

So I’ve been in Taiwan for a week. Honestly, I can’t say much about the place since majority of my days consisted of training for my new job; however, being in Taiwan did shed light on something that I used to struggle with growing up: owning my uniqueness.

At dinner today, I had a conversation with a South African. We talked about what it’s like to be a first generation child in our home countries (i.e. Parents who were born in a country that differs from the one their children were born and raised). The both us of shared many similarities. I was never “American enough” for my American peers, and I definitely wasn’t “Jamaican enough” to Jamaicans. For her, it was the same, but as a South African with Zambian-born parents.

As a child, fitting in was rough. Really, really rough.

Everything about me was different. Along with not being “American enough,” I was a girl who towered over everyone, and I was interested in “weird” things. It used to bother me, because I wanted to fit in badly. Ah, those pre/teenage years that I do not miss at all.

It wasn’t until college, where I finally come to terms with my uniqueness, and just took it for what it is.

Being in a homogenous country like Taiwan (for those who view Taiwan as a country), where 95% of the population is of the same ethnicity/skin tone, being non-Asian makes you stick out like a sore thumb (especially being black and tall).

In a way, I think being “othered” by my peers at home, prepared me for living in East Asia. I can be integrated in Taiwanese culture, and I can learn to speak Mandarin Chinese like a pro (a really difficult language by the way), but I’ll never be accepted as Taiwanese and that’s okay. I’m using my uniqueness to my advantage and owning it throughout the journey while living here and my adventures beyond.

Own your uniqueness.