In my
21 years on this
planet, I've found that being
hapa is no different from being any other
ethnicity. My
mom is
Japanese, and my Dad is a
Caucasian American of
German,
English and
Irish descent. Unlike the
horror stories I`ve read, my
upbringing was rather positive. I've always felt comfortable being both
white and
Japanese, and have
embraced both sides of my being rather than feeling
ostracized from them.
My parents, I felt, did a really good job of helping me to accept who I am, by helping me to develop my own identity and my own individuality. I've only really come to realize what it really means to be hapa when I came to college, and started to understand that being hapa in and of itself is its own experience. Perhaps its because of the positive attitude I was raised in, or the fact that I was never really the only hapa around - there was always at least 2 or 3 other kids in my classes who were hapa - but I have always felt advantaged to be a hapa.
I like being able to speak both Japanese and English fluently, and being able to feel comfortable in the company of any group I come in contact with. I also feel that it has made me a more tolerant person, someone who has learned to accept and embrace the whole diversity of humanity. The problems I've faced growing up mirror those of both white kids and asian-american kids - well, asian-american kids a little more because of the nature of US society. I never felt that I had any special problems because of my background. I am proud to be Hapa, proud to be a Japanese-American, proud to be an Asian-American, and proud to just be human.