I’m Not Chinese Anymore and I’m Never Going to be an American Essay

Im not Chinese Anymore and Im Never Going to be an AmericanI could open this piece with a clear statement, a thesis or controlling bringing close together of some sorta brief drone for you, my reader, of what is to come and what is to be told. However, I wont.Instead, please close your eyes for a minute practiced for a minuteand imagine yourself sitting before a young East Asian girl. You know shes East Asian because of her black hair, off-white skin, a pair of ebony eyes and a nose that is just a bit too flat to be mistaken for an Indian. Sitting in an armchair with her left arm supporting her cheek, she stares at you for a little epoch then starts to speakslowly, thoughtfully, almost tonelesslyI was born in China and came to United States about four years ago, when I was thirteen. I had no idea what the world was then, even though I thought I did. And this very moment, four years later, I still have no idea what the world is. Ive seen more parts of it, true. But the puzzle piece s refuse to come together somehow. People often ask me if Im a Chinese living in America or an American born in China. An unanswerable question, yet how can you hope to understand life without knowing who you are? I am not Chinese anymore there is no purpose in denying it. But I am notand I dont want to bean American. Not completelynot like this.Now open your eyes, silently think for a few moments about what she said, and return to my wordsor rather, echoes of someone else. cosmos Mexican-American is tough. The Anglos jump all over you if you dont speak English perfectly. Mexicans jump all over you if you dont speak Spanish perfectly. We gotta be twice as perfect as everyone else, so said a character from the 1997 hit movie Selena.... ...n prom queen A bookish girl, Ive always been awkward in crowds, and peoples first persuasion of me usually is that of a nervous, withdrawn little creature. An unfortunate gift from the past, you may call it, shaped by years of stern guidance and ha rsh amicable opinions.But all those years are gone, no matter how happy or gloomy they may be. I dont seek to relive the past, I patently need to make peace with it and somehow move on, as myself, under the sunlight of Manhattan and the shadows created by its glorious skyscrapers. Works CitedCofer, Judith Ortiz. Silent Dancing. Encounters Essays for Exploration and Inquiry. Pat C. lighter II and Robert DiYanni. New York McGraw-Hill.Golden, Arthur. Memoirs of a Geisha. New York Random House. 1999. Selena. Dir. Gregory Nava. Pref. Jennifer Lopez. Becky Lee Meza. Edward James Olmos. Warren Brothers. 1997.