Even though Hal often, and quite literally, tells me how much he loves his little Asian fiancee, sometimes I wonder if he forgets that Asian is a race and not a look. I'm so Americanized that I think I forget too sometimes. However,I'm often reminded when other Asians come up to me hopefully, asking if I'm Chinese (yes, this does actually happen). When I tell them I'm Korean, they optimistically ask, you speak? When I tell them I don't speak Korean, it feels like I've just told a kid there's no Santa. They look so damned disappointed!
It's nice to think that those who know me and love me become "colorblind" to my ethnicity and don't apply stereotypical expectations. For the record, I'm not a math whiz, I don't worship Hello Kitty and I hate karaoke. And if I ever tried to dress like a Harajuku girl, I'm fairly certain Hal wouldn't let me come home. But that doesn't mean that the rest of the world wears blinders, and I need to remember that.
Anyway, I digress. Here's one of our after-midnight conversations where I have to remind Hal (and myself) that not everyone likes a tiny, cute Asian.
Hal: Would you rather live next to a white supremacist or a Hasidic Jew?
Jenn: Hasidic Jew.
Hal: Why?
Jenn: At least a Hasidic Jew would leave me alone.
Hal: What do you mean?
Jenn: (pause) Have you forgotten what I look like, and that I'm Asian? I don't think the supremacists like my kind.
Hal: Oh. Right. Well you're very white on the inside.
Jenn: I don't think they care about my insides. I'd rather not have a cross burning on my front lawn every night. It's not good for the grass.
Hal: Good point.
and Good Night...
LOL. "very white on the inside." Like a baked potato! Or a buttery roll! xo, Amanda
ReplyDeleteOr a Twinkie, which is sometimes what Hal affectionately calls me. =)
ReplyDelete