[random] in which the clueless chemist gets mistaken for a non-Filipina
I get this a lot lately, not being recognized as a Filipina (of course Filipina, not Filipino, since I'm female). Take your pick--I get spoken to in Dutch by shopkeepers here, my Flemish labmates assumed that I came from the US...and even US seminarians thought I'm American myself.
Oh, boy. This is troubling.
There are times that I catch myself staring at myself in the mirror while dressing up in the mornings. And wonder. And scratch my head. And get more confused in the process.
I don't look Caucasian. My nose isn't flat, but it sure isn't as high nor sharp as ski jumps. Dark eyes. And I don't have paper-white skin. Definitely not Caucasian. But why is it people can't figure out I'm Asian, at least? I'm also proud to be Asian, too!
Maybe the confusion begins whenever I open my mouth and express myself. Can't a non-American/British express herself in perfect English, as long as she minds her P's and Q's? Shouldn't everyone express herself in proper language--grammar and syntax? Thank you for the compliments, but I feel like a rara avis or an exotic specimen for the Western world to admire at whenever I hear that. I know, I might be mistaken by feeling that way, but I can't help it...
Is it unusual to find an Asian female (who is not Chinese nor Japanese, not even Korean), with a university background, who is an active member of the scientific academia...who speaks out her thoughts easily and fluently?
Which brings me back to an old question of mine--what IS being a Filipina? Because the vibe I'm getting here is that I am of all cultures and of none. And lately, I'm getting the impression that I belong to the latter due to the lack of instant cultural identification. True: it's an advantage, since I can blend in with the locals, but it also saddens me--my birth culture is part and parcel of how I identify myself as a unique member of the world.
So, a resolution--I will carry myself as a tunay na dalagang Pinay na siyentipiko. And make other cultures recognize what a Filipin(o/a) is. That there are indeed Filipina intellectuals and they are not to be treated lightly, not even as rara avis nor lusus naturae. Definitely not as freaks of nature!
Oh, boy. This is troubling.
There are times that I catch myself staring at myself in the mirror while dressing up in the mornings. And wonder. And scratch my head. And get more confused in the process.
I don't look Caucasian. My nose isn't flat, but it sure isn't as high nor sharp as ski jumps. Dark eyes. And I don't have paper-white skin. Definitely not Caucasian. But why is it people can't figure out I'm Asian, at least? I'm also proud to be Asian, too!
Maybe the confusion begins whenever I open my mouth and express myself. Can't a non-American/British express herself in perfect English, as long as she minds her P's and Q's? Shouldn't everyone express herself in proper language--grammar and syntax? Thank you for the compliments, but I feel like a rara avis or an exotic specimen for the Western world to admire at whenever I hear that. I know, I might be mistaken by feeling that way, but I can't help it...
Is it unusual to find an Asian female (who is not Chinese nor Japanese, not even Korean), with a university background, who is an active member of the scientific academia...who speaks out her thoughts easily and fluently?
Which brings me back to an old question of mine--what IS being a Filipina? Because the vibe I'm getting here is that I am of all cultures and of none. And lately, I'm getting the impression that I belong to the latter due to the lack of instant cultural identification. True: it's an advantage, since I can blend in with the locals, but it also saddens me--my birth culture is part and parcel of how I identify myself as a unique member of the world.
So, a resolution--I will carry myself as a tunay na dalagang Pinay na siyentipiko. And make other cultures recognize what a Filipin(o/a) is. That there are indeed Filipina intellectuals and they are not to be treated lightly, not even as rara avis nor lusus naturae. Definitely not as freaks of nature!