I am grateful for the diversity that surrounds me in new friends, coworkers and classmates these days. I feel that it is the most diverse network of people I have experienced since my term studying abroad in 2004. I am learning so much from them. Going to an all-girls catholic high-school and university surrounded predominantly by Chinese people have somewhat limited the exposure to other cultures during those years. But despite the seemingly downside to this, the experience gave me a great understanding of my Cantonese roots, allowed me to learn about "fobby" things and the ability to immerse myself in the culture by working in Hong Kong. So for all of that I do not regret the slightly "undiverse" experience.
Now in my master's program and on my current project at work I sometimes find myself to be the only Asian girl around, which has been extremely rare in my life up to this point. I find myself asking question after question about other's home countries, their rituals, the food they eat, the way their families live. I love learning about it, I love trying the food they bring, I love learning phrases in their mother tongue. Whereas in the past I was not always learning or maybe not appreciating my own culture as much because all the other Asian people around me had similar upbringings and cultural habits. But now, being the only Asian in the group provides me the opportunity to teach or tell others about my culture. It gives me a sense of pride and a renewed appreciation of my culture, its values and practices.
