Parental Guidance

Most teens struggle with some form of angst. High school was a fever pitch for coming to terms with my mixed identity. I needed guidance.

During the summer of my senior year, my brother and I went on vacation with our mom in Sonoma County. We hadn’t seen each other for over 6 months; our relationship was distant at best. Catching up meant filling in huge voids of time with plenty of awkward conversations.

We went out to a classy joint our first night out, the Lyons in the hotel parking lot. Over a meal of greasy chicken tenders and teenage banter, without warning, my mother railroaded the conversation. With a touch of melodrama, she apologized to us for being multiracial. We weren’t Chinese, we weren’t white; we didn’t belong.

“I’m sorry,” she professed, holding back impending tears, “for raising you two in a world that will never fully accept you. It’s gonna be hell.”

Thanks for the pep talk.

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