Who Is Affiliated, Cady, Where Are You From?
I Am from the Place Where My Mind Is Affiliated
“Cady, where are you from?”
“I am from Beijing.”
“Can you teach me some Beijing dialect? I’ve heard it’s awesome!”
“Well… I don’t speak Beijing dialect. I speak mandarin.”
“That is impossible! Are you really from Beijing?”
I saw the disappointed and skeptical look in my friend’s eyes.
Whenever people asked me where I am from, I will give them the same answer-Beijing-without any hesitation. Although both my parents are not originally from Beijing, born and raised in Beijing, I always believe I am a Beijinger. However, facing my friend’s question, I did not know how to respond. She really pointed out a problem I had never thought about before: since my parents are not native Beijingers and I cannot even speak Beijing dialect, am I really from Beijing? …show more content…
Sichuan is the home only for my grandfather, but not for me. Even though I can speak the dialect, I do not belong to this place. I am not from Sichuan. I am from Beijing and I am a Beijinger with no doubt. My grandpa is from Sichuan, because here is the place where he was born and raised, where his close families live and where all his old memories keep. A part of his life interacted, is interacting, and will interact with the city. When he saw young kids playing in the river in front of our house, he remembered the afternoon when he skipped from the school and played with his childhood friends. When we gathered and ate around the dining table, he remembered the Chinese New Year’s Eve dinner when he first met his brother’s wife. Every object, every smell and every person could activate a part of his memory, even a single grain of sand. His root is in here. However, there is not such emotional affiliation between me and all those objects. I am an outsider who only amazed at how beautiful the scenery was and how delicious the food was. Nothing else. I am just a visitor of the city who understand its
“Cady, where are you from?”
“I am from Beijing.”
“Can you teach me some Beijing dialect? I’ve heard it’s awesome!”
“Well… I don’t speak Beijing dialect. I speak mandarin.”
“That is impossible! Are you really from Beijing?”
I saw the disappointed and skeptical look in my friend’s eyes.
Whenever people asked me where I am from, I will give them the same answer-Beijing-without any hesitation. Although both my parents are not originally from Beijing, born and raised in Beijing, I always believe I am a Beijinger. However, facing my friend’s question, I did not know how to respond. She really pointed out a problem I had never thought about before: since my parents are not native Beijingers and I cannot even speak Beijing dialect, am I really from Beijing? …show more content…
Sichuan is the home only for my grandfather, but not for me. Even though I can speak the dialect, I do not belong to this place. I am not from Sichuan. I am from Beijing and I am a Beijinger with no doubt. My grandpa is from Sichuan, because here is the place where he was born and raised, where his close families live and where all his old memories keep. A part of his life interacted, is interacting, and will interact with the city. When he saw young kids playing in the river in front of our house, he remembered the afternoon when he skipped from the school and played with his childhood friends. When we gathered and ate around the dining table, he remembered the Chinese New Year’s Eve dinner when he first met his brother’s wife. Every object, every smell and every person could activate a part of his memory, even a single grain of sand. His root is in here. However, there is not such emotional affiliation between me and all those objects. I am an outsider who only amazed at how beautiful the scenery was and how delicious the food was. Nothing else. I am just a visitor of the city who understand its