(⑧ – Social & Institutional Premises)
To my 15-year-old,
I am Japanese.
I will probably say that no matter where I live.
But you will naturally say,
“I’m Aussie.”
And that is exactly right.
We live in the same house.
We share the same table.
But our foundations were built in different places.
Mine was built in Japan.
Yours was built in Australia.
Foundations can differ.
Family does not.
When you say, “I’m Aussie,”
you’re not talking about a passport.
You’re talking about
your school corridors,
your friends,
your laughter,
the place where you felt safe.
Belonging is built where you were protected.
When I say, “I’m Japanese,”
it’s not politics.
It’s not loyalty.
It’s the language I think in.
It’s the air I grew up breathing.
It’s the soil where my mind first formed.
Belonging is not decided by blood.
Not by law.
Not by paperwork.
It is decided by memory.
By safety.
By where you were allowed to become yourself.
If one day someone says,
“But you don’t look Aussie,”
don’t panic.
People who live in simple boxes
struggle with layered identities.
You don’t have to choose.
You are Aussie.
And you carry Japanese roots.
Identity is not subtraction.
It’s expansion.
Before any nation defines you,
before society labels you,
decide for yourself.
Where do you belong?
Answer that quietly.
And stand there.
You are Aussie.
I am Japanese.
But family is stronger than borders.
This article is part of the English series.
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