When I started this blog, I was surprised at how much there is to learn and write about the mixed race experience. I'm excited but also encouraged that more and more people are waking up to the idea that mixed does not mean half-caste, or confused or some or all of nothing. Although there are the struggles that mixed race people feel when out in the world battling to 'fit in' and identify themselves in the carefully chosen boxes that exist, there's so much more that our mixed race kids will experience and can explore because of their multiple heritages. Here are a few of my favourites:
Exotic and Amazing Holidays (with the excuse of going to visit family)
Like any family, after we had kids it became that much more important for us that we have our families (parents, brothers, sisters, cousins) close by. We want our children to not only know their extended families but also to know where they are from, where their parents grew up, their family histories. The fact that our families live on different continents makes for some amazing holidays and a cultural experience that we may not have anywhere else- the food, the celebrations, dare I say it- the fuss made over us- all make it better than any other holiday abroad.
The Ability to Blend In
With exposure to so many different cultural norms, our kids can easily blend in anywhere. I think they get, on a gut level, that different families, countries and cultures have different sets of greetings, languages, food and celebrations. They get it because they've been exposed to it from such a young age. They know that when they see their Nigerian grandparents they should kneel to greet, when they see their Bababozorg (on their Iranian side), the adults greet with three kisses on the cheek and their English Grandma will give them a hug. They'll know about respect for elders, removing shoes, different types of food and ways of behaving. For them, it's normal to look for the signs and follow their parent's lead. This should get them far in life when they're visiting new countries. They'll expect that different cultures will do things differently and, who knows, with their myriad of cultures, they may even be familiar with some cultural practices that span different countries.
The best of both worlds
This is perhaps one of the best things I love about our mixed family. As we've travelled more and lived and experienced the benefits of so many different cultures, countries, climates, and histories, I've realised that when people ask the question, where do you prefer to live the most? I'm stuck. I love the mountains and outdoors of Canada, the beauty and history of England, the richness and intensity of Nigeria, and the proud culture of Iran. My girls can proudly lay claim to all of these and call each one of them home.
Open minds= Tolerance
With so much exposure to difference and sometimes conflicting ways of getting to the same end, it's no wonder that people say that being mixed lends itself to careers in diplomacy, politics and foreign relations. Being mixed brings with it an inherent sense of tolerance and an open mind to 'others' because of who they are. Even where cultures and countries are at war, children born of an interracial relationship can be the healing and tolerance families and countries need.
Multiple festivals/ holidays and celebrations
With multiple excuses to celebrate and feast, this is by far the greatest advantage of a mixed race family. From an entirely greedy and fun-loving perspective, we get twice the number of festivals and celebrations as anyone else! For my family, we go from Nowruz (Persian New Year) to Easter in one week! If you're Chinese, you get to celebrate Valentine's Day and Chinese New Year so close together you might as well permanently eat chocolate! With so many festivals and celebrations bringing together family, friends, food and often music, your kids will get to experience the richness and diversity of multiple cultures. And that's never a bad thing.
An Inherent Globalised World View
My family's everyday is splattered with jokes and comments that are indicative of a family that comes from multiple cultures. When there's a power outage in Canada, my daughter is asking, "Did Nepa take light?" (Nigerian's way of describing the frequent electricity failures that plague the country). When winter comes in England, my daughters want to know if they can go shovel the snow like we do in Canada. And when we have rice, the girls want to know if they can have the biggest piece of tahdig (Iranian crunchy bit at the bottom). People we meet and their behaviour they see are always accompanied by questions about where they're from- near Nigeria? Close to Canada? Or "look Mum, they're speaking farsi!"
Unique (Standing out)
Whether you believe in all the hype about mixed race kids being especially cute is irrelevant because one thing that you can't argue is the look is interesting. Pictures of brown skinned kids with blonde curls is interesting because it breaks the mold of what we're used to seeing. Blue eyed black girls or Asian boys with a mixture of black and Asian features stand out. Apart from the look, I met some Asian mixed kids speaking fluent farsi with their Persian father coming home from school. It made me do a double take but it made me proud as well that mixed families come in all shapes and cultures and from everywhere. That it's not just races that blend but cultures, languages, heritages and histories. What a world we will live in in 20 years time if this continues!