When I first arrived in Japan, and for the first few months, the faces around me seemed strange and foreign. It was a constant reminder that I was out of my usual environment, but deep down I still felt I was part of “us” and it was “them” that were different. The other day, I caught sight of my reflection in a train window and it shocked me. I realised that while everyone around me was still “them”, it was me that was the foreigner; my own features seemed strange to me.
Once again, this experience is giving me insights into how it must feel to be a member of a racial minority, even from birth.
