Instead of anything substantial, a brief personal essay about living in a foreign country
dylanleviking.substack.com
▣ I have never been able to settle on a homeland for myself. My father lives a short distance from the place in Saskatchewan that his ancestors homesteaded; my mother has returned to Vancouver Island, where her people worked in the coal mines. They were raised in military families, just like me, and were both born in foreign countries. Maybe they desired roots. I never lived in those places. The place of my birth is not important; I never lived there, either. I say I am from Vancouver because it is a city large enough to be recognized. I went to university there. I am most at home on the Prairies, but I cannot imagine returning. ▭ I have to admit that I have no loyalty to the country of my citizenship. I have not seen it in more than a decade. Since becoming an adult, I have never spent time there without plotting my exit. ▭ I have lived in Tokyo longer than I have lived anywhere else. It is where my ■■■■■ ■■■■■ ■■■ ■■■■. ■■ ■■■■ ■■ ■ ■■■■ ■■■■■■, without any intervention on my part. If I do not file the correct paperwork, if my taxes are sent in late, or if my dossier crosses the desk of a bureaucrat in a bad mood, I could be removed. It’s not my homeland. ▭ I have only thought of this in recent years. I’ve given up. I will be rootless. ▣
Instead of anything substantial, a brief personal essay about living in a foreign country
Instead of anything substantial, a brief…
Instead of anything substantial, a brief personal essay about living in a foreign country
▣ I have never been able to settle on a homeland for myself. My father lives a short distance from the place in Saskatchewan that his ancestors homesteaded; my mother has returned to Vancouver Island, where her people worked in the coal mines. They were raised in military families, just like me, and were both born in foreign countries. Maybe they desired roots. I never lived in those places. The place of my birth is not important; I never lived there, either. I say I am from Vancouver because it is a city large enough to be recognized. I went to university there. I am most at home on the Prairies, but I cannot imagine returning. ▭ I have to admit that I have no loyalty to the country of my citizenship. I have not seen it in more than a decade. Since becoming an adult, I have never spent time there without plotting my exit. ▭ I have lived in Tokyo longer than I have lived anywhere else. It is where my ■■■■■ ■■■■■ ■■■ ■■■■. ■■ ■■■■ ■■ ■ ■■■■ ■■■■■■, without any intervention on my part. If I do not file the correct paperwork, if my taxes are sent in late, or if my dossier crosses the desk of a bureaucrat in a bad mood, I could be removed. It’s not my homeland. ▭ I have only thought of this in recent years. I’ve given up. I will be rootless. ▣