"Then there was America. Its narrative is a forward arc and it encourages self-invention. In America one feels little the weight of history. The past is not important; the future is always bright. America approves of amnesia, spurs the separation between children and parents, and assumes the premise of ever expanding opportunities" (35) from "Notes from a Warrior Son", Andrew Lam, Perfume Dreams.

On Defining American

In my early twenties, after a few years of college, I decided to do some volunteer work. I joined a program and ended up being sent to Chicago for training. Eventually, I would land in New Jersey working with inner-city youth, in a parish setting. While I trained in Chicago, I met with volunteers from the Midwest and the East. Having spent much of my time in the West, not only did this experience give me the necessary respite in order to return to studies with renewed vigor, but it also offered me some exposure to people with whom I would never ordinarly meet. It was during this time that I met a person from Missouri and she explained to me: "I have never met an Asian before. Your English is really good." I was not sure whether to bow or laugh since the expression on her face sought for some kind of response. Having come to the US at the age of two, one would expect my command of the language to be more than merely rudimentary. But of course, Said's concept of Orientalism explains this best.