Because I suspect that my primary readers are my parents and grandparents, I'm going to go ahead and clear something up about the title of this blog entry: I did not lose any of my travel or identification documents. Don't worry—I'm very travel savvy. I have, however, lost my identity. This is how: When two people get married, there is a certain amount of merging of persons that occurs as they begin their life together. When two people do an internship together in Hong Kong, they actually become completely indistinguishable from one another. Not only do Margaret and I live together, but we share the exact same work schedule, same friends, same homework assignments—in short, same everything. I can count the number of times on one hand that we have done things independently, and half of those incidents were out of necessity because Margaret was sick. Despite the fact that we essentially share one life, for a long time I still prided myself on my individual identity as Sister Good, but not any more! I now answer to both Miss Street and Miss Fine because people simply cannot tell us apart and I no longer have the willpower to correct them (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, anyone?). When I say people cannot tell us apart, I do not mean they experience momentary confusion and forget who is who; I mean they really cannot seem to distinguish a difference between us, and these are people with whom we have regular interaction. If I correct someone and tell them I am Miss Fine, when that person sees me again in an hour, she or he will probably call me Miss Street again. Even though Margaret and I can immediately rattle off the list of differences between us, for the people around us we are pretty much the same person in two bodies, so either name will do. Any sense of personal identity I once had is completely lost. A name, after all, is only a title, right? Miss Street? Miss Fine? I think I'm both; there can't be one without the other, at least not in Hong Kong.
Despite my identity crisis, this past week has managed to continue in its usual fashion but with a decisively American theme. Margaret and I practiced responsible citizenship on Monday and dropped off our absentee ballots at the American Embassy. To reward ourselves for being good citizens, we managed a quick trip to Starbucks for a sugar fix before a homework night. Thursday after school, Margaret led the cultural club in learning about American leisure activities, specifically sports and board games. I played some riveting games of Guess Who with some of the girls, and I must say that after all of these years that game is still a personal favorite. Thursday night we had an American night at the apartment with one of Margaret's friends from Hong Kong who was an exchange student in Margaret's high school. Chef Boyar-E (yours truly) cooked up some American-style pasta for dinner to make Margaret's friend feel welcome, we baked chocolate chunk cookies, and we watched a movie together. On Saturday in our Thai English class we taught about families, and I was able to share some pictures of my family with the class. I couldn't tell if my class thought my family members and I looked similar or different, but I think it is safe to say they enjoyed the pictures.
On a side note, I attended a portion of a drama seminar at the church yesterday afternoon, and it proved to be an opportunity for cultural learning. I discovered, first of all, that Hong Kong has monkeys, and second of all, that there is a certain park where monkeys are known to steal people's food. You can imagine my confusion as I watched this improvisation unfold. While there are many things that transcend cultures, there are also many things that do not. I appreciate your continued prayers as we work with the cultural club and meet with the girls over lunch at Pooi To and as we lead the Thai English class and Sunday School Class at church.
Blessings, everyone!
Sister Street. . . wait a second, I think I meant Sister Good!
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