How Multiculturalism Shaped Me Anonymous

I grew up overseas, frequently visited my home country of Bangladesh, and have interacted with a great variety of people – all experiences that have shaped the person I am today. I have traveled to over twenty countries and lived for an extended period of time in three of those; I have assimilated to multiple cultures while maintaining my own identity and learning several languages in the process. My friends and family originate from and live in every corner of the world. I have been fortunate enough to encounter even a small fraction of the infinite places and experiences the world has to offer, and it has immeasurably enriched me.

At the age of six, my father's job was relocated to Saudi Arabia. I moved far away from my friends, school, and existing life to a country where the spoken language of the populace was completely different. My family lived in the RO1 “compound,” an apartment complex that housed hundreds of other English-speaking families like ourselves, but who came from all over the world. I lived next door to a Pakistani family and across the street from a Lebanese one; my mother often traded recipes with the Jordanians who lived down a few houses from my Ethiopian friends. Every day after school as a child, I...