Undergraduate / I am Indonesian, I am Filipino, and I am Chinese; Georgetown Personal Description [7]

I'm applying to GU's SFS and I feel like this essay is too long but then again I'd love to hear any of your opinions/comments!

"As Georgetown is a diverse community, the Admissions Committee would like to know more about you in your own words. Please submit a brief essay, either personal or creative, which you feel best describes you."

I am Indonesian, I am Filipino, and I am Chinese. "Well that's quite a mix." And no, I am not a bag of trail mix nor am I a cassette filled with random songs. I consider myself as a living hybrid, a melting pot of cultures and diversity, compacted and condensed into the body of a teenager. I would like to think of myself as a unique blend, a lot more marketable than Starbucks' house blend. It is interesting to notice how I am constantly exempted from remarks which stereotypes certain races because I am seen as a combination of multiple stereotypes. As a Filipino, they would usually assume that I carry the musical talent of singing and that I have the urge to grab any operating microphone within my reach. And as an Indonesian, they would shallowly assume that I am your typical snobby upper middle class "half Indonesian" who's not able to speak proper Indonesian because I speak fluent English. Last but not least as a Chinese, the assumption would be that I am a math genius.

First of all, I consider myself lucky to be given the opportunity to look at situations from multiple spectacles. Having a mixed heritage is indeed an advantage, a blessing and it is something to take pride in because as they say, life has no limitations except for the ones we make. In my case, instead of letting these stereotypes involving my cultural background limit my capabilities and horizon, it actually encouraged me to venture into the other side of the stereotype, the side of which others are unaware. I am not part of the percentage of Filipinos who are gifted with the amazing vocal range of Whitney Houston however it is true that music runs in my blood and instead singing, it is the ability of playing piano, precisely classical piano. I am proud to say that I am multilingual and that I have been raised to acknowledge that as an Indonesian citizen, I need to be able to be proud of my Indonesian culture including the ability of conversing in Bahasa Indonesia. Therefore proving this particular stereotype incorrect. Lastly, I am not the brightest Chinese mathematician however I make up to my lack of expected math brilliance by excelling in other subjects such as social studies.

I cannot fully deny the stereotypes in which people label my culture with because they wouldn't be able to label something that isn't noticeable, visible and obvious. However it is a mere matter of exaggeration, there is more to an individual than what the eye and mind perceives. I see myself meeting new people from different walks of life with different cultural, social backgrounds and I would love to drown myself in interest with all of the stories the world has to offer for an individual whose curiosity knows no boundaries. I'm gifted with a pair of multicultural, multilingual as well as multinational spectacles to observe the world and it would be a privilege to be able to share this with others. And the thing is that you won't be able to find this in any regular bag of trail mix.