Sometimes I forget it’s there: a solid, seamless piece of pale green stone, smooth and cold. My grandmother squeezed this jade bangle onto my wrist – at my request – when I was 11.
When I left home for university, the bangle began to feel inconvenient. It clashed with my outfits and drew curious looks and the awkward question of where I was from. I’m Malaysian, but I didn’t grow up there. I’m from Brunei, but I’m not Bruneian. I’m Chinese, but not from China.
Why We Wrote This
The search for one’s identity is universal. For this essayist, a traditional piece of jewelry has been an ever-shifting reflection of how she sees herself.
Katie is refusing to panic over a certain big birthday
Credit: Jooney Woodward
Today, I turn 40. From that sentence on, there will be no more lying about my age. Although who wants to anyway? Now I’d be better off telling people I’m 60 so they can coo over how great I look.
Turning 40 is brilliant. So much better than turning 30, when I had a meltdown. Thirty seemed ancient. ‘It’s the end of my youth,’ I wailed to my best friend Martin – who has been 28 since we met. It seemed to signal I’d have to grow up. No more idiot boyfriends, no more dyeing my hair blonde, no more claiming it was puppy fat.
MUJER da a luz en pleno VUELO | Z105 7 Atlanta iheart.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from iheart.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Women and Foreign Policy Roundtable Series
COVID-19 has accelerated economic trends, such as virtual work and automation that will reshape the future of work. How can governments, multilateral organizations, and the private sector promote economic recovery for those hardest hit in the COVID-19 economy, including women, people of color, and lower-wage workers? What skills will become more or less in-demand? How can public and private sector leaders help drive reskilling at scale? Speakers, Kweilin M. Ellingrud, senior partner at McKinsey & Company, and Henriette Kolb, head of gender and economic inclusion at the International Finance Corporation, discuss the latest research and potential policy responses.