Third Culture Kid (TCK)

My earliest childhood memory is a jumbled concoction of airport images. Rough landings on rocky tarmac and the irritatingly redundant voices over the loudspeaker announcing gate changes. Delayed departure times. Layovers, turbulence and sleeping on leather benches — the arm-rest sharply stabbing me in the ribs. Duty-free perfume samples. Metal detectors. Overweight luggage. Airsick bags. Passport control — my eyes heavy and legs shaky, as I slowly waddle forward in the crowd, waiting for my turn. A deep grumbling in my stomach lets me know I’m either hungry or nauseated.

There’s an old adage that says, “Love comes when you least expect it.” Cara and Brandon Kelley, and now their son Sidney, are living proof that there’s truth to that proverb. Growing up a world apart, they had no clue that a chance encounter on social media would end in the creation of a happy family. For anyone who hears the story, it seems like destiny.

When I decided to travel to Kenya, I centered my documentary for Global Storytelling for Global Development around understanding the beauty of the Maasai culture. I couldn’t have been more excited about spending time with the people and learning about their traditions, rituals and daily life.

In the all-too-swift arc that is the story of our lives, we touch thousands, change many, and are ourselves changed — often for the better. If we’re fortunate, our children become our friends, and they are there to honor the work we’ve done in the world when it’s our time to leave it. Such is the story of Edna Motley and her daughter Sonja.

Jon Theisen grew up in Denver, Colorado, U.S., but he moved 10 times within its metro area during his formative years. As a biracial Domestic Third Culture Kid, he discusses how geographic mobility and cultural fluidity may have shaped his expectations.

With first-hand understanding of how fear almost stopped her, Anita Henestrosa shares powerful lessons to help today’s youth own their futures.

An estimated five percent of the U.S. population grew up in a military family, but there is not one television show dedicated to its subculture. There are no academic studies or museums focusing solely on military children. There is no Military B.R.A.T. or TCK section in your local library.

As people, we’ve developed a psychological preset to categorize individuals based on linguistic pronunciation. We can easily determine a person’s origin by the way they speak a common language. But what happens when we have the mingling of multiple cultures over a period of time?