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I’m not really a fan of Starbucks, but I can’t deny that they have the most convenient hours and locations.  So, I went to Starbucks to get some work done while getting my daily dose of caffeine and ordered a grande iced coffee.  There I am, sitting next to the window just doing some work, minding my own business, when the lady that rung up my order comes over to talk with me.  In appearance she seemed Chinese and somewhere between her mid-40s to 50s (you can never really tell with Asians, seriously).  She asked where I was from and I shared how I don’t speak Mandarin because my mom and dad speak different dialects of Chinese and she shared how she understood Cantonese and Mandarin.

Next thing I know, she’s offering me a free refill on coffee.  I politely reply, “Oh, it’s okay, I don’t want too much caffeine” (true story, by the way, since Starbucks basically injects extra caffeine to keep Consumer USA up and running).  She then offers that the next time I come to Starbucks she can give me a drink for free. I thank her and then go on doing my business.  I turn around, and she’s back, offering me a complimentary lemon tart (which was pretty delicious, too).  I was so taken aback by my interaction with her; if she weren’t an old Asian lady, I’d say she was hitting on me!

From my small conversation with her, there was a sense of minority connection–or more specifically Chinese connection.  We didn’t even exchange names; although, in hindsight I regret not asking.  But, I really have been noticing one of the great blessings of Chinese culture is that sense of family ownership. I mean, think about how pretty much every Taiwanese living in the DC metro area knows every other Taiwanese person here.  There was some immediate sense of almost shared experiences and community just because of our Chinese or Taiwanese heritage.

The past few weeks, I’ve been reminded of a conversation I had about cultures in God’s kingdom with a friend.  Sometimes I don’t think we see our culture or race or heritage as a blessing from the Lord or even something that should be seen or discussed.  But, just as our gender has a role in God’s kingdom, so does our race and ethnicity.  They are purposeful blessings that we should use to further God’s kingdom not just ignore.

So, I went to my first Starfield concert tonight. I must say, it was an amazing night of worship and it was such a blessing to be there and to hear the testimonies of the members of both of the bands share through their lyrics and their words how God had been impacting their lives thus far. Plus, I basically fell in love with an up and coming band: Above the Golden State.  But, anyway, that’s not the reason I’m blogging.

The thing is, after the opening act (Above the Golden State, as represented by Michael Watson), left the stage, a video played while Starfield was setting up. Now, I’m sure that they played it just for comedic effect, but something about the video left me unsettled.  The video opens with a Chinese (I presume) man speaking in a monotone, clearly broken English as he advertises a synth keyboard.  The beginning is extremely dry and the man seems as though a robot just listing off various items.  He does recieve some redemption by the end of the video, however, as he unseemingly plays a pretty sweet set off of the synth keyboard.

I really felt that God was stirring something in me because I knew that this wasn’t a part of His Kingdom, so He somehow gave me the courage to approach them about it after the concert.  I waited until they came out from the back and most of the crowd had left; only a few had remained to get autographs and pictures with the band.  Probably because I was nervous, in front of a band that I admire, and that I was speaking to a bunch of strangers, I pretty much jumbled up everything that I meant to say.  I tried as hard as I could to express how I felt, but I don’t think I got across much and although I am definitely glad that I said anything at all, I didn’t think I gave the situation enough justice as it deserved. So, here’s what I would have said if I could go back and do it over again…

“Dear Starfield,

Let me start off by saying that I was truly blessed to be at your concert tonight and just to be worshipping with you guys.  It’s so encouraging to see you guys using your God-given talents to glorify Him and further His kingdom.  However, I did want to mention one thing because I feel like God really stirred something in my heart while I was sitting at my seat in the audience.  I don’t know how you guys will receive what I have to say, but I hope that God will speak His truths to you regardless of what I say.  I pray that anything from my mouth that is not from God would be forgotten and that only His truths and righteousness would remain. Here goes.

I don’t know whether or not you chose the video that played before you guys came up to worship and I definitely do not mean to imply that you had any malicious intent in playing the video if you did choose it.  It is a comical and enjoyable video and to most, I’m sure it did not bother them at all.  But, I think the very reason that we as a society, even as a Christian fellowship, have become so numb to the stereotypes around us should cause us to do something about it.  I personally felt that the video perpetuated the stereotypes of Asian-Americans as emotionless, unable to speak English properly, and robotic.  The mere fact that he was the one in a video using a synth keyboard pretty much distinguishes him as “different” from the “normal” whatever that means.

But, I think that God desires for us to be united in His Kingdom.  Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, “But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.”  As Christians, we are held to a higher standard and I think that God wants us to step out of the racial divisions that society has forced upon us, to rejoice and take hold of our unique multicultural identities in Him, and to unite as ONE body.  As followers of Christ, we need to question the norms of society and ask how God can be glorified through everything that we do, even if it seems like race isn’t something that applies to us because we’re from the majority culture.  Actually, it applies to everyone and it should apply to the church as well.

And you know, I don’t know what you will choose to do with this. I pray that God will speak to you and my saying this is how I can be faithful, I can’t change your mind about things or force you to do something that you don’t believe in your heart as well. But, I appreciate you guys listening to me at least speak what was on my heart and I hope that whatever happens, God is glorified.”

There’s a strange sense of finding myself, traveling back to my heritage country for the first time. I’m still not used to people coming up to me and speaking to me as if I am a native speaker and then having to explain that I am ‘meiguoren’ or American and that I can speak very little Chinese. If I had to keep track of how many people have thought that I am Chinese, I’d run out of numbers. In some ways it’s advantageous to look Chinese: I don’t get the stares that my Western foreigners do and I can seemingly blend into the culture. But beneath the surface-level glance, I’m as foreign (and probably even more) as my friends.

But not only that, coming here links me to my past and to my family heritage. 阎玉卿 is the Chinese name that my father gave me and every time I introduce myself saying “wo jiao yan yu qing” and prefacing it with informing them of my American background, the native speaker will always be amazed at how beautiful (or piao liang) my name is. It’s like a lasting memory that my late father has etched into me. It’s a bittersweet return and I am excited about learning more Chinese and really being able to immerse myself into this culture and understand what it really means to be Chinese. I think I’m pretty good at blending into the American culture, but I want to be able to hold on to my Chinese culture too.