Swedish, Japanese…

I was born Analina Marea Stewart to a British, French, Japanese, Filipina mother and a father of Swedish and Scottish descent.

I grew up in Buffalo, New York, where there were not that many people of mixed descent. Growing up, I had no other Hapas to identify with except for my sister, Rachael. People always mistook me for being full Caucasian or ‘something they just can’t put their finger on.’ It’s usually the blue eyes that get them.

It delights me when people are surprised to learn that I am part Asian or when they start speaking Japanese to me, a language that I hope to become fluent in. (:

Up until recently, when I moved to Southern California for school, I did not identify as a Hapa and had not even heard of the term. But now, knowing what it is, I  proudly identify as a not parts or bits of anything, but as a whole Hapa.