What IS a Third Culture Kid?!

Glad you asked, we are in the midst of asking the same thing as a family. Well first off, our child has two parents that are nationals of two different countries. To make matters worse, we are raising said child in a completely different and foreign country to our passports. So technically does that make him a 4th culture kid?

Visions of Rock Stardom danced in his head...

We've always said "home" is where we are as a family, no matter where we are located geographically. "Home" to me is where our pillows are at-and honestly that has been condos and hotels in some seasons of our lives. We currently don't live in the house or on the property that we own. And meanwhile our "homes" are on two different continents. Where we feel loved and safe, that in its closest vicinity is where "home," is to me. My son may grow up and feel differently-I can't predict how this transient lifestyle will affect him in the future. I can however trust that we will have raised him with the essential life skills to be a resilient person, who is flexible, independent and culturally sensitive and empathetic.

Raising a child in this global climate has its scary myriad of pros and cons that has many a Mum/Mom/Maa/Mother up at night wondering; "what world have I brought my kid into?!" The political climate of any country can be alarming for its citizens, okay I digress-there's always Switzerland, the Swiss just know how to make everyone feel at ease with their neutrality and chocolate. No matter where we would choose to raise our family I'm sure the problems could get overwhelming and we would still question-is this the best place/environment/healthcare system to raise a child and will he have a bright future? Should we choose to raise him in a democracy or a kingdom? These are questions I never thought I would be pondering in my life!

For now we are living in the moment and looking towards the future with great expectations. I can only hope and pray that having my child exposed to diversity, multicultural customs and various languages will help him become a better world citizen. My aspiration is that he will never look at his horizon line with a limited perspective. In this scenario I can see myself also standing on a beach looking out at my horizon line, as I dig my toes in the sand I dream about where I've put down my roots. Some trees have systems of underground roots that travel far from the actual location of the tree trunk. I guess I'm grateful that my roots have traveled this far. Maybe my "3rd/4th culture" offspring will value this legacy as well.