“Be SUMthing Different”
A Dim Sum and Doughnuts Guest Post
By: Parrie Liu
Hello readers! I am guest blogging at Dim Sum and Doughnuts and let me introduce myself. My name is Parrie Liu and I live in Texas. Around the age of four, I was adopted from China. Chinese adoption and special needs adoption are both things that I can relate to. I am in my second year of university and I turned twenty recently.
When I was a little girl, I noticed that I was different from my friends. My friends looked like their family members. There were not many Chinese people where I lived and I would be asked “where are you from?” I noticed that I walked different from most people. Sometimes I wanted to be like everyone else. I didn’t want to be adopted or have a disability because it made me different. People asked questions because I am different. I have caught people staring at me because I am different. There are activities that I can’t do as well due to my disability. These feelings would come and go throughout my childhood. There were times that I felt more peer pressure of wanting to be like my friends. It used to bother me a lot that I was different. Even as a college student, I still have the tendency of trying to fit in. The tendency of wanting to fit in will always be a part of my life, but what I do with those tendencies will determine my attitude in life.
There are a few things that helped me realized being different is good. My mom would tell me that everyone is different. It is okay to be different and it is the person that counts. This really helped me like being different. Meeting others like me also helped. I have met people adopted from China and people adopted from the US. Meeting people who have disabilities has been beneficial too. I feel less different when I know there are others in the same situation. When I stopped comparing myself to others, I started appreciating my differences. Comparing myself was very destructive for my self-esteem. I realized that I cannot be someone else, but I can try to be the best me.
Check out Parrie Liu at her social media channels!
Blog: “A Word With Liu Miao”
Follow her on Instagram!
You can email Parrie at liuliumiao@gmail.com
Thanks for being here!
XO, The DS&D Crew
