I’m a third culture kid, or a TCK, and if you’re reading this I have a feeling that you may be too, or you’re thinking “well what does that even mean?” If you don’t know what a TCK is, take this brief definition from Merriam-Webster meaning “a child who grows up in a culture different from the one in which his or her parents grew up,” we vary in form and fashion in terms of our length of time spent abroad, backgrounds of our parent(s) and what exactly makes our lives “unique,” but we do have quite a few things in common. Famous TCKs include former US President Barack Obama, Kobe Bryant and more.
I’m MaryCate, a US citizen and a graduate of the American School of Tangier in Tangier, Morocco. I’ve spent much of my adolescence traveling, living out of suitcases and not knowing where I may be spending time during school breaks or holidays. With the pandemic, I got throttled back into life with my parents, meaning I moved twice in the middle of 2020 and spent the entirety of the year throughout Europe, a mere 8-9 hours ahead of my school.
Despite our fun times and highlights, TCKs have different experiences throughout parts of their lives and deal with the reality of having long answers to seemingly simple questions. Here are some signs that you may be a TCK, or maybe you’ve met one and didn’t even know!
- The Question “Where are you from?” Elicits a Story
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Cue the awkward ice breakers that start every class, meeting or conversation with a stranger. If the question “where are you from?” has ever caused your palms to sweat as you try to simplify your life into a short answer but inevitably share a long story about your life feeling like you have just overshared with a bunch of strangers, you may just be a TCK! The number of times I have chosen to just not share something for simplicity’s sake and claim I’m from where some of my family lives is an occurrence too frequent to count, because that minute-long introduction is just painful sometimes.
- Deciding Where You Should Go (or Stay) During Breaks is a Whole Production
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If the conversations surrounding where you should spend a break from school require hours of research and consideration, no matter the length of the break, you may be a TCK. From researching tourist visa policies to considering the length of time for travel, the time zones, holidays and what alternative options you may or may not have, the decisions surrounding breaks can be intense and long. With the additional restrictions on travel put in place as a consequence of the pandemic, this has gotten more difficult and has presented even more challenges, and there is nothing to be envious of with this challenge right now.
- You’re a Time Zone Wizard
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At the drop of a hat you can figure out the current time in many time zones because your family and friends are spread out across them. I’m in one, my school is in another, my parents in another, my siblings in two more, my friends across six or more and my destination is yet another. This is not out of the ordinary for TCKs, but to some, this seems like way too much to juggle. But hey, as a TCK you’re a time zone wizard, and your phone’s clock app helps in the time zone knowledge acquiring.
- Your Passport Has Been Well Loved and is Probably Slightly Damaged
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If you’re a TCK and your passport isn’t faded, torn around the edges and put into a protective sleeve to protect it from further damage, it must be a new passport! They’re faded, they’re grimey and they’re near full, but that’s part of the journey after all. (Bonus: When you travel and have the opportunity to get a souvenir stamp, you have to intentionally place it to not waste space, space is precious after all!)
- You’ve Spent an Unhealthy Amount of Time on Planes from a Young Age
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If you got on your first flight at a ripe eight weeks old and haven’t stopped traveling since (with the exception of 2020), you’re probably a TCK. If you have multiple airports around the world memorized and know exactly how long it will take you to make your connection or if you purposely avoid a particular airport altogether, you’re probably a TCK. (Bonus: If you have had airline status from a “young” age and/or have strong preferences of one airline over another, you’re a young travel connoisseur and we should be friends!)
- You’ve Got Your Own “Jet Lag Survival Guide” Curated Through Experience
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If you know, you know. We all have our preferences for going forwards or backward in time zones and what flight timing and length work best for us. I like taking the longest flight possible if I have to make a connection to have a short connecting flight and I prefer going back in time, west, but we don’t get to be picky all the time sadly. Plus, we’ve all got some learned experiences on where to get the best supplements/aids for travel, some countries don’t require prescriptions for codeine and other strong things, and this is the knowledge we probably should not know in our adolescent years, but we’ve all learned it.
- Virtual Hangouts Have Always Been Your Jam
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Zoom happy hour may have been the “most 2020” way to hang out, but for TCKs, this kind of hangout has always been the norm. From Facetimes in the wee hours of the morning to family Skype calls for big announcements, these virtual hangout sessions have always been our norm, and will not disappear just because we are allowed to be together in-person again in the future.
If you’re a fellow TCK, I’m sure some of these things, and many others, sound familiar to you! Our lives are fun and amazing in so many ways, but we have our fair share of unique and not-so-relatable experiences. See you at the airport or in a random country we never expect to be in at the same time, fellow TCK! If you want to keep up with my travels, and see some quality throwbacks in times of stability, be sure to check out my travel Instagram @wheres.mc!