Belonging isn't always found in one place. Sometimes the recognition can be found in the in-between.
In this second and final instalment of my conversation with Alan Lau, Director of the Frank Soo Foundation, we turn inward - reflecting on how our shared Hakka heritage shows up in both similar and contrasting ways across our lives: our sense of home, our priorities, and our sense of purpose.
If you haven't tuned in to part 1, listen to Standing your ground to hear all about the inspiring and impactful work Alan is involved with in the world of community building and football.
In part two, we talk about belonging and unbelonging - and why not having one settled sense of home isn't uncommon - and can even be seen as a source of strength. As outsider-insiders, connectors, and brokers, we reflect on what it means to draw on a lifetime of living between worlds, and to use that position to support others.
We also talk candidly about representation - the discomfort many people from British Chinese and East and Southeast Asian communities can feel about stepping into visibility, claiming leadership, and taking up space. And why showing up and doing it anyway might be one of the most important things we can offer each other and the next generation.
It's a warm, searching, deeply personal conversation, and a fitting close to a two-part journey that began as two strangers, and ended with the unmistakable sense that we are, as we Hakka Chinese say, 'tee-gah nyin' - our own people.
Thank you, Alan, for your openness, your trust, and for showing up so fully in this conversation.
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