Great immigrant story! Having emigrated from former USSR when only Jews could leave, I often think about the random luck of being born into a Jewish family. You think you were scorned for your tight shorts … I entered 8th grade in a Brooklyn middle school with my name spelled Swetlana 😜
Cool story! I love these "stranger in a new land" experiences, and it's always interesting to get this type of insight into the things you take culturally for granted.
On the matter of luck, of course you were lucky to be selected to come to America. But the fact that America was desirable, you and your family's ability to adapt, and that you had applied at all, were not matters of luck in any meaningful sense.
I can't remember where I heard it, but was recently exposed to a quote: "Luck is the residue of design", and I think your circumstances illustrate this wonderfully.
Great story! I almost never get to play dumb like that but had a chance once. Years ago I (a white guy) lived in Hong Kong for a few years. Anyway, I decided to go skiing in Korea one winter. I was riding the chairlift alone and they loaded up a little Korean kid with me. Kid screwed up his courage and asked: “where you from?” And I answered “Hong Kong” and he was really disappointed. 😈
This was such an incredible story! I love the stark contrast between the chance of winning the lottery to the author’s family’s reaction and drive to being picked.
Here's the thing - I (and probably most people) wouldn't even think to ask someone with a swarthy completion and/or a non-anglo name where they are from because lots and lots of people like that were born in the US, and have had families here for potentially generations. But accents are a different story. If someone has a non-native accent, it's obvious that they were born outside the US, and asking where they moved here from is just an innocent question and shouldn't be inferred as anything more sinister.
I struggled with how to word that opening paragraph, because I didn't want it to seem like I was being a scold. I think it's totally fine to be curious about where people came from, and I have no issue with those inquiries at all. The only part I find annoying is how people dance around the *real* question they want to ask (in fairness, probably because they think the direct question is offensive). I came here too young to have an accent (you can listen to my podcast appearances) but I still get asked the question a lot, so I assume it's most likely my name or my complexion that tips people off.
I took the paragraph as you liking to be a bit of a troll about the tiptoeing people feel they need to do out of politeness, correctness, or fear. As a bit of a mutt I understand the urge. :)
Of course there's the view that _everything_ is blind dumb luck. An uncomfortable thought that discards the notion of free will, but it's probably correct.
I think this is literally true. It's somewhat banal to say that something is due to chance, what's slightly different in my case is how the green card lottery was fully *intended* to be random, and how consequential it was for my life.
This story was so good I’m going to suppress my own free-will-argument-autism and say I’m glad your text found it’s way in front of my eye-balls. You’re a very good writer.
*The free will exercised in this comment to temporarily engage with another person on a human level and not treat every interaction as a possible argument about the nature of fate vs free will was not in itself intended as an argument.
Respectfully disagree. Also disagree with the article's assertion that all was the result of luck. Robert Frost would disagree, too. If one reads the article, with an eye to picking out all the choices that were made throughout, one finds lots of them. Sure, lots of what happens in life is "luck", or, if you will, opportunity. But what one makes of that opportunity has a lot to do with the choices one makes. Even "luck," much of the time, is itself the result of choices...such as the choice in this excellent family story to enter the immigration lottery in the first place.
I think Jesse mentioned it at some point, but Thomas Nagel's essay "Moral Luck" is a uniquely persuasive argument against free will (not the *only* persuasive one, but it is really well-constructed).
Great immigrant story! Having emigrated from former USSR when only Jews could leave, I often think about the random luck of being born into a Jewish family. You think you were scorned for your tight shorts … I entered 8th grade in a Brooklyn middle school with my name spelled Swetlana 😜
Loved this story! Love the personality it’s infused with!
Yes! Yassine has a wonderful sense of voice! Terrific article! Great writing!
Cool story! I love these "stranger in a new land" experiences, and it's always interesting to get this type of insight into the things you take culturally for granted.
On the matter of luck, of course you were lucky to be selected to come to America. But the fact that America was desirable, you and your family's ability to adapt, and that you had applied at all, were not matters of luck in any meaningful sense.
I can't remember where I heard it, but was recently exposed to a quote: "Luck is the residue of design", and I think your circumstances illustrate this wonderfully.
Great story! I almost never get to play dumb like that but had a chance once. Years ago I (a white guy) lived in Hong Kong for a few years. Anyway, I decided to go skiing in Korea one winter. I was riding the chairlift alone and they loaded up a little Korean kid with me. Kid screwed up his courage and asked: “where you from?” And I answered “Hong Kong” and he was really disappointed. 😈
Glad you got to see how fun playing dumb is
This was such an incredible story! I love the stark contrast between the chance of winning the lottery to the author’s family’s reaction and drive to being picked.
This is wonderful, Yassine. I wish you and yours the best of everything.
A lovely story. Enjoyed the colour and self-effacing, open writing style.
Thanks for sharing this story. We are lucky to have you! One possible way to phrase that initial question is "where is that name from?"
Here's the thing - I (and probably most people) wouldn't even think to ask someone with a swarthy completion and/or a non-anglo name where they are from because lots and lots of people like that were born in the US, and have had families here for potentially generations. But accents are a different story. If someone has a non-native accent, it's obvious that they were born outside the US, and asking where they moved here from is just an innocent question and shouldn't be inferred as anything more sinister.
I struggled with how to word that opening paragraph, because I didn't want it to seem like I was being a scold. I think it's totally fine to be curious about where people came from, and I have no issue with those inquiries at all. The only part I find annoying is how people dance around the *real* question they want to ask (in fairness, probably because they think the direct question is offensive). I came here too young to have an accent (you can listen to my podcast appearances) but I still get asked the question a lot, so I assume it's most likely my name or my complexion that tips people off.
I took the paragraph as you liking to be a bit of a troll about the tiptoeing people feel they need to do out of politeness, correctness, or fear. As a bit of a mutt I understand the urge. :)
Of course there's the view that _everything_ is blind dumb luck. An uncomfortable thought that discards the notion of free will, but it's probably correct.
I think this is literally true. It's somewhat banal to say that something is due to chance, what's slightly different in my case is how the green card lottery was fully *intended* to be random, and how consequential it was for my life.
This story was so good I’m going to suppress my own free-will-argument-autism and say I’m glad your text found it’s way in front of my eye-balls. You’re a very good writer.
*The free will exercised in this comment to temporarily engage with another person on a human level and not treat every interaction as a possible argument about the nature of fate vs free will was not in itself intended as an argument.
Respectfully disagree. Also disagree with the article's assertion that all was the result of luck. Robert Frost would disagree, too. If one reads the article, with an eye to picking out all the choices that were made throughout, one finds lots of them. Sure, lots of what happens in life is "luck", or, if you will, opportunity. But what one makes of that opportunity has a lot to do with the choices one makes. Even "luck," much of the time, is itself the result of choices...such as the choice in this excellent family story to enter the immigration lottery in the first place.
I think Jesse mentioned it at some point, but Thomas Nagel's essay "Moral Luck" is a uniquely persuasive argument against free will (not the *only* persuasive one, but it is really well-constructed).