“A Third Culture Kid (TCK) is a person who has spent a significant part of his or her developmental years outside the parents’ culture. The TCK builds relationships to all of the cultures, while not having full ownership in any. Although elements from each culture are assimilated into the TCK’s life experience, a sense of belonging is in relationship to others of similar background.”
- The Third Culture Kid Experience: Growing Up Among Worlds.
There's an author, David Powlinson, who writes about the necessity to experience both the balanced and the unbalanced nature of the gospel. Within the balance we find clarity and surety in doctrine and within the unbalanced expressions of gracious mercy we find the wisdom to care for others as they walk in this broken, tiled world. We find authenticity in the gospel, and we find unrest in the Christian walk as we wait for Christ's return.
Third Culture Kids often find themselves within that tension - between the balanced and the unbalanced, the grief and the gratitude, the rest and the unrest, the good and the terrible. As an Adult TCK, I have used writing as a way to process my experiences, and in my writing, I hope to give a space for others to do the same while providing useful and intentional support for TCKs and their families.
Here we can show up, without pretence, with authenticity, and we can share the good, the bad, the murky, and all the unrest in this life while we wait eagerly for the next one.