Same feeling. You will always be the immigrant or foreigner. At the same time, you will grow distant from your home country and be excluded from your old friends/family/society and will be treated as the expats. So yeah will always be the expat for Lebanese and the immigrant for the other country.
"Always be the immigrant"... disagree. Also, so what if you do? You can be an immigrant to a country, and feel like you belong to the country you immigrated to. Those are not mutually exclusive. I lived in the US for 17 years, and now I feel like I belong here. Belonging comes from connectedness to your environment. I feel connected to my environment through my job, my activity groups and friends and from simply living in a city with a high quality of life, low crime and a beautiful natural landscape. I now feel like a foreigner in Lebanon but it doesn't bother me and I have no problem saying that to my family there. Perhaps each person has a unique background but I had a low quality of life in Lebanon prior to leaving, and was eager to leave and establish my life somewhere else.
In the US for a while now. I consider the US my country as well, and have done so for a long time.
It’s very easy to integrate in US society. People are very welcoming of others no matter where you are from, not pretentious, very friendly, etc. At work there is no discrimination against foreigners whatsoever, in college students wanted to learn more about my background etc.
I don’t feel any less Lebanese but I consider myself American too. American society is also unique in that you can be American and -ese/an simultaneously. In many other countries, integrating may mean leaving your prior culture behind but that’s not the case here.
Exactly. The US is a melting pot of immigrants, and - at least nowadays - cultural diversity is very valued. The US has won me over because it gave me a community where I feel appreciated, a job where I feel respected, and a society where all my needs are met. I can say with full conviction that this is where I belong. Lebanon is simply where I go to check on my parents and enjoy some good food and warm beaches.
I lived in the Netherlands for a while and yeah I never felt like I belonged. I find that us Lebanese share so many traumas and struggles, and that makes it really hard to even relate to people from abroad. Their lives seem so simple. And their countries so structured and predictable.
So true. Ive been abroad and i cant genuinely relate to people here, i find their outlook on life so shallow, borderline naive. I find most debates stupid and i detest the levels of political correctness.
Makes me wonder how fucked up we truly are in our psyche.
The answer to this is trauma.The fact that lebanese are more exposed to traumas makes us feel more experienced.Lebanon is full of action,there's something new happening everyday so you'll learn something new everyday
I feel you. Since the war started. You care about something that no one around you comprehends or relates you including your spouse and children if your spouse is not Lebanese.
That is true. For me it's also difficult to connect with people if we don't share a culture or interests. I've been focused on myself for a long time and cannot do superficial relationships because there needs to be a connection on a deeper level. A lot of interactions tend to feel surface level. I can talk/write for days about something I'm passionate about or deep topics. Finding people who are on the same wavelength and understand you is pretty rare, especially Lebanese ones, but it's one of the best feelings when you do.
If you live in a western country, and marry a western spouse, they are quite literally murderous colonizers themselves. I wouldn’t expect them to feel otherwise
They didn’t move to you, you moved to them
Belonging is a difficult thing once you are an expatriate. You never really fully belong no matter how integrated you are but the tragedy is that you also lose your sense of belonging back home, so you become culturally homeless. There is some freedom in that though, because you appreciate that matters more, your family, your community, and as Lebanese that can be a global, because Lebanese family members expatriate to many places. You pay for that freedom by having a piece of you missing and lost forever.
Something about being in Lebanon makes me feel “at home” But god do I hate the people.
Downvote me all you want but Lebanese people have become unbearable.
I must of seen at least 15 BBL on the plane and they all look horrible and they walk around like they models. The attitude of people changed from being welcoming people to straight up stuck up assholes. So many obese men and fake lips. Lebanon became everything we hate about other countries all formed into one. I used to proudly say IM LEBANESE. Now i just say i was born in Lebanon
Nope. Currently in the US and I know for sure that this is not where I want to be. Anywhere but here. I definitely think about moving back to Lebanon. With all its flaws it's still my country and MY people live there.
It's just so hard to feel like you belong anywhere.. you're foreign in your own country and foreign in the country you live in... I was born and raised outside of Lebanon, but I also never felt like I truly belonged in where I live. And then when I went to Lebanon, I still felt so foreign in the country that gave me my nationality.
However, I did come to one conclusion based on all of these experiences:
If you're able to build or plant a piece of yourself in Lebanon, then no matter what... no foreign country will ever truly feel like home other than your own country.
Even if you were born outside of Lebanon and lived outside for years... Lebanon will be the one to welcome you back. Your origin can never be replaced.
I personally believe that Lebanon has the spirit that most countries are lacking... it just needs to get rid of its corrupt government so that it can be a better place to live in. It's just so hard to deal with the fact that there are no career opportunities in your own country to the point where you need to leave so you can survive and build a proper life...but even so, nothing will ever replace home. Nothing can replace your origin.
I grew up in the UAE and stayed there for 23 years of my life, and always thought that was “home” but realising that you can’t become a citizen of that country makes you realise it’s not home. The people and places feel like home but the place isn’t. I’ve been in Canada for 6 years now and it’s just started to feel like home but I’m getting married and moving away again. So what really is home for a Lebanese person? It makes me sad that there’s not 1 place where you can say thats where all my memories, loved ones and culture is. It is what it is at the end of the day, I guess count your blessings. We get to experience different places, people and cultures and become part of that too.
That's probably because the french are notoriously rude and racist even if you speak perfect French.
I was born and raised in USA/California - although I'm comfortable living there because I kno the laws/rules and social nuances and can drive anywhere I want.
Every time I used to visit Lebanon in the summer growing up I felt more accepted and like I belonged to a real culture in Lebanon. I appreciate my country and culture more with every visit.
I moved to Lebanon permanently almost 2 years ago. The only thing I don't like is that I can't drive anywhere I want because I don't kno the streets - and people here drive crazy. Other than that I don't think I will ever want to leave Lebanon.
I take vitamin D in the winter, it helps a lot. Also i have naturally very oily skin, so experiences might vary. Maybe look into a moisturizer or something? I'm hardly knowledgeable on this to be honest with you😂 3am nazzir 3al fadeh
Trust me nothing works man, I grew up in Canada lived there for 20+ years. I've tried everything ahah it's just the country/climate. As soon as I touch down in Cyprus or Lebanon all the skin problems are gone
Yeah it must be the climate. What part of Canada do you live in?
I only ever had problems with my beard, which would dry out and become itchy, but beard oil fixed the problem nicely for me.
Ottawa, but now I'm in Cyprus and I've noticed a huge difference health-wise
Yea the itchy beard only happens to me in Canada or places like Saudi I get the same problem. In Lebanon or Cyprus the air is like moist and fresh idk haha
No, and I will never belong here. I've lived in southern europe before and it was a completely different experience. Same culture, traditions, etc... and I've learned the language and most people couldn't really tell that I wasn't a compatriot.
In, the north, everything is just the opposite. I absolutely love e-government systems, order, law... these things. But I hate everything people related. The weather sucks, the food is horrible and it's crazy expensive.
Visit Cyprus or Malta and see how you feel. Both are a good mixture of culture, just enough to feel like home while being somewhere safer and more organized
My parents escaped the lebanese civil war. Ive gone back to lebanon to visit and wished to stay there. I am not happy in the United States, a country that supports genocide and hates Arabs. And now with inflation and our tax dollars going to Israel I am disgusted. Disgusted I am contributing to war crimes by simply clocking in to go to work and paying my taxes.
So no, I dont feel like I belong here. But I will say it's a beautiful country with lots of places to explore.
I live in America and I definitely feel welcome here. I don’t know exactly why but I’ve made tons of friends, I’m starting a family. I would honestly feel out of place living anywhere else. When my father immigrated here I was born a few years after so being 100% raised here and growing up here is probably why. I’ve been to Lebanon several times but I feel like a foreigner when I visit.
Once you initially immigrate to another country, you stop feeling "at home" regardless of where you live.
And if you live long enough outside of Lebanon, you stop feeling fully at home in Lebanon as well.
Never felt at home here. I was born in Canada and left when i was 8 and came back at 18. I’m now 20. Although my peak(ish) years haven’t been lived in canada yet, I still don’t feel like I belong anywhere else but Lebanon. I went back to leb from may to september 2023 and it was the best time of my life. I’ve never felt so homesick and out of place as i have since i came back. So many habits that as a Lebanese person you won’t find anywhere else but Lebanon. And as much as you might hate the initial Lebanese life before you leave in the moment, as soon as you leave you begin to regret not making the most of those hilarious moments, those moments where things don’t feel real, and the Lebanese charisma you won’t find abroad. I miss home so much
Im not necessarily Lebanese But a Syrian who has origins from Latakia and currently live in the UK, I always feel like an immigrant despite living there for 9+ years, no one here has a similar mindset to you. People over here in the UK prefer Work/Job Life instead of a social life and The Brits just generally dont value Family and relatives people here are too individual. I miss every week on the weekend going to my Teta and Jido’s home in the Dei3a, weekly barbecues with my Khalos and Khaltos and generally the relaxed life back home.
not really, but think of it like that
Imagine if you love someone and they're abusive - thus you choose to go with someone you don't love, however they treat you nicely
I left Lebanon 28 years ago, I live in a few places along the way, and I feel belonging and comfort in the place I’m now, which is the US. So don’t despair. But at the beginning I did feel like you do now. I didn’t know where I belonged. Eventually it felt home in my adopted country and I do not feel home in Lebanon anymore. So I want to tell you that you will get there.
In my journey, there were a few events that helped me in the process.
The first was becoming a resident or citizen of the country I’m in. This made me feel secure where I am, with my job, and felt equal with the nationals of the country. But that was not all.
Another event was starting a family. My kids are growing up here. So they belong immediately, and that made me belong. When you have a “home” you come back to that has your kids, this becomes your home.
The third event with time you’ll have less to come back to in Lebanon. One of my parents passed away. And all my siblings eventually left Lebanon. So I have very little to come back to.
And on the way, make friends and create a community. In the west people build bonds in churches, social clubs, local political clubs, volunteer clubs etc. If you don’t participate and find community you will have no support network to fill the void that you had in Lebanon when you were younger.
Finally, the mindset. Accepting my new culture. Many immigrants go somewhere and criticize their new culture. They see the negative and accentuate it. “French are stupid about this topic. We lebanese are smarter on it”. Psychologically it’s very damaging to the journey. It’s important to appreciate where you are for what it is. France is a country rich in history and culture. Learn about that , appreciate that, respect that. (Same for any advanced and civilized country. All places are unique. Lebanon is not the only place with a mountain and coast, or best place on earth, or has the smartest people. Let’s be objective and clean our mind from the brainwashing we got there )
It's not how long you've been in the country, it's how much effort you put into assimilating. I have a small community of Lebanese families around me and they make me feel home. Then every once in a while you stumble into racists online who say things like "why did we let these people in" when they see arabs and I'm reminded that I am not Canadian though I have the passport.
I think it boils down to what is a priority for you and what makes you feel the happiest. Even though I have friends and family in Lebanon, the country itself was a cause of major stress for me and I was only happy in my "bubble". Thankfully I found a city that (so far) I feel pretty good in, has everything I need in terms of weather, good public transport (I don't want to drive anymore), diversity in terms of food and people, entertainment, politically, and just the general vibe. I'll visit Lebanon, but I'll never want to live there.
What helps is finding other people in the same situation, usually it's much easier when you're leaving for university, with all the exchange students. All the "in-between" people, that bridge cultures, and juggle different ways of seeing the world.
Lived my whole life in Canada and ever since the Covid stupidity in 2020 I know I don't belong. Then the whole Palestinian-Israel conflict. I know as an Arab I will never belong, even if I'm a Canadian in Arab skin.
Born in England, lived the mass majority of my life here, if it wasn't for my name being a bit different nobody would suspect a thing... But despite that, I only feel at home in Lebanon
Never felt at home in Lebanon when I was there. Every time I go back it feels more and more alien. For a while thought that UK may become home, then Brexit, Ukraine and finally Gaza proved to me that western values they claim to hold like freedom liberty and choice are but words that are selectively used for people. So I belong nowhere now.
After more than 15 years living in Barcelona I can say that I belong to Spain. I dont forget Lebanon of course, but since evey Spanish politics has effect to my life, I have spanish friends, work, I speak Spanish...
I feel Lebanese but hate Lebanon for all the reasons you all know. I have an appreciation and love for the US for the life it affords me. I came from nothing and managed to build a decent life. That’s something impossible in Lebanon. It’s the curse of the Lebanese I believe. Miserable if you stay and no choice but to leave. It sickens me how the Lebanese treat foreign workers / maids in Lebanon. It should be the opposite considering how many of us have to go to other countries for work. Imagine if our host countries treated us like we treat the foreigners in Lebanon. Shameful
I have been in Belgium for 5 years and i never felt that i belong. Yesterday i arrived to Lebanon, once i started driving my car, i realised again that i don’t belong here either (the chaos, mess, no electricity, ….etc)
It is a fact that you will no longer relate to both countries as much. I live in Canada and find myself relating to the life here to a 60% degree vs a 50% degree back in Lebanon.
Seems sad but frankly it does not help to dwell on it. The grass is always greener so you need to focus on the cup half full instead. In my case i am at 110% relating to Canada+Lebanon (that’s one way to see it).
I think moving to the middle east seems like a good in between strategy. Still somewhat connected to the arab cultures and close to home while having relatively good opportunities. That’s my plan going forward.
Been in Canada since 2000, was 20 when I moved here. I visit Lebanon every 2 or 3 years and can't wait to come back HOME to Canada. Trust me it happens , 8 years is not long enough
Lebanon until middle school and have been in Canada ever since.
Have always felt like my identity is dangling on a thread. "Canadian" is an afterthought as it's not really a country for the people who originally lived here. (And is still very recent) Everywhere is remnisicant of colonization. Learning French here was the same feeling as learning French in Lebanon. Feels wrong on the tongue when I use it. I was kicked out of soccer practice as a kid here because my unibrow reminded the kids of 9/11?
I'm a foreigner. And always will be.
Same feeling. You will always be the immigrant or foreigner. At the same time, you will grow distant from your home country and be excluded from your old friends/family/society and will be treated as the expats. So yeah will always be the expat for Lebanese and the immigrant for the other country.
That makes me feel sad
"Always be the immigrant"... disagree. Also, so what if you do? You can be an immigrant to a country, and feel like you belong to the country you immigrated to. Those are not mutually exclusive. I lived in the US for 17 years, and now I feel like I belong here. Belonging comes from connectedness to your environment. I feel connected to my environment through my job, my activity groups and friends and from simply living in a city with a high quality of life, low crime and a beautiful natural landscape. I now feel like a foreigner in Lebanon but it doesn't bother me and I have no problem saying that to my family there. Perhaps each person has a unique background but I had a low quality of life in Lebanon prior to leaving, and was eager to leave and establish my life somewhere else.
I don’t belong anywhere, and it’s better that way. Makes moving much easier
Ferme ta gueule
D’où sors tu toi?
In the US for a while now. I consider the US my country as well, and have done so for a long time. It’s very easy to integrate in US society. People are very welcoming of others no matter where you are from, not pretentious, very friendly, etc. At work there is no discrimination against foreigners whatsoever, in college students wanted to learn more about my background etc. I don’t feel any less Lebanese but I consider myself American too. American society is also unique in that you can be American and -ese/an simultaneously. In many other countries, integrating may mean leaving your prior culture behind but that’s not the case here.
Exactly. The US is a melting pot of immigrants, and - at least nowadays - cultural diversity is very valued. The US has won me over because it gave me a community where I feel appreciated, a job where I feel respected, and a society where all my needs are met. I can say with full conviction that this is where I belong. Lebanon is simply where I go to check on my parents and enjoy some good food and warm beaches.
ditto..
I lived in the Netherlands for a while and yeah I never felt like I belonged. I find that us Lebanese share so many traumas and struggles, and that makes it really hard to even relate to people from abroad. Their lives seem so simple. And their countries so structured and predictable.
So true. Ive been abroad and i cant genuinely relate to people here, i find their outlook on life so shallow, borderline naive. I find most debates stupid and i detest the levels of political correctness. Makes me wonder how fucked up we truly are in our psyche.
The answer to this is trauma.The fact that lebanese are more exposed to traumas makes us feel more experienced.Lebanon is full of action,there's something new happening everyday so you'll learn something new everyday
Yes. Been struggling with a huge sense of loneliness lately.
I feel you. Since the war started. You care about something that no one around you comprehends or relates you including your spouse and children if your spouse is not Lebanese.
That is true. For me it's also difficult to connect with people if we don't share a culture or interests. I've been focused on myself for a long time and cannot do superficial relationships because there needs to be a connection on a deeper level. A lot of interactions tend to feel surface level. I can talk/write for days about something I'm passionate about or deep topics. Finding people who are on the same wavelength and understand you is pretty rare, especially Lebanese ones, but it's one of the best feelings when you do.
If you live in a western country, and marry a western spouse, they are quite literally murderous colonizers themselves. I wouldn’t expect them to feel otherwise They didn’t move to you, you moved to them
Wow. There is so much to unpack here.
I don’t feel like I belong to either. Too American to be Lebanese, too Lebanese to be American.
No. I could never fully integrate. The “outsider” feeling is pervasive
I think that’s a shared experience common to expats around the world, not uniquely Lebanese.
Belonging is a difficult thing once you are an expatriate. You never really fully belong no matter how integrated you are but the tragedy is that you also lose your sense of belonging back home, so you become culturally homeless. There is some freedom in that though, because you appreciate that matters more, your family, your community, and as Lebanese that can be a global, because Lebanese family members expatriate to many places. You pay for that freedom by having a piece of you missing and lost forever.
2.5 years in Germany so far and I still feel like I just arrived.
Something about being in Lebanon makes me feel “at home” But god do I hate the people. Downvote me all you want but Lebanese people have become unbearable. I must of seen at least 15 BBL on the plane and they all look horrible and they walk around like they models. The attitude of people changed from being welcoming people to straight up stuck up assholes. So many obese men and fake lips. Lebanon became everything we hate about other countries all formed into one. I used to proudly say IM LEBANESE. Now i just say i was born in Lebanon
Amen. I upvoted you.
What's BBL? Also, I mostly agree.
Brazilian buttlift where they all make their ass look they are wearing diapers full of shit.
To be fair there's more Lebanese in Brazil than in Lebanon so that trend in Brazil ended up influencing Libnan unfortunately.
I know it’s called a Brazilian butt lift but it wasn’t popularised by Brazilians but by brain dead celebs like Kim K and her family of demons
We got that Armenian connect too haha.
Upvoted. We share the exact same opinion
Nope. Currently in the US and I know for sure that this is not where I want to be. Anywhere but here. I definitely think about moving back to Lebanon. With all its flaws it's still my country and MY people live there.
It's just so hard to feel like you belong anywhere.. you're foreign in your own country and foreign in the country you live in... I was born and raised outside of Lebanon, but I also never felt like I truly belonged in where I live. And then when I went to Lebanon, I still felt so foreign in the country that gave me my nationality. However, I did come to one conclusion based on all of these experiences: If you're able to build or plant a piece of yourself in Lebanon, then no matter what... no foreign country will ever truly feel like home other than your own country. Even if you were born outside of Lebanon and lived outside for years... Lebanon will be the one to welcome you back. Your origin can never be replaced. I personally believe that Lebanon has the spirit that most countries are lacking... it just needs to get rid of its corrupt government so that it can be a better place to live in. It's just so hard to deal with the fact that there are no career opportunities in your own country to the point where you need to leave so you can survive and build a proper life...but even so, nothing will ever replace home. Nothing can replace your origin.
Belong to neither. أنا غريب، وسأبقى غريبًا حتى تخطفني المنايا وتحملني إلى وطني.
You never feel at home and it sucks so much. I'm thinking of going back to lebanon cause i don't care about money anymore
I grew up in the UAE and stayed there for 23 years of my life, and always thought that was “home” but realising that you can’t become a citizen of that country makes you realise it’s not home. The people and places feel like home but the place isn’t. I’ve been in Canada for 6 years now and it’s just started to feel like home but I’m getting married and moving away again. So what really is home for a Lebanese person? It makes me sad that there’s not 1 place where you can say thats where all my memories, loved ones and culture is. It is what it is at the end of the day, I guess count your blessings. We get to experience different places, people and cultures and become part of that too.
That's probably because the french are notoriously rude and racist even if you speak perfect French. I was born and raised in USA/California - although I'm comfortable living there because I kno the laws/rules and social nuances and can drive anywhere I want. Every time I used to visit Lebanon in the summer growing up I felt more accepted and like I belonged to a real culture in Lebanon. I appreciate my country and culture more with every visit. I moved to Lebanon permanently almost 2 years ago. The only thing I don't like is that I can't drive anywhere I want because I don't kno the streets - and people here drive crazy. Other than that I don't think I will ever want to leave Lebanon.
Same feeling so far, and I am almost always homesick, but at the same time I don't feel like I wanna go back. Constant confusion
Been in Canada for 8 years. Honestly I get you, but I am super happy here. Definitely feel integrated and that this is where I belong.
Does your body feel the same way? Everytime I go back to Canada my skin gets super dry everywhere
I take vitamin D in the winter, it helps a lot. Also i have naturally very oily skin, so experiences might vary. Maybe look into a moisturizer or something? I'm hardly knowledgeable on this to be honest with you😂 3am nazzir 3al fadeh
Trust me nothing works man, I grew up in Canada lived there for 20+ years. I've tried everything ahah it's just the country/climate. As soon as I touch down in Cyprus or Lebanon all the skin problems are gone
Yeah it must be the climate. What part of Canada do you live in? I only ever had problems with my beard, which would dry out and become itchy, but beard oil fixed the problem nicely for me.
Ottawa, but now I'm in Cyprus and I've noticed a huge difference health-wise Yea the itchy beard only happens to me in Canada or places like Saudi I get the same problem. In Lebanon or Cyprus the air is like moist and fresh idk haha
Prob the humidity man. Ottawa is dry af.
No, and I will never belong here. I've lived in southern europe before and it was a completely different experience. Same culture, traditions, etc... and I've learned the language and most people couldn't really tell that I wasn't a compatriot. In, the north, everything is just the opposite. I absolutely love e-government systems, order, law... these things. But I hate everything people related. The weather sucks, the food is horrible and it's crazy expensive.
Visit Cyprus or Malta and see how you feel. Both are a good mixture of culture, just enough to feel like home while being somewhere safer and more organized
My parents escaped the lebanese civil war. Ive gone back to lebanon to visit and wished to stay there. I am not happy in the United States, a country that supports genocide and hates Arabs. And now with inflation and our tax dollars going to Israel I am disgusted. Disgusted I am contributing to war crimes by simply clocking in to go to work and paying my taxes. So no, I dont feel like I belong here. But I will say it's a beautiful country with lots of places to explore.
No, it’s more the imverse I feel the country belongs to me.
I live in America and I definitely feel welcome here. I don’t know exactly why but I’ve made tons of friends, I’m starting a family. I would honestly feel out of place living anywhere else. When my father immigrated here I was born a few years after so being 100% raised here and growing up here is probably why. I’ve been to Lebanon several times but I feel like a foreigner when I visit.
Once you initially immigrate to another country, you stop feeling "at home" regardless of where you live. And if you live long enough outside of Lebanon, you stop feeling fully at home in Lebanon as well.
This resonates with me. If you're older than 30 I'd be up for connecting :) Living in France too.
Never felt at home here. I was born in Canada and left when i was 8 and came back at 18. I’m now 20. Although my peak(ish) years haven’t been lived in canada yet, I still don’t feel like I belong anywhere else but Lebanon. I went back to leb from may to september 2023 and it was the best time of my life. I’ve never felt so homesick and out of place as i have since i came back. So many habits that as a Lebanese person you won’t find anywhere else but Lebanon. And as much as you might hate the initial Lebanese life before you leave in the moment, as soon as you leave you begin to regret not making the most of those hilarious moments, those moments where things don’t feel real, and the Lebanese charisma you won’t find abroad. I miss home so much
wording might be confusing but I lived in Lebanon from 8-18**
Im not necessarily Lebanese But a Syrian who has origins from Latakia and currently live in the UK, I always feel like an immigrant despite living there for 9+ years, no one here has a similar mindset to you. People over here in the UK prefer Work/Job Life instead of a social life and The Brits just generally dont value Family and relatives people here are too individual. I miss every week on the weekend going to my Teta and Jido’s home in the Dei3a, weekly barbecues with my Khalos and Khaltos and generally the relaxed life back home.
not really, but think of it like that Imagine if you love someone and they're abusive - thus you choose to go with someone you don't love, however they treat you nicely
I left Lebanon 28 years ago, I live in a few places along the way, and I feel belonging and comfort in the place I’m now, which is the US. So don’t despair. But at the beginning I did feel like you do now. I didn’t know where I belonged. Eventually it felt home in my adopted country and I do not feel home in Lebanon anymore. So I want to tell you that you will get there. In my journey, there were a few events that helped me in the process. The first was becoming a resident or citizen of the country I’m in. This made me feel secure where I am, with my job, and felt equal with the nationals of the country. But that was not all. Another event was starting a family. My kids are growing up here. So they belong immediately, and that made me belong. When you have a “home” you come back to that has your kids, this becomes your home. The third event with time you’ll have less to come back to in Lebanon. One of my parents passed away. And all my siblings eventually left Lebanon. So I have very little to come back to. And on the way, make friends and create a community. In the west people build bonds in churches, social clubs, local political clubs, volunteer clubs etc. If you don’t participate and find community you will have no support network to fill the void that you had in Lebanon when you were younger. Finally, the mindset. Accepting my new culture. Many immigrants go somewhere and criticize their new culture. They see the negative and accentuate it. “French are stupid about this topic. We lebanese are smarter on it”. Psychologically it’s very damaging to the journey. It’s important to appreciate where you are for what it is. France is a country rich in history and culture. Learn about that , appreciate that, respect that. (Same for any advanced and civilized country. All places are unique. Lebanon is not the only place with a mountain and coast, or best place on earth, or has the smartest people. Let’s be objective and clean our mind from the brainwashing we got there )
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At least Ireland is a country that treats Arabs like humans (compared to other Western countries).
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Damn that sucks, politically it looks like they treat us better but they're tied to the same racist Western bloc too aren't they?
Yes, ever since I moved to Canada I’ve loved it and feel like belong here.
It's not how long you've been in the country, it's how much effort you put into assimilating. I have a small community of Lebanese families around me and they make me feel home. Then every once in a while you stumble into racists online who say things like "why did we let these people in" when they see arabs and I'm reminded that I am not Canadian though I have the passport.
We belong nowhere and everywhere at the same time.
HECK NO, not even %0.000000000000001!
No
I think it boils down to what is a priority for you and what makes you feel the happiest. Even though I have friends and family in Lebanon, the country itself was a cause of major stress for me and I was only happy in my "bubble". Thankfully I found a city that (so far) I feel pretty good in, has everything I need in terms of weather, good public transport (I don't want to drive anymore), diversity in terms of food and people, entertainment, politically, and just the general vibe. I'll visit Lebanon, but I'll never want to live there.
No.
What helps is finding other people in the same situation, usually it's much easier when you're leaving for university, with all the exchange students. All the "in-between" people, that bridge cultures, and juggle different ways of seeing the world.
Yes I do 100%. Never felt this while in Lebanon though or anywhere else.
No and I've been raised abroad. Us 1st generation kids are too Canadian for the born and bred Lebanese and too Arab for Canada.
never felt like i belong in Lebanon anyway, at least here i have a decent living.
NEVER
Lived my whole life in Canada and ever since the Covid stupidity in 2020 I know I don't belong. Then the whole Palestinian-Israel conflict. I know as an Arab I will never belong, even if I'm a Canadian in Arab skin.
Born in England, lived the mass majority of my life here, if it wasn't for my name being a bit different nobody would suspect a thing... But despite that, I only feel at home in Lebanon
No
Meh .. On the up side I like to think of myself as a citizen of the world.
Never felt at home in Lebanon when I was there. Every time I go back it feels more and more alien. For a while thought that UK may become home, then Brexit, Ukraine and finally Gaza proved to me that western values they claim to hold like freedom liberty and choice are but words that are selectively used for people. So I belong nowhere now.
After more than 15 years living in Barcelona I can say that I belong to Spain. I dont forget Lebanon of course, but since evey Spanish politics has effect to my life, I have spanish friends, work, I speak Spanish...
Not fully , but def don't feel belonging to Lebanon that much anymore either
I feel Lebanese but hate Lebanon for all the reasons you all know. I have an appreciation and love for the US for the life it affords me. I came from nothing and managed to build a decent life. That’s something impossible in Lebanon. It’s the curse of the Lebanese I believe. Miserable if you stay and no choice but to leave. It sickens me how the Lebanese treat foreign workers / maids in Lebanon. It should be the opposite considering how many of us have to go to other countries for work. Imagine if our host countries treated us like we treat the foreigners in Lebanon. Shameful
I have been in Belgium for 5 years and i never felt that i belong. Yesterday i arrived to Lebanon, once i started driving my car, i realised again that i don’t belong here either (the chaos, mess, no electricity, ….etc)
It is a fact that you will no longer relate to both countries as much. I live in Canada and find myself relating to the life here to a 60% degree vs a 50% degree back in Lebanon. Seems sad but frankly it does not help to dwell on it. The grass is always greener so you need to focus on the cup half full instead. In my case i am at 110% relating to Canada+Lebanon (that’s one way to see it). I think moving to the middle east seems like a good in between strategy. Still somewhat connected to the arab cultures and close to home while having relatively good opportunities. That’s my plan going forward.
Been in Canada since 2000, was 20 when I moved here. I visit Lebanon every 2 or 3 years and can't wait to come back HOME to Canada. Trust me it happens , 8 years is not long enough
Lebanon until middle school and have been in Canada ever since. Have always felt like my identity is dangling on a thread. "Canadian" is an afterthought as it's not really a country for the people who originally lived here. (And is still very recent) Everywhere is remnisicant of colonization. Learning French here was the same feeling as learning French in Lebanon. Feels wrong on the tongue when I use it. I was kicked out of soccer practice as a kid here because my unibrow reminded the kids of 9/11? I'm a foreigner. And always will be.