In Phuc Tran’s memoir titled Sigh, Gone, Tran discusses his early childhood, more specifically he tells the story about how he accidentally thought someone’s swing set was a public playground. Before even making this mistake, Tran and his family have been ridiculed and made fun of by other Americans for looking and sounding different from them. The little boy who was playing on the playset, tells Tran that it is located in his yard, which confuses Tran. Eventually, Tran realizes that he was swinging in this boy's backyard, and apologizes immediately, starting to run away. At this moment, Tran has known many American people to be mean towards him and his family for being different, so he expects nothing else from this boy and his mistake.
However, upon the mother’s approval to stay, Tran meets the boy named Tim. Tim then asks Tran “‘Hey do you like Star Wars? (Tran 24). With this question, Tran loses all traces of fear and replies “‘ Yeah, I love Star Wars!” (Tran 24). The similarity of loving Star Wars created a safe space for Tran to feel like Tim would not embarrass or make fun of him as others have done in the past.
Based on this, and your own text, why might it be difficult for immigrants trying to assimilate to meet people /to make friends? What are some traits/ hobbies / commonalities that help immigrants trying to assimilate to meet people / to make friends?
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