Processing Hard Things from Far Away with Tamika | EP 34

It's Tea Time Somewhere

One of the hardest parts about expat life is being so far away when tragedy strikes your home country. You want to hug your loved ones, process things out loud with your closest friends, and be near the ones you hold closest to your heart. In today’s episode, we talk with Tamika about what it’s been like to be a Black American woman, married to an Austrian, and living far away from the States as racial tension builds during a global pandemic.

Tamika shares what it’s been like to emotionally process events from afar, and how she and her children have become the go-to American source for their local friends and peers to ask questions about the current events in the U.S. We also discuss the delicate balance of talking with our TCKs about the hard things so they won’t be naive to what is happening in the world — and most importantly, in their own home country.

In closing, Tamika shares a word of encouragement to expat women of color and gives beautiful words of wisdom to white expats on how to be a safe place for your friends of color who are processing troubling events from far away. “If you’re in a situation where you see any kind of injustice,” Tamika adds, “regardless of who you are, you can step in front of it. Put yourself out there so they know they’re seen and that they matter.”

We also have show notes.

Light reading for your pleasure.

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