Welcome back to Part 2 of our interview with Sam Fisher, adult TCK who grew up in Indonesia and Malaysia as a missionary kid to a local Indonesian mom and an American dad. Returning to the U.S. for college was another huge transition, but his network of relationships from boarding school and all the new university friends helped him feel at home. In this episode, listen to Sam discuss his journey defining his identity, embracing his superpower of fitting in, and processing his childhood even more as he and his wife raise their own children. He realizes that it is never too late for TCKs to have conversations about their growing up years.

Find Sam on Instagram at instagram.com/losfisher.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!

This is part 1 of our interview with Sam Fisher, an adult Third Culture Kid who grew up in Indonesia and Malaysia as a missionary kid to a local Indonesian mom and American dad. Returning to the U.S. for college, Sam is now a book seller and dad of four in his forties living near Boston. Sam’s family spent some periods of his childhood in the US, but they primarily lived in Indonesia in a small, tight knit community, until Sam went to boarding school in Malaysia for middle and high school. Though this meant that he only saw his parents twice a year during long vacations, his school community, and faith, provided him with an extended family.

Find Sam at instagram.com/losfisher

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!

This customs episode is about WEATHER, and we have several guests share their stories! Along with the myriad of cultural changes when moving globally, weather is one more adjustment. How did moving to a new climate (or hemisphere!) affect us? We can settle into the cycles of a rainy season or dry season, and still be caught off guard by the almost suffocating humidity. Life is like the weather: sometimes we have dry seasons where not much seems to be happening. Other times we have a rainy season with occasional clouds and powerful storms with sometimes inconvenient consequences. But after the rains, the sun's rays come through, green is everywhere, and we realize we would never want to live without those rainy seasons.

See Edd's stunning sky photos from around the world here.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 2 of our interview with Stacy Hipwood, International teacher, mother and wife, who is passionate about Kenya and holding up her family.  Stacy fell in love with Nairobi and stayed for eleven years teaching, marrying, and raising her two children.  She never wanted to leave.  But her husband’s brain aneurysm and recovery period sent her whirling. With a two and four year old to care for and now the sole provider, she and her husband made the decision to move to the U.S.  Resource mentioned in episode: Link Care Foundation See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 1 of our interview with Stacy Hipwood, international teacher, mother and wife, who is passionate about Kenya and holding up her family. Stacy fell in love with Nairobi and stayed for eleven years teaching, marrying, and raising her two children.  Her transition to living in Kenya was supported by her connection to friends who became like family.  Even though long utility outages just about drove her out of the country, the culture of focusing on relationships and caring for others kept her firmly rooted, hoping to never leave.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 2 of our interview with Stanley Anenyemele Asasu, doctor and writer from Ghana, Africa.  In 2015 Dr. Stanley left to pursue his dream of becoming a medical doctor through a Wuhan, China university program to educate foreign physicians.  He was set to return to complete his medical clerkship in Ghana for February 2020, and he made it out of Wuhan less than 24 hours before the city closed for seven months.  Back in Ghana after his five year sojourn, he received a warm welcome from his family, but there was some suspicion of him from his local community. Listen to how Dr. Stanley used his medical education for such a time as this.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 1 of our interview with Dr. Stanley Anenyemele Asasu, doctor and writer from Ghana, Africa.  In 2015 Dr. Stanley moved away from his country for the first time to pursue his dream of becoming a medical doctor through a Wuhan, China university program to educate foreign doctors.  After an emotional arrival, he found his support system through his international classmates and friends from church. He filled his five years with studying medicine and Chinese, tutoring others in English, and even wrote a book on the side!

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Let's listen to stories about how music around the world has brought joy and beauty to our souls. Music is a universal language and can build bridges across cultures, and at the same time music carries culture and meaning specific to place and people. It can teach us culture, language, and even how to find friends.  Music marks celebrations and gathering of people, whether in Karaoke rooms or out in a school play yard.  Music’s beauty feeds our thirsty souls - let’s not go without it. 

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 2 of our interview with Monica Baez, an international baccalaureate psychology teacher and foodie from Ecuador who spent six years in the U.S. before returning to Ecuador.  Monica’s six years in California not only gave her degrees and professional training in psychology and marriage and family counseling, but they also gave her a blueprint for what a Christian family and grace filled faith community could look like.  Things didn't work out exactly as planned when she returned to Ecuador: she missed her U.S. friends, her identity had changed, and her dream of being a therapist was not working.  But there were other opportunities on the horizon.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Our guest today is Mónica Baez, an international baccalaureate psychology teacher and foodie from Ecuador who spent six years in the U.S.  She describes the time at her small California Christian university as a magical experience where she enjoyed rich diversity, close community, and added grace in her faith practice. Mónica found that being outside her country helped her to define her own cultural viewpoint and gave her a foundation for who she is today.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This month's customs episode is about bread and bakeries. Just talking about bread makes us fondly remember times and places when we lived near bakeries, were empowered from communicating in them, or were so thankful for the comfort food they provided for our families. These bread stories have more ingredients to them than just flour, water, and salt: they are about history, immigration, science, and art. They are about humans thankful for the creativity of other humans, no matter where they are from, to help nourish their minds, bodies, and hearts.

For photos and more info about the stories we shared today or to sign up for our email list, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 2 of our interview with Val Robb, a Canadian born New Zealander, writer and writing coach, and teacher who homeschooled for 25 years all through eleven international moves.  She and her family loved their years living in China where her husband was a professor, and even though it was time, it was difficult to return to New Zealand.  Val shares stories about some deep rooted and practical ideas to get through such a multi-layered transition.

Waiting to be Well: Sustaining hope while wrestling with weakness by Angela C Millen

Making Peace with Change by Gena Brenna Butz

Val's Website: inspiringwriting.co

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 2 of our interview with adult third Culture Kid Sherene Joseph, a writer and storyteller born in Tamil Nadu, India.  After growing up in Oman from the age of 4 to 17 years old, she moved back to India for university studies.  Sherene later married and moved to the US with her own family.   In this part of her interview, she shares her stories of returning to India after university and not being able to fully share about her growing up in Oman.  As time went on, she realized that she shouldn’t lock up those experiences which were so much a part of her.

Learn more about Sherene and find link to her ​Substack newsletter​ as well as many of her ​published articles​ on her website: ​www.sherenejoseph.me​ Follow Sherene on Instagram: ​@elsjoseph

Also mentioned in this episode: Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds by David C. Pollock and Ruth E. Van Reken

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠!

Our guest for this episode is Val Robb, a Canadian born New Zealander, writer and writing coach, and teacher who homeschooled for 25 years all through eleven international moves.  Val had lots of practice helping her family of eight adjust and make a new home as her professor husband took positions in different universities around the world.  Val shares stories about her move to China where she discovered that, being rooted in Christ's love, she could find comfort and home anywhere.

Learn more about Val at her website: inspiringwriting.co

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

When on a flight, who doesn’t like to have a window seat and see the world from 20,000 feet up? This Review-Preview episode is that aerial view of themes from season 1 and a preview of our guests for season 2.  There are common themes which our season 1 guests spoke of, like refining identities or growing a larger appreciation for the world.  Listen to Melissa and Tracy reflect on more themes and where to listen to them, and hear a preview of the amazing guests they have lined up for season 2.  Guests are from Ghana, New Zealand, Ecuador, and the U.S. who have round trip stories from their time in China, Kenya, and the U.S.  Don't miss this Review-Preview episode for the window seat aerial view of season 1 and 2!

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

In this Season 1 finale episode we hear Christmas and New Years Stories from around the world.  We hear about Paneton in Peru, Kentucky fried chicken in Japan, and watchnight chicken sandwiches in the Middle East. There are New Year wedding saris in India, grapes in Spain, and burning the old year in Ecuador. These can be celebrations we miss or continue to celebrate as we bring bits of our times abroad into our current lives now, especially during the holidays.  And we should, because they are part of us.

Mentioned in this episode - Melissa's post: Navigating Grief: When You Have To Say Goodbye To The Place Your Heart Feels At Home

Sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Melinda Howe, Disney Character Brand Manager, Ministry leader, amazing baker, and mom of four.  In 2010, Melinda and her family started their four year sojourn to Beijing, China where her husband Ralph worked in the golf industry and they were both in leadership with their international church.  Melinda was not ready to leave her life in Beijing when her husband was offered a job back in Florida, but after prayer and the cat coming back, she was at peace with packing up her kids and Chinese furniture to return to the United States. 

Organization mentioned in this episode: Into the Light International

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This week's interview is with Melinda Howe, Disney Character Brand Manager, ministry leader, amazing baker, and mom of four.  In 2010, Melinda and her family went to Beijing, China where her husband Ralph was offered a job in the golf industry.  They saw this as an opportunity for their whole family to live in their adopted daughters’ birth country.  Although they faced challenges like not being able to transport their whole family in one vehicle and homeschooling for the first time, they found an unexpected extended family in their international church and friends for their children from around the world right in their neighborhood.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Today's episode is a collection of stories about how nature reminded us of home or our time abroad. Our world is replete with natural beauty and landscapes vary wildly, but sometimes they are so similar that it reminds us of another beloved place. What encounters with nature brought us comfort while abroad? Did a particular landform, park, climate, or creature remind us of home? Or when we returned home, did something in nature remind us of our place living abroad? Let’s hear some Customs Stories about Nature’s reminders.

Mentioned in this episode:

Zhangjiajie National Forest Park

Cotopaxi - A Most Dangerous Volcano

Popocatépetl in the news May 2023

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This is Part 2 of our interview with Kat Borba, a teacher, supporter of overseas missionaries, and mother of three. She and her husband were missionaries in Sapporo, Japan for three years. They had hoped to stay for much longer, but after diagnosing their daughter with Moebius syndrome, they knew they needed to return back to the U.S. for a time and season. Reentry was harder than she was given permission to feel, but a week of debriefing and renewal helped her focus on giving herself permission to feel both the hard and the joys and to re-enter slowly. Kat’s stories show us that transition back can be overwhelming, but as the chaos subsides, we can find our place and passions again.

Mentioned in episode:

Moebius Syndrome Foundation

⁠Debriefing & Renewal (DAR) at MTI⁠

What's in a Screen Name? by Kat Borba

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠roundtripstories.com⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠facebook⁠ and ⁠instagram⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 1 of our interview with Kat Borba, a teacher, supporter of overseas missions, and mother of three. In her mid twenties, she and her husband became missionaries to Sapporo, Japan, landing five weeks before the 9.1 earthquake and tsunami hit Japan many miles south of them. This event sparked a great need for humanitarian service, and she and her husband were able to give support through their Japanese church. Throughout the years, Kat and her husband worked in their local Japanese church college ministry, English teaching, and mothering groups. Kat first struggled with feeling incompetent without basic literacy in Japan, but she relished the bond and support from other foreign missionaries. She was surprised that in Japan she was not as extroverted as she thought, and she found new ways to feel refreshed and reenergized.

Mentioned in episode:

Mission Training International (MTI)

"Nastukashii"

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠roundtripstories.com⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠facebook⁠ and ⁠instagram⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Today's Customs Episode is about ART.  Beauty and creativity are an indispensable and unique part of every culture. What caught our eye and hearts as we lived and worked in other countries? What did we learn? Art is an expression of not only aesthetics but also culture, history, and creative communication.  In this episode, we hear stories about how art teaches, heals, and allows us to remember.  We do not need oral language to create it, all can participate in it, and community helps inspire it.  We hope that you are inspired by this customs episode about art!

Mentioned in episode:

Garry L. Prieb's art on facebook

Take a tour of the 3 km mosaic wall around the university in Trujillo, Peru!

See more photos and sign up for our email list at roundtripstories.com. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on facebook and instagram to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

This is Part 2 of our interview with Aileen Hendratna, an Indonesian-American agriculture scientist who feels most at home in international communities.  She studied her masters in water resource management in Sweden for over two years.  There, she relished the time in nature, in the fika culture of building relationships, and in the diversity of her international community. Financial challenges had her return to California, and her transition back home to the Bay Area and Central Valley was a lonely experience.  Aileen couldn't find the international community she so loved, but with God’s help and guidance, she recognized that being in her new place, too, was a gift which was entrusted to her. 

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at roundtripstories.com. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on facebook and instagram to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Our guest today is adult third culture kid, Sherene Joseph, a writer and storyteller born in Tamil Nadu, India. From four to 17 years old, Sherene grew up in the Sultanate of Oman, and then moved back to India at 17 for university studies. Sherene later married and moved to the U. S. with her own family. In part one of her interview with us, she shares her stories of growing up in the Middle East in the 1980s. Sherene tells about her family being rooted in their community within the Islamic country and truly making a home.

Learn more at Sherene's website: sherenejoseph.me Follow Sherene on Instagram: @elsjoseph

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ !

Our guest for this episode is Aileen Hendratna, an Indonesian-American agriculture scientist who feels most at home in international communities.  After college in California she was inspired to study her masters in water resource management in Sweden for over two years.  She found the initial transition to be smooth because she knew how to adjust to a new country after her previous challenging adjustment to the U.S. during her teen years. However, she was surprised at having to explain her identity as both an American and an Indonesian in Sweden.  She loved her international church community, Sweden’s fika culture and closeness to nature.

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at roundtripstories.com.

Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on facebook and instagram to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Once a month Melissa and Tracy pull a random topic out of a virtual hat and discuss what global stories come to mind, and today's topic is about SHOES. Do we take them off or keep them on when entering the home? If we see twenty shoes strewn outside a doorway, does that make us want to join the party or run the other way? We can't wait to share SHOE stories from our global listeners!

Sign up here for our email list and share your stories with us for future episodes!

This is part two of our interview with family guy and Mexican entrepreneur Jaime Aparicio.  In part one, Jaime shared about how moving away from Mexico to the U.S. during the later part of high school and through university helped to define who he was, know his inner voice, and value the U.S. university experience and beyond.  In this episode, come listen to Jaime’s Round Trip Stories of returning to Mexico and how his adaptability and openness to change helped him navigate and put roots down in Mexico as an adult.

Visit the Round Trip Stories website to sign up for our email list and see photos from our guests.

⁠Round Trip Stories Episode 7

⁠Jaime's website

This week's guest is Jaime Aparicio, Mexican entrepreneur, family guy, and lover of all things international.  Jaime spent eight years of his late teens and early 20’s in the U.S. before returning to Mexico to reconnect with his family, roots, and start his own business and young family.  He had a sprinkling of time in Germany and Argentina as well!  Jaime shares about how he reinvented himself and deepened his awareness of who he was while in the U.S. as a young man.

Visit the Round Trip Stories website to sign up for our email list and see photos from our guests.

Round Trip Stories Episode 6

Jaime's website

Once a month Melissa and Tracy pull a random topic out of a virtual hat and discuss what global stories come to mind, and today's topic is about CUSTOMS.

Customs and immigration stations can hold long lines and are the gatekeepers to let us into our destinations. Can we go in the fast lane, or do we still have to stand in the lines even though our toddler is having a meltdown after a 12 hour flight? Maybe you have had an unexpected reception to your host or home country? We can't wait to share CUSTOMS stories from our global listeners!

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This is part two of our interview with co-host Melissa Ens, mother of three, bilingual teacher, and passionate learner, leader, and lover of people.  She and her young family became church capacity builders in Peru, and in our last episode she shared stories about what she loved and what was hard while living there.  In this episode, Melissa describes seeing signposts of everyone and everything not thriving as it should, so she and her husband made the excruciating decision to return to the U.S. before their assignment was supposed to be up.  This made their transition back a painful one.  What helped was a conference to process their return with others, Melissa recognizing her own grief cycle, going to therapy, and building new friendships.  Melissa compassionately shares her stories so that others know that “jumping into a new culture or jumping back into an old culture is going to take your breath away.”

Resource mentioned in episode:  Missionary Training International Debriefing and Renewal

Join our podcast email list to receive updates about new episodes and opportunities to share your stories! ⁠⁠

Learn more about Melissa at melissaens.com.

All music is royalty free, from the Youtube Audio Library!

This is part one of our interview with Round Trip Stories host Melissa Ens, bilingual teacher, mother of three and passionate learner, leader, and lover of people.  When she and her third culture kid husband got married, their deal breaker was that they would one day go overseas to do mission work.  Melissa shares about God’s timing to take them to Peru as they became capacity builders in local churches there.  She cherished the new perspectives that shopping, helping her family become part of a new community, and exploring new places gave her.

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This is Part 2 of Tracy’s Round Trip Stories interview. Tracy is an international educator, mom of three boys, and one of our podcast hosts. She encourages listeners to take time to unpack their own stories, which often come with baggage after their return from living overseas. Each of our experiences are gifts; we should air them out, hang them up somewhere, and see where they fit again in our new place.  We don’t want to hide these gifts of global understanding and beauty.  They, and you, make the world a better place.

Resource mentioned: Returning Well: Your Guide to Thriving Back "Home" After Serving Cross-Culturally by Melissa Chaplin⁠

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This is part 1 of our interview with one of our hosts, Tracy Vilanova. She is an international educator, mom of three boys, and global history buff who lived and worked in China for eight years. In 2009, Tracy and her young family moved from California to Beijing and then to Wuhan to work in international schools.  They loved learning about the world through their Chinese and international colleagues and friends there, even through the culture shocks which came from surprising places.

Join our email list to receive updates about new episodes and opportunities to share your stories!

Welcome to the Round Trip Stories Podcast! Through weekly guest interviews, hosts Melissa Ens and Tracy Vilanova offer gifts of understanding for those who have recently returned from living abroad, reflection for those who have been back for years, and insight for those who have never left their home country. These stories help us all understand the world and ourselves just a little better. Sign up for our podcast email list at roundtripstories.com so you can share your stories with us and our listeners. We hope you’ll join us!

This is Part 2 of our interview with Third Culture Kid expert Tanya Crossman who has worked over 20 years with and researching issues related to TCKs to support international organizations, schools, churches, and families.   Tanya is from Australia and is the director of research at TCK Training.  She is a TCK herself having spent her teen years in the United States.  In this episode we continue to discuss her book "Misunderstood," and her recommendations she has for parents of TCKs and even Adult TCKs (ATCKs). You won't want to miss all the wisdom she has for families!

Tanya's latest book: Thongs or Flipflops? (thongsandflipflops.com)

⁠TanyaCrossman.com⁠

⁠TCK Training

This is Part 1 of our interview with Third Culture Kid expert Tanya Crossman who has worked over 20 years with and researching issues related to TCKs to support international organizations, schools, churches, and families.   Tanya is from Australia and is the director of research at TCK Training. She talks a bit about her time as a TCK in the U.S and transition back to Australia, and then she shares about her research and writings, including her book: Misunderstood: the Impact of Growing up Overseas in the 21st Century (book site)

TanyaCrossman.com

TCK Training

Families in Global Transition (FIGT)

Welcome to Season 3! This short episode is a preview of the amazing Third Culture Kid guest interviews we have for this season. Third Culture Kids (TCKs) are those who grew up outside their passport countries at some point before the age of 18. Melissa and Tracy have been touched by their TCK guests’ deep reflection on their own global experiences, identities, and settling into who they are now and how to use the gifts they have been given to share with their world. 

We hope that you are looking forward to this season 3  itinerary we have planned for you!  Knowing what is ahead and planning our sojourns is always a part of the excitement. We can’t wait for you to hear these TCK round trip stories!

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After two seasons of interviews and ten guests, we want to share our guests’ combined wisdom and advice for what helps when living abroad and during the transition back after living overseas. In this episode we have gathered our guests’ excerpts from their responses to our question "What last word of encouragement or advice can you give to our listeners?" You will hear metaphors, practical advice for families, permission to take it slow, and encouragement on how to make that rough return trip back to your home country after a long sojourn abroad. We know you’ll treasure these jewels of wisdom we have collected along our journey together so far.

Please give us your feedback so that we can get to know you and hear your suggestions.   Please take our quick 5 minute survey HERE !

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This is Part 2 of our interview with Joanna Mead, an international baccalaureate Technology and Math teacher originally from Trinidad.  After living abroad for sixteen years, she felt she was losing her Trinidadianness and time with her family.  She landed a job at an international school in Trinidad an hour away from her mom, and began the process of immersing herself in her home culture once again. However, Joanna's accent had changed and people looked at her as a foreigner.  Joanna discovered that she needed to be open minded in her own country, just as she had in her previous overseas experiences. 

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Our guest today is Joanna Meade, an international baccalaureate Technology and Math teacher originally from Trinidad. After attending university and teaching in the U.S., Joanna's itching for change took her abroad to teach in Japan, and China. She especially wanted to immerse herself in the local Chinese culture and language when she moved to Wuhan. She hit the ground running, but realized she did not have google maps to guide her. But no worries, Joanna’s tech savviness and willingness to ask for help allowed her to navigate so much more than a city map.

Mentioned in this episode:

Network of International Christian Schools

Life Plus (international school Joanna mentioned)

Teach Away (more teaching jobs around the world)

See photos of our guests and sign up for our email list at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠roundtripstories.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Follow @roundtripstoriespodcast on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to hear about upcoming customs episodes and share your stories with us!

Welcome back to Part 2 of our interview with Jonny Chin, science teacher from San Francisco and Chinese American third culture kid who grew up in Beijing, China for his K-12 school career. He repatriated to California to attend university and began the process of reflecting on his TCK identity in college and beyond. Jonny shares tips on how to reflect and even give back to others going through tough transitions.

Resources mentioned:

TCK/MK Re-entry Seminar⁠

⁠TedTalk: "Don't Ask Where I'm From, Ask Where I'm a Local"⁠

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Our guest today is Jonny Chin, science teacher from San Francisco and Chinese American third culture kid who grew up in Beijing, China from the ages of 5 to 18. Jonny’s dad was a public health doctor who worked for the World Health Organization and was sent to Beijing. While Jonny learned to wash his hands early during the 2003 SARS pandemic, discovering his Chinese American TCK identity has been a much longer journey. The international friendships he has made along the way haven’t just broadened his world view, they’ve deepened it as well.

Instagram: @jawknee_chin

Movie "Past Lives"

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This Review-Preview episode is an aerial view of where we’ve been in season 3 and where we are going in season 4.  We are in the middle of our two-season series of Third Culture Kid (TCK) guests who have spent some of their childhood living outside their passport country. We review our season 3 TCK guests and share quotes and a few lessons from each of their interviews.  Then we give a preview of the amazing TCK guests we have lined up for season 4.  They have stories of coming and going to and from Cameroon, China, Germany, Kenya, Philippines, Egypt, South Korea, Spain, the U.S., Uruguay, and Brazil.  Don't miss this Review-Preview episode for the window seat aerial view of seasons 3 and 4!

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Welcome back to Part 2 of our interview with Justin Lau, Adult Third Culture Kid who grew up in Japan, originally from Singapore, and now working as a worship leader in London. After finishing up a deep rooted education in his international school in Japan, he had to move back to Singapore for mandatory military service. It was then that he felt more Japanese than anything, and felt comfort in the few friends who took the time to understand who he really was as a TCK.

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Our guest today is Justin Lau, Adult Third Culture Kid, originally from Singapore, who grew up in Japan and now works as a worship leader in London. Justin made the move to Japan at three months old and thrived in his international school community until he graduated at 17 years old. He shares stories about the warmth he holds for Japan and the deep connections he made with his international school friends.

Learn more about Justin on ​instagram​ or read his writing on ​his Substack: Decolonising My Faith​.

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This is Part 2 of our interview with Maïa Talabard, a third culture kid from France who is a university business school student, artist, cheerleader, and travel lover. In this episode, Maïa shares about her return to France during middle school and the people who made her transition a little easier. She also tells stories about how her experience as a TCK continues to influence her life now and encourages parents considering moving abroad to do it!

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This is part 1 of our interview with is Maïa Talabard, a third culture kid from France who is a university business school student, artist, cheerleader, and travel lover. She spent three years in Korea and three years in China during her childhood before she returned to France for high school. Maïa shares about the freedom, adventure, pollution, and connections during her time in Asia as a TCK.

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Melissa and Tracy share their stories about experiencing hospitality when living abroad, and they also share stories from listeners Alwina, Urmi, Monica, and Scott. Whatever the version of hospitality and whatever it looks like in a host country or upon our return, there is no denying the human warmth received and gratefulness produced. Today's stories show that hospitality is sharing food, places, and culture. It builds bonds and creates new memories. When we experience hospitality, it makes us feel connected, humbled, joyful, and more human. We may never be able to repay it, but we can always pass it on.

Welcome back to Part 2 of our interview with third culture kid Shukura Babirye, a travel and nature-lover from the United Kingdom who grew up in the United States and Singapore. Her return to the UK was one she was nervous about, and even arriving at the airport produced anxiety.  Without her mom or twin brother nearby, the transition to her UK university was a lonely one.  Listen to Shukura share her trial and error of finding friends and feeling of belonging, learning London slang, creating her own brown and black hikers group, and advice she has for TCK parents.

Find Shukura and learn about moja collective at ⁠www.instagram.com/shucamina⁠ and ⁠www.instagram.com/moja.collective⁠

Also mentioned in this episode:

Misunderstood: The Impact of Growing Up Overseas in the 21st Century, by Tanya Crossman - ⁠https://misunderstood-book.com/⁠

Global Citizen Year Fellowship - https://tiltingfutures.org/global-citizen-year-fellowship/

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This is part 1 of our interview with Shukura Babirye, a travel and nature-lover and  adult Third Culture Kid from the United Kingdom.  Shukura and her twin brother attended British schools in the United States and Singapore because their mom worked at their international British schools in those two countries.  Shukura values the global perspective and access to service opportunities at her international schools.  In Singapore, however, Shukura found it very challenging to be a young black woman in an elite Asian environment.

Find Shukura and learn about moja collective at www.instagram.com/shucamina and www.instagram.com/moja.collective

Also mentioned in this episode:

Misunderstood: The Impact of Growing Up Overseas in the 21st Century, by Tanya Crossman - https://misunderstood-book.com/

https://www.roundsquare.org/

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