What happens to the parts of ourselves we put away when we leave home?

In this episode, I reflect on leaving Hong Kong, rediscovering Cantonese from thousands of miles away, and the memories I once tried to hide. From Emmy the Great’s Hong Kong nostalgia to my own experiences of migration, food, shame and belonging, I explore how distance can help us choose what to carry with us — and how leaving can become part of becoming.

For many of us who grew up in Asian households, we didn't not grew up being listened to or held in conversation.

But perhaps that's exactly why we now have the opportunity to create something different.

We may not have inherited the language of active listening.

But we can create it. One conversation at a time.

In this episode, I reflect on running a Cantonese peer supervision group for therapists and counsellors navigating multilingual work, cultural identity, and the fear of not sounding “good enough.”

We talk about accents, broken language and why imperfection can sometimes create deeper human connection than fluency ever could.

Because maybe being a good therapist, parent, or helper isn’t about speaking perfectly.

Maybe it’s about being willing to learn, stay curious, make mistakes, and shorten the distance between yourself and another person.

Your language skills are not your worth. And fluency is not the same thing as connection

This episode starts from a flick through an old sketchbook from Japan then leads to the therapy room: how we see art-making in children therapy. Somehow all led to the same question: to explore the joy of saying 「唔關我事 m4 gwaan1 ngo5 si6」

Cantonese Classroom：

關我咩事 gwaan1 ngo5 me1 si6

關你咩事 gwaan1 nei5 me1 si6

唔關我事 m4 gwaan1 ngo5 si6

When people ask, “Why do you have two names?”, it sounds like a simple question—but it rarely feels simple to answer. This episode explore what it means to constantly explain who you are—and what starts to shift when you realise you don’t have to follow anyone else’s rules but your own.

Cantonese Classroom

ch 送氣音 (aspirated sounds) is not like the “ch” in church. In English, ch is one sound—like “ch-” in chair. But in Cantonese, this sound is completely different.

👉 “ch” is a 送氣音—an aspirated sound, meaning there’s a strong puff of air.

It actually sounds closer to:

• “ts” with air not
• “ch” (as in church)

What does it really mean to be “乖gwaai1”—the good, quiet, well-behaved child so many of us were praised for? Drawing from my work as a teacher and children’s therapist, I explore how being “good” can sometimes silence curiosity, identity, and voice—and how we might begin to redefine respect, 孝順 haau3 seon6, and what it means to stay true to ourselves without losing connection to where we come from

How do you choose the right therapist—and does it matter if they share your cultural background?

Cantonese Classroom: therapist 治療師 zi6 liu4 si1，師si1 a suffix for licensed professionals.

In this episode, I sit with the question of what really makes therapy “work,” and whether feeling understood is about identity… or something deeper. I also explore what it means for diasporic Cantonese therapists to re-learn Cantonese—not just as a language, but as a way of reconnecting with culture, emotion, and parts of themselves that were never fully spoken.

“Why did you do that?” sounds simple—but it can quietly damage connection. This episode breaks down how “why” questions can trigger defensiveness, and what to ask instead if you want real understanding.

What rage do you carry as an inbetweener?

This episode explores the quiet, often unspoken anger of being a diaspora, a third culture child, and a first-generation immigrant living in a place that doesn’t always see you. From everyday moments of misunderstanding to deeper layers of internalised hierarchy, this is a reflection on identity, belonging, and what gets stirred beneath the surface.

What does compassion sound like in different languages? In this episode, we explore how English and Cantonese express care differently. From “I hear you” to the Cantonese phrase 節哀順變zit3 ngoi1 seon6 bin6, we explore how language,culture and lived experience shape the way we understand grief and empathy.