LAURA MORYOSEF
I’m a 28-year-old, Australian-born doctor.
When my patients ask about my background, I say that I’m half Malaysian and half Israeli.
Digging a little deeper - my mother is Malaysian-Chinese and immigrated to Australia at age 12 with her family. On the other side, my father is of Moroccan and Dutch descent - but was born in Israel. He moved to England at 16 years old, and then on to Australia in his 20s.
Over the years, my sister and I have made a drinking game out of people trying to guess our ethnic background - no one ever gets it right!
The most common question I get asked about my family is: how does a Malaysian come to meet an Israeli person? To them - I say, that is the beauty of Australia.
Our country is a melting pot of cultural diversity.
My parents’ love story began in 1980. My mother went to the cinema in Sydney’s Darlinghurst. It was meant to be a first date, but the guy she was supposed to meet fell sick and stood her up. Finding herself alone at the movies, she just happened to sit next to an older lady and they started talking. After the screening, the older lady invited my mum over to her house nearby for a cup of coffee, and it was there that she met a handsome young man.
The older lady ended up becoming my paternal grandmother (savta), and the young man - well, he became my dad.
“THE MOST COMMON QUESTION I GET ASKED ABOUT MY FAMILY IS: HOW DOES A MALAYSIAN COME TO MEET AN ISRAELI PERSON?...”
I feel fortunate to have had such a stable, peaceful and privileged upbringing in Australia, especially when I think about how difficult it was for my ancestors.
My savta was one of the lucky Jews who escaped the Netherlands before it was too late. Her family saw Hitler conquering nearby countries, so they fled to Spain. As Hitler continued to conquer more countries, they feared he would also reach Spain so they fled again - to as far away as they could think of. They ended up in Indonesia. Unfortunately, the Japanese invaded Indonesia - so they ended up in a camp anyway. However, they were able to survive.
My maternal grandfather (kong kong) was abandoned by his mother after his father was killed during the Japanese invasion of Malaysia. He ended up being an orphan at the peak of WWII.
It’s amazing to think about the crazy sequence of events that had to have occurred in order for you to exist today.
Upon reflection, I’ve learnt different things from the two sides of my ancestry. My Israeli side has taught me to be cheeky, to see the lighter side of life, and to express my love through physical affection. My Malaysian side has taught me a deep love for food, how food can express love to your family - and the importance of always putting your family first. It’s through these lessons that I’ve become the person I am today.
Being mixed is also great because it means I get double the celebrations. For me, I enjoy both Chinese New Year and Passover equally. Growing up in multicultural Australia, my family always had friends of different ethnic backgrounds - therefore, we would also get to celebrate their special holidays (like Diwali, Eid and Christmas). My mum and dad also used to take us on family holidays around the world, up until I was in my late-teens. I would like to say that we got to experience lots of unique celebrations while travelling too - but my dad actually always planned trips to be in off season/when big events weren’t on, so we could save money!
I’ll always be grateful to my parents for taking us overseas because travelling gave me the opportunity to learn and understand more about the life experiences of people outside of Australia. I remember when we visited South Africa, I was only about 13 years old. I remember being asked “are you black or white?”, by a local girl who we befriended while on holiday. I remember feeling taken aback. I could tell she was perplexed by my family’s appearance, and was not accustomed to seeing children of mixed ethnicity. I didn’t know what to reply, so I said “umm…yellow, I guess?”.
The girl later explained that her parents were white South Africans, and she had been adopted - so often she found it difficult because white South African children would not play with her due to her darker skin colour. This moment made me feel appreciative of my life in Australia.
While I know racism unfortunately still exists here too, we’re lucky that we’re still relatively united as a country compared to others. I’m thankful to live in a place where people of different ethnicities are free to express their culture, and that people from opposite corners of the world are able to meet and start new lives together. Just as my parents did.
WHAT WE EAT IS MEANINGFUL
This recipe is for chicken curry kapitan, and it’s from my maternal grandmother (poh poh). She’s been teaching me how to cook since I was a child, and she’s the best cook in the world! I know I’m biased, but I will always see her that way. I’m her first grandchild and she’s played a huge part in my upbringing, so we are very close.
DISH OF OUR HERITAGE
CHICKEN CURRY KAPITAN