“The Oceans Between Us” by Eugenia Lee is a mind-opening piece. Lee talks about how, in her school, lunch tables seem segregated based on cliques, race, or students’ interests. For example, Lee sits at a table with her female Asian friends because she is an Asian female. One day a teacher needed to find a female student with an Asian name and only asked the group of Asian girls; she did not bother to look anywhere else. Through the use of the symbolism of finches and the Galapagos Islands, Lee exceptionally explains stereotypes and how we should move past them.

As an Asian female in 8th grade, I’ve also noticed cliques in my school lunchroom. However, as my classmates and I matured from the 6th to 8th grade, we relied less on race or talents to determine our friends. I now have close friends who are of different ethnicities, genders, and talents. I loved Lee’s quote, “To fight against the habit of stereotyping, we have to spread out from our islands and spend more time with other friends, and perhaps even strangers.” As I get ready for high school, this quote reminded me to branch out from my comfort zone and surround myself with the diversity of our world. Thank you, Eugenia Lee, for this beautifully symbolic piece.