I am the American.

When I planned to move to Portugal, I knew people I met would want to know where I was from. That’s simple curiosity. However, I wasn’t prepared to be “the American.”

Perhaps this is because I didn’t really think it through. It’s part of my identification here. I’m uncomfortable with it – but I’m not sure why.

Granted, the US doesn’t have a great reputation in the world – particularly with the current president. In some places, there is hostility toward Americans. I did not expect that, nor have I experienced that in Lisbon. The Portuguese people (and all of the others I’ve met here from around the globe) have been really lovely people.

Some people have questions about the US and its policies. Often, those people are more interested to know how Americans feel or think about them. I try to explain it’s a big country with many viewpoints, and not everyone believes the same thing.

As someone said to me, the US is a continent – not a country. (For perspective, Tennessee is a little bigger than Portugal.)

I’ve also been pleasantly surprised at the extent of the knowledge many of the people I’ve met have of the US and its policies. They often know a lot more than many of the people who live there.

 

Nationality matters

It is obvious to anyone I meet that I am not from here. As soon as I open my mouth, my lack of Portuguese and Portuguese pronunciation mark me. Even simple things like hello and good afternoon are giveaways that I’m a foreigner.

Of course, then they want to know where I’m from. Sometimes I simply tell them; other times, I make them guess. The best one was an Italian who suggested UK, Australia and New Zealand before I said, “This is great! Keep going!” Running out of English-speaking countries, he landed on the States.

When someone asks outright, I try to say I’m from Wisconsin. Sometimes, they know where that is. If not, then I revert to simply “US.”

If I have a longer conversation, I explain I lived in Wisconsin (center north) most of my life and recently moved to Tennessee (south east) because of the winters.

But beyond conversations, I wasn’t prepared for the question at venues I’d visit. I think nearly every museum I’ve gone to has wanted to know my nationality. Presumably, they are tracking visitors and where they are from for purposes of funding or planning or maybe to determine in which languages they need to have interpretive materials printed.

The first time was just a few days into my stay. I was caught off guard. “US,” I managed when the woman who spoke perfect English asked me where I was from.

For whatever reason, I don’t want to say American. If I could, I’d answer in French – aux Etats-Unis. (I think it sounds nicer anyway, but I don’t need to really confuse people (or myself) by introducing yet another language.)

(I had a woman from Belgium tell me the Portuguese seem to understand her French-accented Portuguese more easily than English-accented Portuguese. I wonder if I can learn Portuguese with a French accent. It certainly would sound prettier …)

 

I’m the American

So it was kind of funny when I first heard myself referred to as “the American.” My host had friends over for dinner. “You’re the American.” Um, yes, I guess I am.

Thinking about it, it made sense. Other friends are identified as Iranian, Italian, Portuguese, German, etc., so American fits.

But it still struck me as odd, like a chord played on a guitar that’s just a little bit off, one string not quite in tune with the others.

I heard it again recently when friends from Italy visited. “This is the American.”

This time it made me laugh. “The American.” It’s like something out of a movie description. “She’s the American living in Portugal for three months …”

I suppose I should embrace it. A few people have told me my life is kind of like a movie right now anyway. I can picture myself prettier, in heels, a big hat and fashionable sunglasses – like a movie star. I am the American …

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Be a Better Writer Tip:

How to narrow broad topics

When it comes time to write, you may have what you think is a great idea until you try to get started, and you realize it’s way too broad.

You may need to narrow your focus or refine your style

Let’s use an example: How to landscape your yard on a budget

That sounds like a great article for a homeowner, doesn’t it? There are lots of opportunities for adding products to sell, if that’s a goal and you’re writing for your website. But, where do you start? It’s a huge topic!

 

Narrow your focus and go deep

Can you narrow the focus? Is there an area of landscaping you could focus on? Grass or ground cover, for example. Choosing trees. Which flowers to pick.

But wait, those are still pretty big topics, aren’t they?

Can you break it down by steps? What do you do first if you’re going to landscape your yard — on a budget? Maybe you need to talk about the budget. How much do you have to spend and what’s a reasonable amount to expect to spend?

At this point, it would be helpful to further brainstorm all of the topics you want to cover under this umbrella topic. Write them down so you don’t forget any.

Then categorize them under general topics. For landscaping, maybe your main topics are: budget, siting, ground cover, trees, plants, furniture, maintenance, storage, tools. Underneath, you’d include: types of grass, best trees for your zone, shade vs. sun plants, which tools you should rent vs. buy. You can see how the topics can continue on and on.

As a writer, you will need to decide if you want to narrow your original focus or if you want to write a lot about this topic. On a website, you can do individual articles about all of those topics – and more – linking between them and providing the detail your readers want at the point they are at.

 

Keep a broad focus and stay on the surface

If you want to keep that original topic, you likely won’t be able to provide detail that you would in a more narrowly focused article.

For example, you might need to change it to something like this: Here are the 10 steps to take when you want to landscape your yard on a budget. 1. Determine your budget. (Write a few paragraphs generically and move on to No. 2. You’ll still achieve your goal, but it won’t have the detail.)

Sometimes readers want the big picture, and sometimes they want the detail. I’ve found it’s good to provide both so they have what they want when they want it.

What do your readers want? Figure that out, and tailor your content to answer those questions.