As a child I was often flummoxed at hearing China and Japan collectively referred to as “The East.” I grew up on the west coast of the United States; China and Japan were very clearly to the west, not the east. Chapter labels like “Eastern Art” led me to expect Roman sculpture or portraits of English kings for an embarrassingly long time, and I was always a little surprised to turn the page and see a Buddha instead.

I can’t remember how old I was when I finally stepped back in time far enough to realize that from a European perspective China is indeed to the east. Did this confuse other west coast kids or was it just me?

At some point as a very young child, I asked my mother if we lived on an island. She correctly replied that we did not. But how could that be if the ocean existed? Was the world covered in more land than I realized and the oceans were actually giant inland lakes?

I didn’t have the ability to ask the correct follow-up questions, so I was stuck on that one for a while. At some point we acquired a globe and it was clear to me that we were living on an island. Now I was concerned about my mother’s mental faculties. How could she be SO wrong about such a simple question? I didn’t think she was dumb but… maybe she was?

Imagine my relief years later in school when we learned about the size distinction between continents and islands. (My mother is still smarter than I am and she will kick anyone’s ass at the crossword puzzle if they doubt this.)