It is an overlooked privilege to be raised a native English speaker in modern times. English is the language spoken by a lot of people with money. And money is leverage that the rest of the world accommodates to. Being raised an English speaker means you inherit this leverage without needing any money yourself.

You can travel practically anywhere in the world knowing only English. Walk through a foreign airport and the signs are translated for you. International brands like Sony, Uniqlo, and Samsung ditch their native language's characters to sound better to you. And chances are you've never watched a dubbed movie, because most films worth watching are made in English from the start.

There are a bunch of little examples like this but the pattern is the same. The world warps itself to serve the English speaker.

I'm noticing this because I've been in Malaysia for 3 months and I haven't learned a single Malay word. Malaysian businesses hire english speakers so that people like me get to stroll in and stay ignorant because of the financial incentive to do so.

So thank you mom and dad for the English lessons. You may not have even realized it at the time or had any alternative, but it was a wonderful gift.