Hay and straw

What is the difference between hay and straw?

That was the question a friend asked me, while I was visiting them in the United States.

To me, they are the same. But apparently, there is that slight difference. My friend explained that while straw is used to describe the dried stalks, they usually use it to describe dried stalks used for filling. Hay is usually used to describe dried stalks used as food for animals.

I guess while English is my first language, and I live in a country that uses English as the official language, language is very much tied to culture and traditions. And while the language may be used daily, if we don't share the same cultural background, we will still have that slight difference in understanding. So while we as Singaporeans may want to say that English is our first language, we may not be able to say that we are native speakers (with the same context as the British, or even the Americans) since we don't share the same culture. And that may apply to our Chinese too, compared with mainland Chinese and the Taiwanese.

I guess I am still a proud native speaker of Singlish.