To Southeast Asia

Life is a gamble. Every decision or bet that we make can be risky to our future. Even so, we must work in great efforts in order to change our life, especially when adversity strikes. As a matter of fact, Chinese people who suffered from wars, poverty, and hunger, were like trapped wolves may risk any chances to fight for survival. Therefore, when the labor boom rose from Southeast Asia and passed down to China, it dragged the hopeless people into madness and eager to travel to those European colonized countries to seek a better life. Despite of how the labor boom might have changed other people’s lives, it significantly affected my family because that was where my family history began.

From my grandfather’s memory, his father was the first man in the village who went to work for a European colony in Southeast Asia in 1925. My great-grandfather who knew practically nothing but farming, had three young children, not counting those that passed away because of food shortages. There was never enough of food to share, even the seeds were limited. Consequently, when the news that European colonies in Southeast Asia was offering good pay for labor, he, without a doubt, stood up immediately and joined. Unlike in his hometown, working in the foreign land paid good money, provided enough food, and even offered plenty of farming land. That was unbelievably attractive to a man who was always wanted to be wealthy and be a landlord. He, along with other thirsty dreamers thought that many people joined the workforce and there must be plenty goods in return. In fact, they never realized what would really be waiting for them. As the saying goes, “Six out of ten died, three stayed and only one returned.”

My grandfather, who was the youngest son of my great-grandfather’s new family in Indonesia, knew only a little about his family. At that time, there were many Chinese laborers that settled down and got married or remarried because it was the only way they granted their identity as legal residents and allowed for reentry into the country. In addition, children were required a birth certificate which served as a travel passport. My grandfather was four years old when his father took him back to China to visit the “first wife” who was very sick. That was the first time he traveled away from home and the last time that he saw his mother. So that she would save her husband and presumably revenge to her husband’s betrayal, the “first wife” burnt away my grandfather’s birth certificate. Without this document meant that he would never be able to return to Indonesia again. Moreover, he totally lost contact with his mother when his father got sick and died shortly after. At a young age, my grandfather could barely understand the great distance from China to Indonesia. And his only thought of his mother was a person who feed him food. Eventually, he did not know where his mother was and could no longer remember his mother’s face.

My family, including myself, my mother, even uncles aren’t really sure about our family history. These are incomplete stories that have only half been told. Then, I sometimes thought that I might have a foreign trait in my blood, because my grandfather’s high nose bridge and medium brown hair was from his foreign mother. As I was always one of the listeners to my grandpa’s story-telling, I noticed that he rarely talked about his early life or his mother, and I was afraid to ask. I was afraid my curiosity would make him recall any sad moments of his childhood. My mother once replied to me that grandpa was too little to understand and no longer remember what happened. Therefore, as my grandfather passed away years ago, these stories remained broken in pieces.

The gold rush had given Chinese families hope and the labor boom likewise provided sensational opportunities for the hopeless people in China to fight for a better future. As in my family, this event was a dramatic turning point that made my family unique compared to the others at the time. However, it also affected my family that it left behind a blank section of memory of the family history. Although my great-grandfather had not become wealthy, he brought us a precious memory even incomplete, and a family extended from Indonesia to China. More important, I should keep a family history book which I can share with my children in the future, in memorial of where our family came from.

An Enduring Revolution

“ It was an impressive period for my sad memories,” My mother said. This was a dark and painful part of Chinese history, because the Great Cultural Revolution destroyed a generation’s lives. The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution, was a social movement that took place from 1966 through to 1976. Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communalist Party mislead the whole country of China. Their actions caused millions of people to die and made many families homeless. A lot of Chinese became poor because the Red Guard confiscated their valuable possessions. On the other hand, most of the Chinese were transferred to the countryside and accepted the labor reform. The Great Cultural Revolution affected my family deeply for a long period.

The Cultural Revolution was the biggest turning point of my grandfather’s life. My grandfather was a happy and wealthy person before the revolution that Mao Zedong and community party took power. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. His family was very rich, so he grew up in a big house with servants. He earned the bachelor degree in chemistry in the 1940s and became a journalist, and then he joined in The Chinese Nationalist Party in the 1940s too. Everything seemed to go smoothly for him until the Great Cultural Revolution broke out. Because my grandfather had a lot of money and he was a member of The Chinese Nationalist Party, he was arrested and was led through the streets. He was insulted and abused him in front of the public by the red guards of Mao Zedong. His house was also confiscated by the red guards in the 1960s. He lost everything except his family. His whole family was transferred to the countryside and was forced to do heavy work as punishment for my grandfather’s politics. His life had turned upside down. He still feels pain when he thinks of this event now.

In addition, my mother’s family life underwent a big change and they had to live poorly as well. When my grandmother, my mother, and her sisters arrived in the countryside, they had to face the stern environment around them. Because they had lived high quality lives, they were not used to accepting those conditions. My grandmother had to take the heavy burden of life. She did several jobs to support her family, such as farming and cleaning the streets. Therefore, her age must faster than the other women of the same age. My mother and her sisters have sad memories of their childhood because they had little food and a lack of education. They were only allowed to learn the quotations from Mao Zedong, and just knew one English sentence: “Long live Chairman Mao!” They had done lots of farm work for seven years instead of getting an education.

I will never forget the expression on their faces when they were talking about their past. As a daughter of my mother, I cannot experience her past, but I can understand her pain. She should have had a happy childhood like me, but the Cultural Revolution destroyed her future. Some effects of poor education, and physical labor were that my mother and her sisters never had a chance fully to engage them in academic activity. I think this is the biggest regret in their lives. When I think about my mother’s life, I realize I need to cherish my happy life. I was born in the 1980s; I can study and have freedom, but nobody has ever forced me to do something I did not want to do. I still remember the experience of my mother’s family and their “hard-won happiness”.

No one wants to be a sacrifice for a political struggle, but people must become strong once they get involved in it. Even though an event may affects them profoundly, or they may become an innocent person who suffers the unfair life, they need to persist in it until the day of freedom comes, just like my mother’s family. Although they passed through hard times, they still live positively and united as one. There is not an absolutely safe place in the world, but people must learn how to protect themselves and their families when danger comes. After my grandfather was released, he said, “Only you can save yourself, just keep going!”

Great Change

Yongjuan Feng ESL 100 03-03-2011 Essay 2
Great Change
Have you ever noticed that a lot of foreigners are learning Chinese? My friend's daughter has a Chinese course , and she told me that many of her classmates are foreigners. Why are so many people learning Chinese now? Because China is an awake lion nowadays. China is developing fast, and it is one of the strongest economies in the world now . Also, the trade market in China will be bigger in the future. It is the Reform and Opening up policy of Deng Xiao Ping that woke up the sleeping lion. The Reform and Opening policy changed China a lot, and it affected my family and me in many ways.
 

The Reform and Opening policy made a great change in education. There was a significant slogan in Mr Deng' s policy, that was known as "Education is the bedstone of a long-range program". Thus, the government put the policy into practice. They invested a lot of money in education, so students paid less money for their education. the tuition now is only ten yuan per term for a student. My parents had four children. The tuition was a lot of money if we didn't meet the Reform and Opening policy, my parents couldn't offer so much money for us, maybe some of us didn't get any education, but we did. We all got very good education. At the same time, the policy is a permission for Chinese people to trade with foreigners, but how can the businessmen communicate with each other? The foreigners didn't know Chinese, so the government added one more subject in the school, it was English. Chinese people wanted to learn English to welcome and do business with the foreign businessman . As a result, my sisters and I learned English when we were students, it is easy for me to live in Chicago now. Also, my sister became an English teacher later, which is a secure job! Thanks to the policy.



 The Reform and Opening Policy pushed Chinese economy forward. During the policy implementation, many businessmen from all over the world established factories in some special zones. They usually chose some coastal areas because it was convenient for the transport. Of course there were a lot of new buildings in our hometown; also, there were many sino-foreign joint ventures. My brother worked in one of the factories, and he earned a lot of money, at that time, my sister's salary was about two hundred yuan. By a comparison, my brother could earn more than nine hundred yuan. Later my-sister-in-law used the money my brother saved to open their own business. It could also improve our quality of life. Since more foreigners came into China, it has been luxuriant all over Guangdong, the foreigners also brought their culture . From then on , we could enjoy some fruit from the torrid zones, we could buy some home appliances made in Japan, we could use the perfume from France. We could enjoy all the material comforts, thanks to the Reform and Opening policy.

The Reform and Opening policy made great changes in ideology. Many Chinese people could feel their lives were better and better. When they had money in their pockets and when they had time, they were seeking for spiritual enjoyment, They wanted to look at the world outside. I often went to travel with my sisters when my sisters were on holidays. We have been to Korea, Singapore and Malaysia ,of course, we travelled in many interesting places in China. At the beginning of the policy implementation, many people said there was gold on the ground of the U.S., so many people were crazy about going abroad, and I am one of the people. As a result , I married a citizen of the U.S. and now I live in Chicago. I can't say I enjoy my life now because immigration gave me a lot of changes. I had to start my life from zero when I live in a new place. I must change myself a lot to adapt the new environment in Chicago. This is also the result from the Reform and Opening policy.

Because of the Reform and Opening policcy, there are a lot of difference between now and before in the education, economy and the minds of people. China is now a very powerful lion, so she can be a focus of the world's attention. she is stronger and stronger, she is richer and richer and she is totally different from the one thirty years ago. If you want to do business or find a good job in China, you should know Chinese. That is why so many foreigners are sending their children to learn Chinese. If there had never been this policy, what wouldChina be like, what would my life be like?

Tet Holiday

The Miracle of Tet Holiday

“No matter where you are, remember to come back home on Tet holiday” Tet holiday, is also known as “Lunar New Year”, and it usually comes one month later than Western New Year as it is based on Lunar calendar. To me, it’s not just simply a holiday. It’s a miracle holiday. It’s a holiday when there is just only laughter and joy. It’s when you can see the family gather together to the fullest. Moreover, people forget everything that has happened in the last year to start a fresh new year. What can I say? It’s surely the biggest holiday in Vietnam. Therefore, even though I’ve been living in the U.S for almost a year now, spending the first Tet holiday in a different country has given me the worst nostalgia for Vietnam.

Basically, Tet is my favorite holiday of the year. My homesickness grows stronger when it comes to this period of time. When Tet comes, it also means there will be no work or school for ten days, for it is the most important celebration of the year. To be more specific, there are three parts of Tet holiday: before the New Year, New Year’s Eve and the New Year. My family and I always agree that the perfect time to feel the “Tet spirit” is before New Year’s Eve. This period begins one or two weeks before the actual celebration. Vietnamese people will be preparing for Tet at this time. We go shopping, cook the traditional Tet food, redecorate and clean up the house. Most importantly, we all do this with family, which makes Tet more special. However, I can’t do it here, in the U.S. On New Year, there will be many activities going on. People visit their loved ones, from family to neighborhood. They share gifts, best wishes and, of course, show their love to each others. For the children, the holiday means “the red envelopes”, which contain money as a good luck from older people. Furthermore, what I like most about the holiday is that it’s a good opportunity for people to replace all the bad things that had happened last year with the good things in the New Year. It’s like a miracle that makes you become a brand new person with so many hopes to start a bright future. Once again, I feel sad that I can’t be able to do that in the U.S, since they don’t celebrate Tet. 

Traditional Vietnamese food during this holiday, which is clearly hard to find in a foreign country, is one of the main reasons that make me miss it the most. Just only mentioning the food can make me feel hungry right away. On these days, we eat “thit kho hot vit” (meat stewed in coconut juice with eggs) and “canh kho qua” (bitter melon and meat soup) with rice. In Vietnamese, bitter melon is pronounced as “sadness is gone”, and we believe if we have this soup on the first days of the year, it will bring us a good year with luck. In addition, there are two traditional cakes that everybody should have in the house on the Tet holiday: “banh chung” (sticky rice wrapped filling with meat and bean) which is the symbol of Earth, and “banh day” (sticky white rice with rounded pork) which is the symbol of sky. What makes them unique is that they have a very good story about their origins, and it takes days to cook them, not simply just a few hours. While cooking, the older people will pass the story of the cakes to the next generations this way. On the other hand, it is not impossible to cook those kinds of foods in America, but it takes a lot of work so usually Vietnamese people here just order them, which is very easy, just grab it and eat it like that. That’s why it is not special anymore, and it’s just considered the same as “American fast-food”.

Moreover, my nostalgia is also caused by the lack of family. Therefore, when it comes to Tet in Vietnam, knowing my family and relatives are preparing for the holiday, I feel so lonely in the U.S. In addition, I’ve been told, Tet will be the worst time of the year when you are not be able to be with your family. That’s true. Even though I live in Vietnamese town in the U.S and people do celebrate Tet holiday, I still sense something is missing. Unlike the holiday in Vietnam, people over here just celebrate Tet for one or two days. The neighborhood relationship here is also not as close as in Vietnam. Tet’s purpose is for people to show love and happiness to each other. In addition, you will be able to see flowers and red and golden decorations everywhere in Vietnam, the only thing I can only find in Chicago is the white color of snow, which makes me miss my house even more. In my uncle’s house, where I currently live, even though we do have flowers and “hoa mai” the tradition flower for Tet holiday, they are all fake. The climate here makes it hard to find those kinds of flowers. When I was in Vietnam, whenever Tet came, I felt happy for being with my family, relatives and my friends. It’s the miracle of Tet that I can’t find here. 

Overall, Tet is not a miracle anymore when you are not with family and can’t enjoy the holiday with them. I was proud of myself that I’ve caught up the lifestyle in this new country pretty fast and I thought I didn’t feel homesick that much. However, the Tet holiday still makes me want to go home. The coldness of winter in a different country makes the loneliness in my heart grows bigger, but in order to be successful in life and to achieve my goal, I have taught myself how to stay strong. Once I reach my dream, I can go back home and have a happy Tet holiday with my family. That’s the miracle I can bring for myself and my family.

~History essay~

The Love of Kinship Never Disappears

            A one and a half year old child was suddenly crying, while the train was leaving. My mother was a child born during the time of the Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution had a big effect on Chinese people. The government tried to prevent people from working or studying in China, and they even wanted to catch and imprison the intellectuals. At that time, my grandparents were part of the intellectuals in China, so they kept escaping in order to save their lives. When my mother was a baby, she had to separate from my grandparents and live with my great- grandparents. However, my mother’s older sister always lived with my grandparents. My grandparents’ escape to Xi’an has had a deep influence on my wonderful mother.



            The distance caused my mother and my grandmother to become more apart. During the Cultural Revolution, my mom lived with my great-grandparents. My great- grandfather died early because of heart disease, so my great-grandmother became only the person that lived with my mom in that period. When my mom was in primary school, her teacher told the students to introduce their moms, but my mother didn’t have any impression about her mom. When she stood up and tried to tell the classmates and teacher that her mom was a beautiful woman, she started crying. After school, my mom went back home and asked my great-grandmother where her mother was. My great-grand mother just said to her that she needed to wait for her to come back because her mother was busy at work. From that day, my mom never mentioned her mom, even when the students sneered at my mom that she didn’t have mother.



            As time went on, my mother grew up, and her sister and she both got a good education in their school, but they had educations from different schools and they had different life style. My aunt always lived with my serious grandmother, and my grandmother hoped my aunt would be a good engineer. She made my aunt go to many English, math and chemistry classes, but my aunt didn’t like them. Even though my aunt became an engineer in China, she never felt happy about this major and it made my aunt crazy. My mom grew up with her grandmother who was a kind woman, and she just hoped that my mom can everything whatever she liked, so my mother chose to major in math because she liked it very much. When my great- grandmother died, my grandmother picked up my mother to go back home and lived with them. However, she didn’t want my mom to learn math, and she just hoped my mom would be an engineer like her sister. My grandmother practically ignored my mother because of this decision.  

 

            When my mom went back home, she should have felt comfortable. However, everything between my mother and my grandmother was already lost, even the love. My grandmother was a woman who was serious, and she wanted everything in her life to match her desire. She wanted her daughters to be engineers and get A’s in every course; she even controlled my mother and her sister’s lives. Twenty or more years ago, my mom met a man, and they fell in love with each other. However, my grandmother always interfered. She always said that my mom could do nothing or even that my mom was stupid. My mom never felt sad about that even though her mom didn’t love her. She just listened to my grandmother and never dated that man. My aunt didn’t follow her mother. When she found a boyfriend, she just escaped with her boyfriend to America, and went away from my grandmother because she couldn’t stand her mother controlling her life. When my grandmother became old, my mom still lived with my grandmother, even though she already had me. My mom knew she hadn’t obeyed her mom for almost ten years, and she needed to obey her until my grandmother died, even if my grandmother didn’t have any love for my mother.

            At the end of my grandmother’s life, my aunt didn’t go back China to take care her, but my mother did. She always felt tired because she tried to look for a good hospital to treat my grandmother. When my grandmother was almost dead, she told to my mother that she felt sorry for my mother, and that she never gave my mom complete love. When I was a child, my mom always told to me that my grandmother was the most beautiful woman in her heart and she loved her mom very much. However, she also told to me that she hated the occurrence of the Cultural Revolution because it changed her life. I am proud that I have a great mother. She has given me a great life lesson that “Love among kinship never disappears.”

my history: endless love

Many people that go to China are amazed by the beauty of it, but not a lot of people know the history behind it. China is a very poor country with an overcrowded population. When World War II began, men in China who were over eighteen had to go to war and fight for their country. My grandfather was one of the unlucky drafted men. He had no choice but to leave his wife and children behind and head off to war. After my grandfather left, my grandmother became a strong woman and raised her children all by herself. On the other hand, my grandfather missed his wife and family during the war. It’s like a love story that makes everyone sob and cry. Nevertheless, even the war couldn’t break the strength of my grandparents’ love.


After my grandfather’s departure, my grandmother spent years waiting for him. Everyday she would be on the lookout for news about the war and the whereabouts of her husband. She had a lot of work to do on the home front like farming in the field, feeding her kids, and tending to the pigs. But she never forgot about her husband and hoped he was still alive. My grandmother was like many of the women who sat near the window with their elbow on the window sill longing for their husband to come home. No matter how long she waited, the results were always the same. She knew waiting didn’t work, so she began to write letters to him. She knew there was a small chance that he would receive the mail, but she still decided to do it. Maybe writing letter to him was a way to calm her down and reassure her that he was still alive.

My grandfather was very sorry for his departure, and he always missed his family. He always looked at his black and white family picture and thought about my grandmother and his children. Being away at war, he would often flash back into his memories when they both had good time with each other. He also received numerous letters from my grandmother. After reading the letters from his wife, he told himself to stay strong and keep himself alive in order that he could see his lovely wife and children again. He started to train himself to be very strong and fast so he could stay alive. Sometimes he would tell other soldiers about his lovely wife and family that he had. After a few years, thanks to the Republic of China and president Mao, my grandfather was finally free from the war and went home to his family.

The Republic of China brought my grandparents together. When my grandmother heard the news from the other people in the village, she was so happy. She was standing by the door and longed for her husband’s arrival. After a few hours of waiting, she didn’t see her husband’s shadow, so she went out the door and looked. She saw other soldiers were back and she began to worry. Then, she asked one of the people who passed by, and he told her that everyone was back from the war. My grandmother began to cry, but suddenly she saw a familiar person standing in front of her. She began to cry harder and louder once she realized it was her husband. My grandfather ran to her and hugged her. For the first time, they hugged each other so tight like they never had before. My grandmother was so happy that she made sweet dumplings to celebrate this joyous occasion. Sweet dumplings symbolize family reunion in Chinese culture.


Wars can break many families. After hearing the story of my grandparents during the war, I am so glad that I don’t need to face family departure. The love story between my grandparents still goes on. Even though my grandfather has died, my grandmother still misses him. She always takes out pictures of him and thinks about the good memories they had with each other. In addition, she always remembers his birthday and goes to visit his grave. In fact, she also enjoys telling the love story about her and my grandfather to my sisters and me.

My Green Land

MY GREEN LAND

Ever since I have been in the United States, I cannot but think of my country, Nigeria. I have seen a lot and come across a lot of exciting and fun activities in the USA, but it cannot be compared to my home which is a land filled with milk and honey. I now believe the saying “there is no place like home”. Therefore, I miss the culture and way of life of my native country; there are two things that I will never forget as well as the pride in being a Nigerian.

Every culture is unique in its own ways and different cultures enjoy different food staples. Each individual is able to find one particular type of food that they enjoy. As a child, my grandmother used to feed me with all types of Nigerian food and my personal is amala with ewedu this is yam flour with vegetables stew. Every time I went to my grandmother’s house, she would always fix that for me. I can remember some occasion when we sit in the kitchen for hours and make different foods and deserts for our family gatherings. Every holiday that we got together, she would always make some amala with ewedu, but coming here has totally changed that a lot and I even find the necessary ingredients.

Another cultural practice that I have been unable to observe since moving to the United States is the traditional marriage ceremonies. Marriage is a big event in my green land of Nigeria. Before you get married, the groom first has to pay a dowry and he also has to bring food, drinks and other things the bride’s family may request. The groom must prostrate seven times before they give him his bride. During the ceremony, traditional attire must be worn and also, lots of traditional food is served. For example, two years ago when my elder sister got married to a man of European descent, he had to go through our tradition way of marriage. He was astonished that he had to go through all these rituals to get married, but still he enjoyed our traditional way of marriage.

In spite of globalization, each ethnic group in Nigeria has their own unique way of dress. As a Yoruba woman, we traditionally wear styles known as buba and iro, bubu, ipele and gele. These different clothing styles are specific to different occasions, from daily wear to more formal gatherings. I find our traditional styles more comfortable to wear. They are always tailor-made and usually very affordable. This being the case I do not feel to the pressure to wear name brands which usually cost a lot and are more expensive. However, I still have to wear them because it difficult to wear my native attires this advance country.

In summary, the cultural values of my ethnic group and country will always remain with me. Our way of life, clothing style, popular food and cultural ceremonies always put a smile on my face when I remember them. While it is possible for two cultures to exist symbiotically, there will always be a dominant one that shapes a person’s view of the world. I cannot wait for the day I will see my green land again with my friends and loved ones being happy to receive me back.