Chinese New Year Parade 2007
I am an American-born Chinese. A child of immigrants who met in the States. My parents have always tried to instill a bit of Chinese pride within me. I was made to watch the TV shows from Hong Kong. They had me go to Chinese school growing up. I was very resistant, preferring the draw of the Yankees and Nintendo.
I sometimes regret not embracing my heritage more.
Many of my childhood friends were just as resistant. I am fortunate enough to keep in contact with most of them. Now they have children of their own and try to pass on their culture to the next generation.
But how much tradition can be passed from someone illiterate in Chinese? Is it real custom or did I pick it from a bad TVB soap opera? What do I really know outside of a mahjong table? What will I do when I have kids? Will they care? Luckily, I will not have to deal with this for quite some time. But it doesn't mean I don't think about it. –Edward Cheng
