Social Study 101 - Family Tree

Counting down the days to TW, as we are spending the entire Thanksgiving week visiting our Asian family. Kids are extremely excited since they have learned and read quite a bit of it in the past year. It’s not their first time visiting TW but it’s going to be their first “memorable” time (I’ll say) as they are now older. Knowing that we are going to see SO many extended families (grandparents, great grand aunts, uncles, uncles, aunts, first cousins, second cousins...), I feel that I owe them a social study 101 lesson. What can be better than starting with a family tree! So let’s get the Cheng (my maternal) side started!

holiday seasons

It really doesn't get easier since T's pass. It especially hits me hard when any major holiday approaches. I was contemplating if we should even send out the family greeting card this year. At the end, I decided, show must go on and the world won't stop moving so the life has to go on...

<in the back of the holiday card this year>

What a year it's been!

A very challenging one with ups and downs, good surprises and unexpected losses. It's one of those years that you would look back and remember every single moment of and wish you could explain everything with karma but it would just be too simple.

We all know, really, this is part of life. The setback is for our comeback, and if doesn't kill us it only makes us stronger.

Vividly remembered on a gorgeous Sunday morning, Ninja was waiting for his hot cocoa in a coffee shop and he had an epiphanic moment:

N: I love my life.
S: Why?
N: Because I have the best people.

We love our lives. We have the best people. We are forever grateful to having you in our lives and being there for us, being our source of stability and part of our support network.

We wish you and your loved ones a beautiful holiday season and a great 2020 with lots of love, health and prosperity.

With love,

SFEA

Election Time

N: mom, where is the student council packet?
Me: at home I suppose. Why?
N: it's due tomorrow. I need to turn it in.
(to my surprise, why? he's running?)
Me: you're going to run for student council?
N: Yes. I want to.
Me: Why?
N: Cuz I think it would be fun!
(me thinking: interesting! Never crossed my mind that he would want to run for student council plus he always has told me that he has "stage fright". And his dad and I have always been very apolitical though we like discussing politics at home.)
Me: ok. cool! You know that you need to write a lot, like a paragraph about why you want to do it, no?
N: Yeah. I know. I will write it.

So here it is. Ninja's "vision" of being part of the student council...

"FUN" is pretty much the main theme and his "vision" of the whole "campaign" Pretty much all he wanted is to have fun and make school more fun and make everyone smile more! I thought that it was pretty neat and innocent for a third-grader. Nothing about "saving the world" but just "to have fun". And you know, why not? considering how much work these kids have to do at school these days.

Best friends, worst enemies

To my surprise, A, who just started her first grade, actually enjoys writing (journals). She’s always been quite creative and loves doing arts. When I picked her up from Kid’s Corner this afternoon, she showed me this beautiful drawing she made for her brother. And N was somewhat indifferent. I was a bit disappointed with his reaction. She kept wanting to show her affection to him but he just shrugged it off. “I don’t like people give me so much love,” he said, “I feel uncomfortable.” Shy? Or growing up? Maybe a bit of both. Thinking back that the other day I had to toss them out of the car because of a silly quarrel between the two, perhaps it is truly as what they say, they are “best friends and worst enemies.”