A letter dedicated to Zack: born 8-18-18

Betty and I are ecstatic to announce the arrival of Zachary j. Xian! Born August 18, 2018 at 0:15 am, 8lb 9oz, and 53cm. Both mom and baby are doing good after 15 hours of labor and one additional week in the hospital.    

Zack is born at a very interesting time in history with both China and India rising rapidly in economic power. What does the future hold for Chinese being born in America?  Coincidentally, Zack is also born during the debut of Crazy Rich Asians in America. To see how crazy this world has become, look no further than the Methodist Hospital in Los Angeles where Zack was born. One hispanic nurse told us why everyone must see the movie and another anesthesiologist told us how many times he cried over it, fortunately, not during the epidural (we have footage to proof it!). Why is this historically significant? Being Asian Americans, we are witnessing a shift towards Asians, or more broadly, towards diversity in color or gender. Interestingly, it would take a romantic comedy, 25 years after Joy Luck Club and 46 years after Bruce Lee, directed by an American born Chinese, Jon Chu, to help bring about the change in perception. I bet you his parents, Lawrence and Ruth, being 1st generation immigrants, would have never imagined their pivot role in all of this as they struggled in building their Chinese takeout business, Chef Chu’s, like many immigrant families.  But, being poor, hungry, and determined (Ph.D), as Lawrence likes to put it, they are now thriving in America with many kids and grandkids! For the single ladies, it is important to pay attention to the guys who can do cooking as well as coding.

Through the story of Bruce Lee, Chef Chu’s, and many immigrants, it reminds us all the importance of family, especially for us who parachuted here from far away without knowing anyone. For our little Zack, we have great responsibilities as parents and as first generation immigrants to help pave the way for the next generation. We need to help others realize we are all inextricably connected like a banyan tree. When we help others different from us or someone we don't quite know, we are helping our next generation since they are learning from us on how we treat others who is seemingly different: whose English might not be perfect, whose economic background might not be “crazy rich”, or whose look might be different from us.    

Thank you for your blessings!

With Love, 
B & B