Culture of One

My siblings and I were all born and raised in Spokane. I have an older sister, who also attended Whitworth University and studied Psychology, and an older brother, who attended the University of Washington and studied political science. My mom and dad grew up in Hong Kong and were childhood friends. After getting married, they came to America in the early 1970s. My dad has worked as a Chinese chef for over 40 years now, and before my mom passed away from cancer, she worked as a seamstress. My siblings and I are all bilingual in English and Cantonese. When we are at home or speaking over the phone, we use Cantonese because we have a preference for it and the language is more complex with a greater variety of descriptive words and phrases. It is interesting to think about, but even my dog at home understands more Chinese than English. Ever since I was born, my dad has been fluent in English with a Chinese accent, and my mom was also spoke fairly fluent English. I think being able to speak Cantonese is a great accomplishment because I have cousins in San Francisco who only speak English. Thus, my siblings and I are able to communicate with relatives, who only speak Chinese, in Hong Kong and the San Francisco area. Although I am able to speak Cantonese, I am unable to read or write Chinese characters.

  

As a Chinese-American, I hold a mixture of both Chinese and American values. For Chinese values, I highly value family and believe in the concept of collectivism, where the actions or accomplishments of an individual is representative of the entire family as a whole. It is also important to respect elders and take care of them as they grow old. On the other hand, I also believe in the American values of individuality and independence. It is important to make my own decisions and choose the goals and dreams I want to pursue. Growing up, my parents were never controlling of the things my siblings and I wanted to do. They believed in our capabilities and our decision-making skills to make the correct choices, just as I, myself, hold myself accountable for making respectable decisions in my life.

As for my school experience, from preschool to high school, all of my teachers, classmates, peers, and friends were predominantly white. I have come to realize I have been so accustomed to a predominantly white population that the lack of diversity in Spokane has rarely bothered me. I was always one of the very few Asians in my schools, so coming to Whitworth was quite a different experience as I saw the number of Asians attending Whitworth to be greater than I expected. I have come to realize however, that the Whitworth experience is extremely different for Asians, who have come to Spokane from cities like Seattle, which has a much greater Asian population. Although I love and have been to diverse cities like Seattle many times, Spokane is a comfortable place and it will always feel like home.