When I read my mom's letter, I rolled my eyes. She made a bulleted list of everything I should remember. It's not a big deal. But she picks and chooses about five of these points to repeat to me everyday and it gets monotonous. We'll be grocery shopping. She'll see a single father with three kids, all under the age of five, in the cereal aisle. They all want fruit-loops. (We like to people watch and sometimes we make up stories about them.) Their father will choose a whole grain cereal instead. And of course, the kids throw a big fat hissy fit in the middle of the grocery store. Then my mom will relay to me in Chinglish1 , “Now Jieh-Jieh2, when you find a husband, make sure he knows how to feed your children good food. None of this junk. Make sure he’s straight3 with them, but also make sure he’s good to them, too.” Uhh. Okay, Mom. Whatever. And then it’ll be raining when we drive home and I would be driving. Unfortunately, Arlington has the worst drainage system possible. So the streets on Green Oaks are excessively overflowing onto the sidewalks and spilling into the occasional ditch. “Jieh-Jieh, when you buy a house, make sure it’s near the top of the hill. Because when the rain comes down, your house won’t be flooded,” warns my mother. Right. Sure thing, Ma. I think I take these little pieces of advice for granted. I could write a book with every single word she’s told me. I’m going to miss these random words of wisdom. So this is to you, Mommy. I will take care of you when you’re old, like you always ask me if I will. I’ll marry a nice gentleman who will do his fair share of the housework, unlike Dad sometimes. I’ll make sure my children start a musical instrument really early, so they’ll be smarter. And I’ll always remember to buy a house near the top of a hill. Just for you.
1 A mix of Chinese and English languages fused into a sense.
2 Meaning older sister in Cantonese.
3 She means ‘strict’.
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