Backstory
In this series, I’m writing a multi-part post about my family origin, intimate stories of my childhood, personal identity, and how I believe it has shaped who I am. Being born into a refugee family was a blessing, it’s taught me a lot about work, values, and love. My parents have gone through hell to provide me with the life I live today. Here’s the story.
At 24 years of age, my parents decided to leave Vietnam to come to Canada in search of a better life. Their stories were nothing short of incredible. After the Vietnam war ended, their future wouldn’t be the same. This was known as the fall of Saigon, and as you’ve probably guessed, they lived in Saigon. I’m not going to go into detail about the war, but you can read about the history here, it’s worth it. As the eldest in their families, my parents were designated to seek refuge—they would do this by being something known as “boat people”. For this backstory, I’m going to elaborate more on my mom’s journey, but my dad went through a similar experience. To hitch a ride as “boat people”, she needed to pool twelve bars of gold equivalent to $2400 USD. Our family, of lower-income, couldn’t afford this. My mom was able to borrow from a generous friend (who was paid back over time) who ultimately made it safely to the United States and still remains very close to our family. The gold was paid to board a scrappy makeshift boat that ultimately took sail and ended up in a refugee camp in Malaysia after five days. My mom described this experience as the worse—a crowded boat with over 50 people puking, starving and smelling like dead people—some jumped off the boat and some literally laid dead, hence why it smelled foul (really sorry about this visual, but I think it’s good to understand how horrifying this was). At the refugee camp, the United Nations and Red Cross fed refugees (the ones who made it) with canned meat, crackers, and water. Canada and the United States opened the country to people who could apply and seek refuge. The demand for the US was high—on average, someone could wait three years before getting resettled. She decided to apply for Canada, ultimately waiting for 5 months before receiving news that a Christian family from Alberta sponsored her. This family provided her with food, taught her English, helped her get a job, and most importantly, a roof over her head. Her first job, three days after she arrived was sewing plush toys—the ones you spend money trying to win at a carnival but actually costs $3. She eventually worked three jobs simultaneously at minimum wage ($3.50 at the time); a seamstress during the day, a line cook in the evening, and packaging flyers on the weekends. Her motivation? She needed to apply to sponsor our family of 8 (6 siblings and her parents) to come to Canada which required her to have a stable salary of at least $20,000. Her sponsor and friends encouraged her to go to school, work on her English, and get a better job. But she sacrificed that opportunity to prioritize bringing her family over to Canada. With the combination of three jobs, she was able to prove her income and apply for sponsorship within one year. She was denied three times because the government couldn’t fathom how a young lady could sponsor an entire family. Ridiculous, but what a boss. Our family arrived in Canada in 1986, six years after she applied and the rest was history.
Fast forward to today
Writing this story gives me chills. My parents worked so hard to give me what I have today—the opportunities I take for granted, the love I get on a regular basis, and providing me with strong values. I’ve never seen a dead person. I’ve never worked more than one job in my life. I’ve never been constrained with money, or question whether I could eat the next day. I am so privileged and lucky. It shaped the way I grew up and taught me valuable lessons; lessons I hope to teach my kids one day but unlikely to replicate what my parents showed me.
Great read Joseph ! Our parents are truly a blessing that we take for granted. I hope this post inspires more people to appreciate what they have no matter where they are in life.
Looking forward for the next post !
- Hasem
Thanks for the support Hasem, I couldn't agree more!