Mom's Story (eBook)

Winston Zee (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2025 | 1. Auflage
247 Seiten
Publishdrive (Verlag)
978-0-00-107893-2 (ISBN)

Infos

This book is an experiment in storytelling across languages, cultures, and ways of seeing the world. Mom's Story is told in three parts. The first is in English. The second tells the same story in Simplified Chinese (Mandarin), not as a translation, but as an original retelling. The third shares the story again, this time in Traditional Chinese (Cantonese) - the author's own mother tongue. Each version reflects not only a change in language, but a shift in voice, rhythm, and cultural resonance. Through this structure, the book invites readers to explore how language shapes memory, emotion, and meaning.

Textauszug

Mom’s Story

After mom turned 94 in September 2024, her dementia deteriorated rapidly. Dad already passed away over 20 years ago, and mom has already gotten used to living by herself. However, during the past several months mom frequently saw dad in her dreams and invariably she quarrelled with him. After waking up mom was unable to tell me what the quarrels were about. From my observation, it was because mom was truly angry that dad “went away” so soon and left her to travel the long road of getting old all by herself.

But why? Why does mom pin her feeling of anger on dad, when dad had already passed away for so long? The explanation must begin with mom’s father, i.e. my Gon Gon. I have never met my Gon Gon (I will explain why later in the story). From older people who knew him, I learned that Gon Gon was exceptionally talented. He graduated from the Soochow University in Suzhou, China. He came from a poor family, but he got himself admitted to studying law in the U.S. at the Cornell University Law School. One hundred years ago, Gon Gon was among a handful of students from Shanghai who studied at a top law school in the U.S.

During his study in the U.S., Gon Gon washed dishes in the evenings at restaurants to pay for his tuition and living expenses. Three years later, he graduated from law school and returned to Shanghai to start his career as a lawyer. However, very soon he left the lawyer career and became an entrepreneur. He set up a textile factory to make western style hats and coats. He also opened a clothing store on Nanjing Road in downtown Shanghai to sell the wool hats and coats made by his factory. Gon Gon had good business acumen. His store on Nanjing Road, comparable to the Fifth Avenue in New York, quickly became famous – it is called the “La España Manila Hat Store.” And he made a lot of money.

According to legend, mom’s mother, i.e. my Po Po, knew Gon Gon since childhood. Po Po came from a wealthy family. One hundred years ago, Po Po was already sent to a British private school in Shanghai. She therefore spoke fluent English. However, because Gon Gon came from a poor family, Po Po was not permitted by her parents to marry Gon Gon. One hundred years ago, “marriage between families of equal social status” was still the norm. This was the reason Gon Gon went to study in the U.S. After returning from the U.S. and acquiring wealth, it became possible for Gon Gon to gain the permission of Po Po’s parents and to have Po Po marry him. Gon Gon finally achieved his goal. He and Po Po got married in Shanghai and they gave birth to their first child in 1930.

*                  *                  *

Mom was born in Shanghai in 1930, the first child of Gon Gon and Po Po. One hundred years ago in Shanghai, “preference of sons over daughters” was prevalent in Chinese society, so Gon Gon eagerly went after a son. When mom turned three, her young brother was born. Right around that time, Gon Gon left his lawyer career, became an entrepreneur, and made a lot of money. Not only was mom’s young brother a son, but also his birth was seen by Gon Gon as bringing good fortune to the family. Young brother therefore became Gon Gon’s absolute favourite. He immediately bought a brand-new house in Shanghai, so that the whole family could move into a nice home.

Young brother suddenly fell seriously ill when he was about two years old. Mom cannot remember what the illness was, but it was certainly an acute infectious disease, because as soon as young brother fell ill, mom and Po Po had to vacate the family house, due to the fear that mom, who was only five at that time, could also contract the disease. Young brother soon died after falling ill. It happened so quickly that mom did not have a chance to see him for the last time before he passed away. As a result, mom has a very murky recollection of her young brother.

The death of mom’s young brother brought Gon Gon great sorrow. Since Gon Gon had made a lot of money after becoming an entrepreneur, he used the “need to sire a son” as an excuse to marry a second wife. One hundred years ago in Shanghai, polygamy was legal. The only prerequisite of practicing polygamy was to be sufficiently wealthy to support “the expanded family.” Shortly thereafter Gon Gon married a third wife, and then a fourth. In other words, when mom was still a child, she had four “mothers” at the same time.

It was not clear why Po Po did not have another child after the death of her son. In any event, mom became Po Po’s only surviving child. Each of the second, third and fourth wives had multiple children, both sons and daughters. Gon Gon therefore spent a considerable sum of money to build one of the largest mansions in Shanghai at that time, so that his four wives and their children could all move into the new mansion. Mom was still a young child at that time, attending primary school. The only thing she could recall about living in that mansion was that the four families, the four wives and their respective children, quarrelled every day. There was never a quiet day at home.

Only a long time later did I have a chance to meet my Po Po (I will explain why later in the story). However, I learned from mom quite early that Po Po was a very stubborn woman. As Gon Gon’s first wife, she was totally fed up having to quarrel with the other three “families” every day. As a result, before mom finished primary school, Po Po moved out of Gon Gon’s mansion and rented a small apartment in downtown Shanghai for her and mom to live in. At that time, dad and his family also lived in a rental apartment in the same block, so dad and mom became neighbours. They often played together in the alleyway downstairs. That was how dad and mom first met each other.

*                  *                  *

Since childhood, I could see that Po Po had a profound influence on Mom. On the one hand, in Mom’s eyes Po Po was a truly remarkable person. Po Po was well educated, spoke English fluently, and excelled in dancing. This is why mom always insisted that I and my younger brother had to study in the U.S. On the other hand, notwithstanding the fact that Po Po was highly educated, in Shanghai’s society one hundred years ago, women had little opportunity to work and earn a living by themselves. As a result, Po Po found work only by helping in Gon Gon’s store and serving the foreigners living in or visiting Shanghai, because they were the kind of customers who could afford the expensive merchandise sold in the store.

In other words, Po Po was financially dependent on Gon Gon. Even after moving out of Gon Gon’s mansion and into the tiny downtown apartment, Po Po, together with mom, could not be financially independent. In mom’s eyes, this was why Po Po had to suffer her whole life. In this regard, Po Po’s profound influence on mom was that mom always insisted on working and making a living by herself, so that she could be financially independent. Although mom and dad were married for over 50 years, until dad passed away at the age of seventy-five, mom has always insisted on being financially self-sufficient.

While growing up I often asked mom about what life in Shanghai was like during her youth. Although mom could recount everything about Po Po in detail, when it came to Gon Gon, mom invariably would say: “Your Gon Gon opened a big store on Nanjing Road. He had four wives living in an enormous mansion. The four wives quarrelled every day. There was never a quiet day at home. But your Po Po and I moved out of the mansion when I was still a child. We moved to live in a tiny downtown apartment.” Other than that, mom could not recall anything else about Gon Gon. It is thus clear to me that Gon Gon’s biggest influence on mom was to have her grown up in a highly insecure home environment.

*                  *                  *

Mom met dad after moving into the tiny downtown apartment. Dad’s family was her neighbour. Dad’s father, i.e. my Ye Ye, was also a lawyer. Ye Ye graduated from the prestigious St. John’s University in Shanghai. Although dad’s family was not as well off as mom’s, Ye Ye was immensely proud of the family’s “tradition of scholars.” Since dad was the eldest son in the family, great emphasis was placed on dad’s education. For high school, dad studied at the prestigious Shanghai Nanyang Model High School. After graduating from high school, dad studied at the prestigious Shanghai Jiao Tong University, majoring in electrical engineering.

“Preferring sons over daughters” was the prevalent culture in Shanghai 100 years ago. Since mom was a daughter, Gon Gon could not care less about mom studying at a university. It was Po Po who insisted that mom had to study at a university and that Gon Gon had to pay for mom’s university tuition and living expenses. In the end, mom was admitted to study at a little-known university in Shanghai, majoring in English. In those days, a girl would be considered extremely lucky if she received the financial support of her parents to complete her university education.

Dad graduated from the Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 1949, the year of the Liberation and the founding of New China. At that time Ye Ye served as a member of Chiang Kai-shek’s national assembly. Since Chiang already moved to Taiwan after being defeated in the civil war, Ye Ye decided that the family had to leave Shanghai and move to Hong Kong...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 19.7.2025
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber
• ISBN-10: 0-00-107893-3 / 0001078933
• ISBN-13: 978-0-00-107893-2 / 9780001078932