Showing posts with label childhood memory. Show all posts
Showing posts with label childhood memory. Show all posts

Saturday, September 1, 2012

"Self-portrait"

I am excited for school. Yep, it sounds strange, but knowing that I have only 8 more months til graduation makes me happy :-) School just started and my desk is full of books and papers already. Well it's what I get for taking 7 classes in my senior year haha. But I can do it! Anyways, one of my homework is taking 3 "self-portrait" pictures. "Self-portrait" is in quotation because I cannot have my face in the pictures, but the objects that represent my personality. Uhm I have never approached photography because I don't have that kind of artsy sense which can recognize or read the soul behind the objects haha. I think photographers are amazing artists... Even though I do painting and drawing, the way I perceive art is different from photography. Anyways, with my crappy digital camera (I am just thrilled to know that my school is lending us those professional "bulky" camera soon hehe!), I walked around my apartment and took 3 close-up shots of those objects which I thought to be a good representation for my personality.

A stack of textbooks - hardworking?

Uhm no, it does not mean I'm a nerd. I wish I was one though. Why books? Well, when I was in high school, which was a life-turning-point for kids in Vietnam, I screwed up. While other kids spent all their time studying in order to get into the best universities, I just ran around and caused troubles. I think it was in senior year when mom wrote me a letter. Sway from the main topic for a bit, but writing letters has been a tradition among my mom, little sister, and me. There was always something we could not express in person, and letters had become the best communication tool of us. Words were poured onto that thin piece of paper and that was how we set our problems straight. I love it. Anyways, back to mom's letter before I left home for college in the States..
"Dear my daughter,
[...]Your grandpa passed away when I was 6 and grandma alone raised three of her kids up. People looked down on us because of what we wore and ate. It broke my heart to see grandma work so hard, yet barely fed three hungry mouths, and she had to bear with the cruel judgement of society. I could not do anything, but studied hard to make her happy. I am where I am now is because of education. Thi, education is important. In our family, the only way to stand up is education...[...]"
Well, I grew up experiencing with some unhappy moments of that unfairness happening in our own family, but the young selfish me just wanted to ignore the matter. Even though mom had been telling about the story, it just went from this ear to another one. But that letter, blurry texts from her tears, hit me hard. That's why I am working very hard in college. It is not only because of me but also my loved ones who have always been proud and supportive.
Art supply - artsy?
I love art. A lot. Very. Freaking. Much. But I wasn't supported to major in art. Even high school cut the art program out. I keep it as a hobby though. It's something I can sit all day and bury myself in colors (sadly my schedule is a jealous b*tch). Anyways, it's just my stress outlet:-)

Sticker note - ambivert?
My sister and I are going through a tough time. One night she came home, burst into tears, and that was when I felt so powerless. I have always thought I have my life in control, yet the fact that I couldn't protect my little sister from inevitable broken heart made me feel weak. We were raised to believe that actions were stronger than words, so we barely expressed our love verbally. We learned the way to feel and perceive love from what others do for us, not what they say to us. I did not know what to do at that time and I had to leave early in the morning, so I left a sticker note on her laptop. Days later, it was still there, so I asked her why she didn't throw it away. "Well," she said, "it is nice to have some evidence of your love once in awhile, isn't it?" That melted my heart :-)

Okay, enough of random things :-) At least I just dusted my blog haha.

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Why don't I believe in Santa Claus any more?


           I know it is not Christmas season, but somehow my friend and I ended up talking about whether Santa Claus was real or not. And I guess July always reminded me about Christmas because four years ago when I was in Boston, I accidentally wore a shirt saying Holiday Seasons and on that day, the Boston radio played Christmas songs in July. Well, everything about Boston is always special to me. Okay, so why don't I believe in Santa. When I was young, I used to look forward to presents from Santa Claus on Christmas. I used to write him letters every year. I used to look up at the sky to find a glimpse of snow sleigh with a fat jolly man in it. Just like other kids, I did believe in Santa. Then what happened?

            When I was in third grade, I saw an ad about meeting Santa Claus. I came home and insisted on meeting Santa Claus. Little did I know that my parents had to pay for that "service." Well my wish was granted and I got to see Santa! I waited and waited. My mind filled with all the imaginations a child could have with Santa. I imagined him coming to my house in a snow sleigh even though it never snowed in Vietnam. I imagined to touch his white hair and give him a kiss on his red cheek. I imagined he would run his fingers through my hair and give me my present. No. None of those things happened. What happened was just like holding a mirror and smashing it on the floor. All my images about Santa was blown away in a second. Well, the "Santa" came, but he was not on a snow sleigh. He was on a motorbike! Oh, oh, and he was skinny! Oh, oh, and he was an Asian guy wearing a fake beard. Oh, oh, and he gave me cookies instead of what I want! It was a very awkward silence talking to him because my young mind had figured out that he was not the real Santa... And the worst part was my parent had to pay for him! Sigh. That was it. But when I have kids, I'll still tell them that Santa is real because well, I don't know. The kids deserve a childhood filled with fairy tales I guess. 
      
Uhm this is not my Santa...