Love, Your Granddaughter

This week has been extremely interesting in Vietnam. Just in a course of a few days, the meaning of EAP Vietnam meant something a little more to me. After a decent day at Hoa Binh Than Xuan Village, I came home and went and did my usual facebook chatting. I was surprised to see my uncle online. I asked him how he was doing and he replied by saying that my aunt has just rushed down to San Jose to pray for my grandpa. I asked what had happened to him and he said that he had just passed away at 3am. Damn.

I knew that this moment would come but I didn’t think it would happen so soon. He was already 96 years old so I knew he would've died knowing that he's had such a long life. However, I also thought he would die peacefully. Instead, last last spring while I was slaving over finals, he came down with a stroke. Half of his body was paralyzed. I was so used to the idea of him dancing in my house whenever we nhau-ed and karaoked, pushing his walker slowly through the hallway, and grinning as he took down his 4 beers a day. So when this happened, it was such a shocker to me. It really pained me that I didn’t really get to know him. I mean, 96? He must have the craziest stories to tell and I don’t even know one. I know his mannerisms, his behavior, his personality, but I don't know his story for shit.

It wasn’t till later when I met up with Gerard for our service learning office hours that I realized that I honestly needed to start learning more about my family history. We talked about possible research projects and he offered me the chance to uncover my family's history before 1954 and after. It really struck a chord with me. I mean, when else am I gonna get the chance to be in Vietnam and to talk to my family members? Even though I’m really upset with myself for not being in the States with my family during such a time, I know my grandpa would’ve wanted me to be in Vietnam connecting back to my roots. In a way, I'm making up for all the time that I didn't spend trying to understand my family.

In conclusion, Vietnam just got waaaaaay more personal, but its all good in the hood.
R.I.P. Grandpa. Van Thai Sinh or Hang Sinh. I’ll miss your smile, your dance moves, and your ice cream and bia cravings.