My family isn't the greatest in the world but they've went through a lot of hardships before coming to America. During the Vietnam War they had to witness losing friends and family, endure their homes being bombed, and just live through a war. My grandparents left China for Vietnam when WWII started. They lived close to Nanking so they heard the horror stories about the raping of the city. (This is why my grandmother is paranoid about all of the young women in our family.) Then both my grandparents and my parents had to escape Vietnam during the war. My mother was one of the Boat people, and not too long ago I stumbled upon her Refugee card. My father's side of the family almost lost their ticket into America because my grandmother fell gravely ill during their passage into States. (My grand uncle was my grandmother's sponsor. My grandfather was in no way related to him so if she were to have passed on, their passage would have been terminated.)
Growing up I never heard of these horror stories but I got glimpses of their PTSD and experienced their paranoia. My uncle would hide against the wall sometimes when there was a loud noise, my grandmother would always jump at anything that scared her. My family isn't wonderful at raising kids. Their form of discipline isn't something I'd want any child to experience but because of their strength and courage through the war it has inspired me to look at a bad day in a different light. I developed a sort of, "Well at least it isn't that bad..." mentality. I try harder in everything I do whether it be work or school because when they lived in Vietnam it didn't matter how much work or effort they put into something, it could easily be taken away at gunpoint. Because of them I've learned that I am very blessed.
