Life Bet

One hundred years ago, the British governed Hong Kong, so Hong Kong lived under foreign rule for many years. This relationship brought the unprecedented prosperity to Hong Kong’s economy, and it was unique in China’s history. Hong Kong, as a colony, offered more chances to work and to make money easier than the other cities in China at that time. In the 1960s, because of the Great Famine and Cultural Revolution, my hometown-Taishan, was hard for people to live in. Many people escaped to Hong Kong even though they didn’t have a permit. My grandfather found a way to move to Hong Kong as an illegal worker, so he couldn’t go home to the mainland for a long time until the Hong Kong government broadened the policy for illegal immigrants and approbated them. My grandfather’s choice to move to Hong Kong influenced my families’ lives for generations.

Since my grandfather left, my grandmother became a lonely and strong woman. Not long after my grandfather and my grandmother got married, my grandfather had to escape to Hong Kong due to the Great Famine. Because of my grandfather’s choice, he had to leave his wife at home. At the beginning, my grandmother was lonely, and she was frustrated from the strange family environment. There was nothing to eat during the Great Famine. My grandmother had depended on herself to go through and survive this disaster. Also, after her husband left, my grandfather didn’t send money back, so my grandmother had to work hard all the day and do all the housework. She did farming work while looked after her children. Although she was pregnant, she went to the mountain to hack firewood. She carried the responsibility of family, worked day and night at that time, so now she looks older than the other people who are the same age.

In addition, my mother didn’t grow up knowing my grandfather since he had escaped to Hong Kong, so it affected their relationship. After my grandfather left, my mother hadn’t seen her father since she was born. She didn’t know who her father was or how her father looked. Father was a simply word for my mother. The first time my mother had seen my grandfather was when she was ten years old. It was the first time my grandfather escaped to come home. After many years, my grandfather had more chances to come back home, so my grandfather and my mother reunited. They met together, but father seemed like a stranger for my mother. My mother didn’t understand why the other children could have their father accompany them in their childhood, or why her father couldn’t participate in her childhood. Even today, my mother understands my grandfather’s decision to go to Hong Kong, but she hasn’t visited him even though he is old.

Finally, my grandfather’s choice made me cherish a dream of living in a foreign country and my life in China. When my grandfather came back home, he always brought many different kinds of gifts from different foreign countries. When I showed the gifts to my friends, they all envied me that I could have luxurious gifts. This change made me think that if I live in a foreign country, what a good life it could be. At that time, I decided to live in a foreign country, so this was the main reason that I immigrated to America. However, when my dream came true, and I finally moved to the U.S, it was hard for me adapt to the culture. When I felt depressed in the U.S, it reminded me of what my grandfather had told me before in China how difficult it was for him to live in a foreign country for many years. It also reminded me of how he encouraged me not to feel lonely in a foreign country because there were many people missed me in China, and he believed I could have a better life in the U.S.

One hundred years later, Hong Kong returned to China. It was separated from British’s rule, and it became a prosperous city. A lot of things come together at the end, like destiny. My grandfather’s choice made him separate from family for many years, but finally he came back home with my grandmother, my mother and me. Even though now I live in a foreign country, I believe everyone will be together in the future, and I hope to have a different destiny than my grandfather.