ADJUSTING
Above, my mother (middle), and three of her sisters
Fitting In
"There were a lot of kids that I hung out with whose families were from similar situations. They all came from Hong Kong at some point or another... growing up, I think I was drawn to them because I could relate to them. We understood each other. We also helped each other out."
- Anna Yu
As a young girl who did not yet know English, and was not always allowed out of the house for safety concerns, my mother at first had a hard time finding a group she felt she fit in with. She was often in a separate classroom learning English. However, in that class, she met many children with backgrounds extremely similar to hers. They became her close elementary school friends. Still, she was closer with her sisters than she was with anyone else.
Due to anti-Asian sentiments, including those stemming from the Chinese Exclusion Act in the late 1800s, my mother and her sisters remember being teased at a young age for their race. They found that as Chinese immigrants, they were treated differently, and mocked, even into their adult lives when one of my aunts was victim to more racist comments.
My mother (bottom row, second from right), her sisters, and grandmother
The Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center
The transition from living in Hong Kong to Boston was anything but easy. They were unfamiliar to the non-tropical climate, English-speaking community, and Western culture. The Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center greatly helped them with finding jobs, meeting other families, and overall, helping them feel welcomed in a foreign world. They provided them with necessary services such as translation, legal services, and counseling. They helped my mother's family stay in touch with their Chinese roots during their transition to a world different from everything they had ever known.
Education
"[Immigrant parents] try to instill hard work in kids because we see how much they struggle, and they know that education is the way out, so they really try to have their kids work hard and do well academically so they can have a better future for themselves." - Anna Yu
Upon arriving in Massachusetts, neither my mom nor her family spoke a lick of English. My mother and her sisters were placed in English Language Learning centers in their schools. My mother remembers many other children in the English learning class with her, all immigrants from China. Her parents, busy earning money to support their family, were not able to find the time to become fluent English, although they occasionally attended English as a Second Language classes in Chinatown.
My mom sporting her college's merchandise
Education in Massachusetts was one of the largest differences my mother noticed. In Boston, she first attended a public elementary school, and recalled being shocked at the behavior of other students. In Hong Kong, teachers would slap students as young as elementary school age with rulers if they disobeyed orders. This was not a practice in Massachusetts. Although the classroom banter was distracting, she never let it get in the way of her studies.
Education was highly valued in the family; her parents endlessly encouraged studying and earning high grades. My mother made it a priority to fulfill their wish, as education was one of the major reasons for their immigration. Her parents were also forced to leave school at a young age to help financially support their families, providing another motive for my mother to work hard in school.
Her persistence in her education led to testing into Boston Latin for middle and high school, later going to Boston University, then completing her Master's at Babson. She now has been working as an investment and portfolio manager for over 25 years with Fidelity Investments.
Life After College
Despite all of the many hardships my mother was faced with in her childhood and adolescence, she was able to find success in her education and career, ultimately achieving the American Dream. Her immigration experience as well as the lessons her parents implemented taught her a great sense of resilience, one that still sticks with her long into her adulthood, and that I, quite frankly, do not belive will ever dissipate.
Aside from her career, she also started a family to which she shares stories from her past, and continues to share the wisdom of her parents. She married my father, Richard Fleck in 1999 and went on to have two children: my brother, Ryan, and myself.