My grandma Tu was a single mother. She found herself in the middle of the Cultural Revolution in China when it was near impossible for her to find a decent paying job. She left her life behind in China and immigrated to the United States in hopes of securing a better future for her kids. 

My grandma started with nothing when she first came to this country with her two sons. Her first job was as a housekeeper in Santa Barbara. Then, she worked as a cashier at a Liquor Store in Downtown Los Angeles and was barely able to make ends meet. Often, she found herself unable to communicate with customers. She was alone in a foreign country where she barely knew the language, but she still tried her best to support her family and provide a good upbringing to my dad and my uncle. Even though she tells me stories about this part of her life, I can never fully imagine the struggles that she went through. I admire her more every day for her resiliency and strength. 

Whenever she tells this story, though, she says how everything was worth it in the end. She is so proud that her sons were able to find decent jobs and start their own families and that I can pursue a higher education in the United States. She says that we are the living proof that she made the right decision 50 years ago. 

When I was a kid, my grandma took care of me whenever my parents were at work. I remember that she would always make me snacks. She liked to pour me a warm cup of milk and add a teaspoon of sugar inside so that it was sweet. Sometimes, she would grab a spoonful of peanut butter and lather it onto slices of apples. Then, we would sit on the couch together for hours and watch shows together. She always liked to watch some type of Chinese or Korean drama, and I think that partly influenced my own taste in shows. 

Now, I visit my grandma almost every month. We sit down at the table and she asks me about everything that happens at school. We talk about the shows that we each watched recently. Then, she jokingly asks if I have found a boyfriend yet. No matter what kind of struggle I am going through in life, she always reminds me that I am smart and that one of my greatest strengths is that I never give up because I am her granddaughter. Some of the best advice I have ever gotten is from my grandma. 

She also always tries to give me money so that I can buy the things that I want even when I do not have my parents’ permission. I remember when I really wanted an iPhone when I first started high school and she gave me an envelope full of money so that I could buy it. She tells me it is because she lived so much of her life without the ability to afford nice things and she wants her kids and grandkids to never have to worry about money. She even bought me alcohol when I turned 21 last month!

My grandma is one of the strongest women I know and I always hope that everything I do makes her proud.