today i smiled.

because life is wonderful, and there is something to smile about. every. single. day.

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My mom told me today that my uncle is going to be buried next to Hao Ye-ye & Hao Nai-nai (Good Grandpa & Good Grandma). I asked her who they are, and she said they are the nice elderly couple that babysat my uncle when they were little. She said they absolutely loved him, and always spoiled him & treated him as their own son.

I asked her why they only spoiled him, and not her or her brother: “We each had our own babysitter. That’s just how it was done back in the day.” 

“So who babysat you? Were they nice to you too?”

“No. My babysitter was an old blind woman. My parents said they came to pick me up and found me sitting in the front yard by myself, eating grass. So sad.”

HAHA. Oh mom… you make me smile :)

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Your dad knows a few Taiwanese phrases. He learned them from a parrot that was owned by the family next door. Every time you walked by their front yard, the parrot would say ‘ahnay wa duhnkee ya!’, which means ‘Then I’m going home!’ in Taiwanese… Baba thought it was the funniest thing ever, and always copied the bird.
—

My mom, as we walked by my grandma’s neighbor’s house (I’m in Taiwan right now). 

Lol @ my dad learning Taiwanese from a parrot. :)

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my ‘siblings’ make me smile. i grew up an only child, but have no lonely memories because of these lifelong friends. here’s us at christmas ‘10, before engaging in a 4 hour long nerf gun battle. hehe. [the photo is mildly ironic though, as none of us are actually smiling in it…] View high resolution

my ‘siblings’ make me smile. i grew up an only child, but have no lonely memories because of these lifelong friends. here’s us at christmas ‘10, before engaging in a 4 hour long nerf gun battle. hehe. [the photo is mildly ironic though, as none of us are actually smiling in it…]

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why i smile.

I made this blog to share something that made me smile every day. 

You see, a little while ago, I was depressed. I spent a year feeling sad and hurting myself. I am thankful that was then & that I am a different person now. 

Two days ago, my uncle passed away. He was an artist, always seeing beauty, encouraging creativity, and constantly joking around. Seeing him in the hospital bed, body wasted from chemo, when he was once so lively, made me intensely ashamed of myself— that I could have treated life, precious life, so carelessly when he lay before me clinging so desperately to his own.

I just want to remind myself, and others, that no matter how dark it may seem, to remember that one thing that made you smile today.

Because life is wonderful, and there is something to smile about. Every. Single. Day.

[R.I.P. to the ‘baddest’ uncle around. I know you’re up there smiling down on me :)]

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