I’ve met some amazing people through my older son, Jake. And this weekend was no exception.
For the last six summers, Jake has gone away to a Jewish overnight camp.
And for the last few years, he’s talked about a group of Chinese Jews, or as they call themselves, Chews. So yesterday when I took Jake to a bat mitzvah for one of his camp friends, I shouldn’t have been too surprised that she, too, was a Chew.
Today at the party, I met her father and had a quick, but wonderful discussion with him. Like me, he studied abroad in Asia in 1990-91. And like me, he returned again for four years after graduating college. He also speaks Mandarin and met his spouse in Asia. His home in Asia was Taiwan, whereas mine was Hong Kong.
I did make it to Taiwan for a week in 1991. (Sometimes I wonder if the heyday of studying Mandarin in Taiwan has passed, as study abroad programs in China continue to expand. But that’s a post for another day.)
Jake and his Asian Jewish friends got me thinking. As their parents, we not only strive to expose our kids to their Asian culture, but also hope to give them a solid Jewish upbringing. It’s not easy being a minority two times over, although as parents we try our best.
And while Asian Jewish kids are by no means a new phenomenon, they are more prevalent now with the growing numbers of cross-cultural relationships and international adoptions.
I’ve always been somewhat of a shadchen–matchmaking or at least thinking about who I could set up with whom. But just as I made my own decisions in that department, I will give my kids that same privilege. Still, it’s somewhat reassuring to know that Jake and his friends can feel proud of their heritage and know that they’re not alone.
This is a fantastic idea. Someone needs to write and produce it. I actually have a cousin in L.A. who has written 6 musicals! I’m going to mention this to him and make sure you get credit for it, Stuart!
I don’t want healthy; I want TASTY!
It is very tasty!!! Not all is healthy, but they have this great shrimp and tofu dim sum that I dream about. It’s steamed tofu, not fried. Their rice rolls come in the fried tofu variety, though.
I love this post, Susan! I have so many anecdotes I could share, growing up a Chinese Jew, but space does not permit! A couple of quick memories that come to mind though:
It was always fun to watch the reactions of people when I told them my name is Judy Rosenberg!
It was great eating to restaurants with names like Shang Chai and I’m always amused when people assume that Chinese + Jewish = Crazy Tiger Mom on Steroids!
As far as exposing my kids to their ancient and rich heritages, they’ve been to China, but your blog is a reminder that a trip to Israel would be wonderful. They’ve each become bar/bat mitzvah. Now, if only I could get them to just TRY a morsel of dim sum.
I love your stories! Jake has never been to China (or Israel), so your kids are ahead of him on that! Maybe I’m being too much of a Tiger Mom by keeping him close by. We should go to dim sum in Chinatown! There’s a new place that has healthy dim sum.
Why does this make me see visions of an all Mandarin production of “Erhu Player On The (Pagoda) Roof”?
I love the visuals for this!