for the love - sachigirl

It took a stranger from a faraway land to unlock the secret of my roots.

I found her, a stocky friendly-looking Chinese lady selling pendants in one of the narrow alleys of the busy and brightly-lit district of Tsim Sha Tsui in Hong Kong.

As I picked up the jade tiger, she spoke to me in Cantonese. So, I courteously replied, “no Chinese, English only.”

The woman vendor looked surprised and watched my face intently. I was beginning to feel embarrassed by her attention and wanted to walk away, but by this time, I’ve already found the green stone endearing and was contemplating on making it my own. She tried to speak in her limited English, “oh, your eyes, Chinese,” with her finger pointing to mine, then to hers.

“Same, same,” she adds with nods for emphasis and a warm smile. Somebody’s in a jolly mood.

I clarified waving my hand, “no, not Chinese. From Philippines.”

“Ah, Philippine.” And quickly she asked again, “Philippine-Chinese?”

I laughed, she laughed. We both laughed for a minute before we
got into serious haggling for the jade, that summoned me to that lady’s ambulant store lit only by her heavy-duty lamp.

Back in mom’s hometown in the northern part of the Philippines, I told this amusing story of the insistent Hong Kong vendor, with the jade tiger on my neck. Surrounded by my laughing cousins, my grandma, Lola Emilia announced with a contemplative smile, “you know, my grandparents were Chinese. My father spoke Chinese.”

“What?!!”

I looked at my mom, half-asking half-accusing. But she was bewildered herself. Surprise registered in her beautiful small eyes with that remarkable squint like mine, my lola's and a few of my cousins.

It was awkward at first then we started laughing, not knowing which we found more amusing - the Chinese lady in Hong Kong or the sudden/belated revelation of my grandmother.

So, I have Chinese blood coursing thru my veins. That answers my childhood question about my eyes but I have more questions. Where did my ancestors come from? Which part of China? What was our Chinese name?

My grandma managed to tell me more bits and pieces - probably 2 or 3 sentences! Every time we visit, I’d ask her again for more. If I’m lucky, she’d tell me the very same 2 or 3 sentences. On a bad day, she’d tell me to stop pestering her.

I finally figured it’s not her favorite topic in the world and so, I quit asking. From her example, I learned a valuable lesson on how to shut down pesky people. But that’s another story.