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Growing up

In 1929, China was still at war. It was a very poor country and my grandmother was born at this time. My grandmother and mother experienced many things, such as wars, the government important to farming, the Great Leap Forward, and the Cultural Revolution. What surprised me most was that in 1966, China carried out reforms which was the famous Chinese Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution initiated by the then Chinese leader Mao Zedong. This is not a good revolution. This means that knowledgeable people have suffered the most severe persecution. During the Cultural Revolution, the college entrance examination was canceled and many intellectuals were forced to settle and work in rural areas. This was the political and ideological persecution of the Chinese people at that time. My grandmother and mother were victims of this revolution. My grandmother was an ordinary housewife, and her life experience had a profound impact on me.

During the war, many people really liked boys. In 1894, Sun Yat-sen and others founded the revolutionary organization Xingzhonghui. This was the first starting point of the Kuomintang. The reason for this organization was to resist the dictatorship of the Qing Dynasty. After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Communist Party and the Kuomintang began a civil war. China was very poor at the time. Many families could not raise children, and more families really liked boys. My grandmother was born at that time. I heard from my grandmother that her parents were farmers, and they were very poor farmers. My grandmother was almost sent to someone's home when she was a baby because My grandmother had an older brother. My grandmother was old enough to go to school. Due to war and poverty, my grandmother never went to school. Instead, her brother went to school because he was a boy. In 1927, Mao Zedong proposed that the victory of the war depends on the peasants. Due to the importance of agricultural policies and the influence of girls not being taken seriously, the uneducated grandmother had to become a farmer, a female farmer.

 

After the civil war, affected by the "Great Leap Forward", my grandmother had seven children. Many people don't understand why grandmothers have so many children. There are two reasons. First, in 1958, the Chinese government proposed to increase the labor force and population to increase farming production and encourage people to have more children. This policy is called the "Great Leap Forward". Many people would say that maybe my grandfather liked the Chinese government, so he agreed whit this policy. The fact was that my grandfather really liked boys . My grandmother's second child was a boy. My grandfather thought it was not enough. My mother was the seventh child. After the Great Leap Forward passed, my grandfather and grandmother moved to Shenyang with their children. My grandfather worked in a factory. My grandmother took care of seven children at home because my grandmother never went to school.

The most serious effect was the Cultural Revolution. The Cultural Revolution began in 1966. My mother was born in 1968. The Cultural Revolution lasted for ten years. My mother experienced the Cultural Revolution. My mother only has a high school diploma. Although the Cultural Revolution stopped in 1978, it still had an impact in the following years. My grandfather told my mother that learning was useless for a girl, and that she could take over my grandfather's work when she was sixteen years old. My mother study time is not to read books, she slept at class. After graduating from junior high school, my mother stopped studying and took over her father’s job. She became a worker. After graduating from elementary or junior high school, not only my mother but also her sisters started to work. Everyone becomes a minimum wage worker. As time passed, China began to pay attention to knowledge and culture. The most common saying is that knowledge changes destiny and knowledge is power. My mother missed the best time to study. So she could only be a low-paid and low-educated worker. The work in the factory is very hard. I remember when I was in elementary school, my mother always got up early to go to work, and didn't come home until I went to bed. I put a full marks paper on the table and put the certificate on the photo wall of my house. I hope to tell my mother through my various formal and full marks that I will study hard and change my life.

When I was young, my grandmother told me all of these stories about my family and the country. I was born in 1992, and at this time, the Chinese government was paying more attention to knowledge and culture. Through my grandmother's experience, I realized the importance of opportunity and knowledge. When my mother’s friend suggested that I go abroad for better development, I agreed. I succeeded, and I seized the opportunity. After I came to the United States, I never asked my family for money again, because the money I earned from work was enough to support myself and improve my family. Before I came to the United States in 2011, my grandmother passed away. She didn't see the changes I brought to her family. All my efforts are for my grandmother and mother to live a better life. They have experienced much life, and everything they have experienced has affected my life and choices. 

 

Nicol Garcia

November 16, 2020

Final Essay

Starting A New Life

            I never thought that I could lose everything overnight, but I learned that a united family could start a new life. About ten years ago years, there was a conflict between the Colombian government and the guerrillas, who were a group of bad people. In the beginning, many people supported them because they wanted justice. Their purpose was to be noticed by the Colombian government and tried to change it; they disagreed with a lot of corruption in our government. However, after some time, their idea changed. They started doing horribles things like kidnapping, stealing, threatening, and even killing to make justice on their own. Little by little they take the power doing wrong and horrible things to society. For this reason, they always passed through those towns asking for a monthly or even a weekly fee, but one day my parents did not have the complete payment to give them. So, they refused to pay. Therefore, the guerrillas gave us twenty-four hours to leave the town, or else they would kill us. My parents called the police, but that was the worst. The guerrilla stole all our possessions, and we arrived at the capital, Bogota with nothing. The guerrillas took everything from us, our peace, economic stability, and our belongings, but we learned to be more united as a family to get through every problem.

One of the effects of this situation was that my family to leave our home and our small market. Time was short and everything happened very quickly, we were not prepared to go to another city. That is why my father hired a man to take our things to Bogotá. While my mother tried to sell everything in the supermarket, my father was looking for someone to buy the old car. We needed money to get into a new apartment in the capital. When night came, we collected some money. Then we were sad and scared. With nostalgia, we said goodbye to our friends, neighbors, the old car, the house, and our life in Rondon.

The second effect was the guerrillas stopped the truck that had our belongings, and they stole everything. When we arrived in Bogotá, we had to wait for the man who had our things. Hours later, he arrived with an empty truck. The guerrillas stopped him, and they asked for the owners of the pertinence. Besides, he did not want to answer, so the guerrillas pointed a gun at his head. He had no choice but to tell them the truth. He just looked at how these people took out our things, and he thought about how to tell us that we had nothing. Undoubtedly, we were in a very terrible situation, my family and I were desperate. When we arrived in Bogotá, my grandmother let us stay with her for a few days 

Consequently, my parents and I had to work together as a family to start a new beginning. Three months later, my father started to work, and we found a new apartment. In the new apartment we just had a small mattress where my parents and I slept. Little by little, we bought the necessary things like a stove, bed, and pots and pans. After a few months, we adapted to our new lifestyle. I entered a new school where I made many friends, and my parents got a good job. Even though life was getting better, I missed our town.

In conclusion, the guerrillas in Colombia changed many Colombian as well as my family. We had to leave our home, and the guerrillas stole everything we had. In addition, I learned that everything happens for a reason, and start a new life is not too bad. We started a better life in Bogota, and my parents got a better job. Besides, I learned if there is a problem in the family, it can be solved. We eventually move forward. Since all this happened, my family is more united, and now we work as a team.

 Cruz Selest Mifoundou Kengue 

November 2, 2020

Cause & effect 

Final draft

 

Battlefield of Life

 

Most Africans who decide to find shelter in other countries leave because of politics or living conditions. Twenty-three years ago, there was a conflict in Congo-Brazzaville between the current President and the ruling President. At that moment, the disagreement was between the Republic of Congo and the rebel group called "Ninja." Citing electoral fraud during the 1997 parliamentary elections, the resistance, also known as the Ninja, launched a civil war against the elected President DENIS SASSOU NGUESSO and his soldiers. The conflict started in the South of the Congo, leaving 2,000 people dead and many more displaced. President DENIS SASSOU NGUESSO fought back with huge missiles despite remaining in power without thinking about the population. As a result, People were fleeing all over the country without knowing where to go, and innocent people died in cruel conditions just because of power. My grandfather, a former colonel, had to send his first son to France two days before the war. Besides, my great-grandmother got killed in a forest in the middle of that war. My father's decision to go to France had a profound effect on my mother, childhood, and siblings. 

In the beginning, my mother was desperate to raise a child on her own. My mother was eighteen years old when she got pregnant. When she was nineteen, my grandparents sent my dad to France. She had to go to school and had to work on the weekends while looking after me. Moreover, my mother had never lost hope. She wanted to go back to school to finish her studies to get her diploma for a better life. For instance, I had to stay with my grandparents while my mother was working during the day and going to school at night. My mother could no longer trust my father's family after sending him to France. My grandparents were taking good care of me financially, but no one wanted to talk about my father when I asked about him. It had become evident for my mother that she was all on her own. However, At twenty-four, my mother had passed her medical school exams and started her internships in hospitals and clinics until she found a job. After ten years, my mother became an anesthesiologist and got married, but she never had any other children beside me. As my mother always says, where there's life, there's hope.

Consequently, it was difficult for me to live without a father. Because of my father, I felt abandoned and unimportant. My only father figure was my mother's father. When I was two years old, my mother's parents, my great-grandmother, my mother, and I had taken refuge in my grandmother's hometown when the rebel attacked the village and starting to shoot all over the town. As she fled into the forest, my elderly great-grandmother could not walk, and she was shot in the back. The circumstances had forced my family to flee and leave her body behind in that forest like a lifeless beast. Growing up, I had to face situations that had pushed me to realize that I did not have the chance to know my birth father at that time. All my classmates made fun of me for not having my dad in my life. However, after five years, my father had started to send us presents without any letters. He surely thought that should fill the emptiness of our lives. Specifically, on holidays, I was receiving gifts, we didn't celebrate in Congo. Despite his efforts, I preferred to believe in Santa rather than in the existence of my father.

Hence, living with my siblings was a strange experience at first. At ten, I met my father for the first time, and he had explained why he was sent to France at twenty-two years old, to prevent him from being sent to war because of his father's statue and why he could not contact us. In France, he had remarried and had two children with a French woman. Furthermore, the idea of going to France and met my siblings was terrifying but also existing. First, I afraid and did not want to accept that I had siblings who were not from my mother. I had refused to speak to them for months, which made them believe that I did not like them. Besides, I had a completely different education. For instance, my mother had taught me never to answer when someone older reproached me something. As for my little brother, he could not stand a reproach even when he came from his parents. Therefore, I was confused and had difficulty adjusting to my new life, so did my siblings.

To conclude, the civil war had a significant effect on my mother, siblings, and me through the years. He had been through tough times, and it had taught me to appreciate even the smallest family moments. Without my father, I've never lacked affection and love from those around me. I was too young to remember my experience during the civil war, and I barely pictured my great-grandmother's face. However, I know that the circumstances in which my great-grandmother died will always remain a trauma for my family. Although I had a difficult childhood, I was convinced that everything would end well. After all,  hope is the thing with feathers.

 

 

 

The Magic of Painting

Yanjing Chen

ESL INTG100

Cause and Effect Essay 

The Magic of Painting

In the song, The Story of The Spring, the singer sings about it was a spring in 1979. An old man painted a circle on the South China Sea. This circle called “Special Economic Zone” which means the Chinese government gave some special economic power to the cities in the circle. In addition, these cities are close to Hong Kong, and Macau. At that time, Hong Kong and Macau were more developed than most cities in Mainland China. Therefore, the government wanted the cities in Mainland China to getting better with help of Hongkong and Macau. In fact, it worked. My hometown Guangdong was the biggest winner because of the “Special Economic Zone”. It turned my hometown into a modern city, and it created a close relationship between Guangdong and Hongkong. For these reasons, this magical circle had a huge influence on my parents and me. 

           

After more than twenty years of economic development, my parents changed from farmers to workers, and I got a chance to see my parents every day. At first, my parents were similar to most people in my hometown. My parents were farmers, and they had a small lychee garden. Thus, my parents spent a lot of time working in the lychee garden. In the harvest season, they slept there. However, the lychee garden was messy, dirty and full of mosquitoes, so I had to live with my grandparents. Even though my grandparents loved me and took good care of me, I missed my parents every day. Fortunately, more and more businessmen opened factories in my small town because of the special economic powers, so my parents choose to work in a factory because the working hours were regular. They could pick me up from school, and they could sleep with me at home. Therefore, I came home and stayed with my parents.

               

Due to the “Special Economic Zone”, my parents were no longer in debt, and they did not have to worry about the cost of my school. Even though working as a farmer was hard, my family’s financial situation started to improve. However, my father made a huge mistake. He was addicted to gambling. He not only lost a lot of money, he also owed a lot of money. When I was young, I hated to go to school. My parents used to quarrel because they did not have enough money to pay for my school. Most of my classmates had two summer uniforms and two winter uniforms, but I bath barely had one. In the summer, it was horrible because the weather was humid in Guangdong. My uniform was difficult to dry, so I had to use a fan to blow my uniform all night. This was not a good memory for me. As a result, my parents tried to find a better job. Unlike factories, the income was not stable working at lychee garden, so my parents could not save more money without the harvest lychee seasons. Because a stable salary help my parents eventually pay off their debts, working in a factory was a good choice.

               

Because of the economic right, I realized my childhood dream that was to travel to Hong Kong. At that time, only Cantonese people could watch the Hong Kong channels on TV. For this reason, every Cantonese people had a special affection for Hong Kong. So do I. I grew up with Cantonese songs, Hong Kong movies, and TVB that is the general name for Hongkong TV series. Traveling to Hongkong was one of my dreams when I was a child. Besides, the “Special Economic Zone” let every Cantonese person travel to Hongkong only with an EXIT card. It just likes an ID card, and it was easy to use. For example, my Hong Kong dream came true in 2017. When I arrived at customs, I scanned my EXIT card. The workers would make sure I was not carrying any weapons. Then, I started my trip. I went to find the place mentioned in the Cantonese song, and I felt like I was in a movie scene.

               

In conclusion, this circle had a wonderful power because it brought my family together, it helped my parents financially, and made my dream come true. Now, Guangdong is one of the most prosperous cities in China, and it has the highest GDP of the country. I used to feel that the historical events were far away from me. Actually, I am a part of history. One of the historical events changed my life quietly, and the “Special Economic Zone” was the best example. 

Policy Blessing

        Many Chinese farmers benefited from China’s Reform and Opening-up policy which led by Deng Xiaoping to revive the Chinese economy. My uncle was a special one of those farmers. In 1985, China carried out many policies to promote the rural economy. There was a policy that looked for 500 workers in our hometown, Xinxian. This policy decided to provide some jobs for those lucky people because Xinxian was a poor city. My uncle was the oldest child at that time, so my grandfather recommended him to try the policy. Therefore, my uncle started a ten-year journey away from home, so he had to give up his studies. In the end, he succeeded and changed our family. The policy brought good luck to him, and he also brought luck to our family.

        When my uncle began his ten-year journey, he was about eighteen years old. Obviously, his journey was not easy because he needed to work hard and give up his education. My grandfather was a poor farmer, but he had one daughter and four sons. As the oldest child, my uncle had to work hard to support the family. My uncle also said that he really wanted to go to college, but my grandfather couldn’t offer to pay for his tuition. Although my uncle didn’t go to college, he didn’t stop studying. In his free time, he is usually fond of reading books and writing some articles. The 500 workers' policy let him work in many different big cities. There were a lot of interesting things shared in his articles, such as Beijing's flowers and Xi’an's mountains. I like to read his articles very much.

       Because of his hard work and his writings, he successfully went from a farmer to a boss. He has a better life now. He doesn’t have to worry about money, so his wife and children’s lives all are carefree. Compared with their old house, their new house is very big and clean. My aunt is satisfied with her lifestyle now. Every day she can take a walk in the nearby park and enjoy different kinds of flowers that she loves. My uncle regretted that he didn’t go to college. Therefore, he really tried his best to help his children to get a good education. His daughter finally graduated from the University of Hong Kong, and my uncle was very proud of her graduation.

       Apart from the two effects above, the good luck he brought to my family is the most important effect for me. With his help, my father, sister, and I had a chance to come to the United States. About six years ago, my father lost his job as a worker at Zhengzhou. Then he suggested that my father should try to go to the United States like he tried that policy. He asked his friends to help my father. In the end, my father passed his interview with my uncle’s blessing. My uncle also encouraged my sister and me to go to an American college, so we both agreed to come to the United States. I think my American dream will come true because of the good luck from my uncle.

       My uncle is the kind of person who just thinks about others. He was unfortunate in the past, but he got that policy’s blessing. For his family, he left his hometown. For my family, he asked many friends to help us. I am thankful for this policy which changed my unfortunate uncle to be lucky. My uncle could have a chance to fight for his future. Finally, he succeeded. Our family has a better life now.