...Roots...s

A long long time ago, back in my teens, I remember reading this best selling book aptly titled
"ROOTS" (eye catching book cover too ) which chronicled a few generations of an african
family enslaved in the old West .What made it memorable for me was the determination of each
descendant family head in preaching and practising the virtues of one remaining faithful to his
heritage regardless of where one is living ,forcibly (as described in the book ) or by choice (as what
it is for most of us today ) ...
Thus ,sometimes I do feel sad when my peers tell me stories of their kids wanting to uproot themselves
and build a nest (reside ) somewhere in a "developed" western country..I,for one have nothing against
the next generation pursuing a tertiary education and post that, staying on to pursue a career perhaps due
 to better  prospects (which itself is a subjective matter ) ,better work exposure or simply higher pay..That
said some of these youngsters begin to get carried away and somehow figure out the only way to happiness
or contentment is to stay put in the foreign country for good...Granted it is a personal choice for many but
from a parent viewpoint I can't help feeling that "good prospects" aside there are many asian cultures and values that may get lost in the process...My own brother in law told me his 2 grandchildren who are now
residing in UK actually cried when told they are chinese.!! And both their parents are Malaysian
Chinese ! The young parents apparently seem proud that their kids are  more like"ang mohs "  How sad can one get ...On a broader sense some
of these kids also  miss out on the usual  festivals like the Lunar New Year celebrations and a host of other festivals representing the many races in Malaysia...bear in mind in most if not all western countries these
all important occasions which help all of us stay true to our culture and heritage are not even represented by a public
holiday or even mentioned in the media...imagine going to work as usual on the first day of Chinese New
Year! That being the case "lesser ' festivals from Moon cake to Winter
Solstice festivals and their origins and significance are completely and permanently forgotten...addressing
your grandparents as grandpa and grandma seem completely normal when a more appropriate Yeh Yeh
and Mah Mah / kung kung and por por would better depict asian chinese culture...These examples are just but the tip of the iceberg
if one chooses to forget where we come from in the first instance...

My younger son will be embarking on his tertiary education in Australia soon ...So far I have never failed to
inculcate what I believe are certain core cultural values that he should remember wherever he may be ...go
,experience life and gain better exposure to other cultures but never to forget one's roots....I hope and I believe he will not ...