2008 Chua Recap

-Chua Holiday Letter 2008-

Merry Christmas everyone! Or, to be more politically correct, Happy Holidays! Given the controversy surrounding the Washington State Capitol’s supposedly “anti-religion” display—which included, among many other things, a “Holiday tree,” which sparked protests from religious organizations and one particular television personality, I inferred that political correctness was an overriding theme of the season. This year was a groundbreaking year. The “glass ceilings” broken however, do not only apply to the current president-elect. Some family firsts include the first New Orleans trip (which included first taste of alligator and first swamp tour), and our first real Holiday tree (which is 2 feet tall, and will be planted outside after the holiday season).

Hunter...
Yes, it is driver’s permit time at the Chua household, and hair has been growing white at an alarming rate these days, specifically my dad’s. Those of us in the driver’s seat never tire to hear words like “tangential,” or commentaries from an engineer’s perspective about the most precise way to park at a 90-degree angle. When not behind the wheel, my dad is outdoors, overseeing the filling and leveling of our pool or honing his gardening skills. According to his deal with my mom, he takes care of the outdoors while she takes care of the indoors. Additionally, my dad has started playing the piano, and has steadily improved, even surprising my mom with a special birthday gift: playing “Happy Birthday” for her when she got out of bed. This rare romantic gesture, however, was not my dad’s highlight of the year, nor were any of his “practical jokes;” rather, his happiest moments were reuniting with foster family and college friends from Purdue and Cornell, some of whom he had not seen in decades. After seeing them, he talked non-stop about going back for another visit—with us in tow.

Joyce...
Vegan carrot cake has flooded our kitchen for the last few weeks since Halloween, when it made its debut. Along with her entry into the baking world, my mom has made Chinese squash/radish cake, carrot-raisin salad, gumbo, Brazilian black bean stew and paella—impressing us with her creative use of root vegetables and her true-to-form interpretations of ethnic food. When she is not making nutritious meals, or shuttling us to various after school commitments, my mom has been educating (and entertaining) herself thanks to the YouTube school of education. She has since learned several cost-cutting methods--which, along with Kei's "no tardy" report has made her a very fulfilled mother.

Megan…
I consider this year’s random but significant accomplishments as: (1) cleaning and cooking an ox tongue and (2) reducing my injury count. The large amount of college essays and applications I have had to write and fill out were no match for the bumpy white things on the ox tongue, which took me an hour to cut off with a paring knife, but it was for a good cause—Spanish-themed Thanksgiving. As for my injury count, unlike last year’s injury report (which included falling down and getting hit with a car door), my injury report this year only lists an incident where a 45-pound weight fell on my toe in my weight training class. It was, like most of my “accidents,” self-inflicted. Maybe—it was subconsciously a way to get out of PE for two weeks? On a more serious note, I’ve “expanded my range of knowledge” this year. My fantasy football project for marketing taught me how to watch football, my summer in Manila taught me about microfinancing, and my birthday gift of an Ameritrade account gave me the valuable experience of losing money in the stock market. Overall…it was a good year!

Mindy…
This summer, Mindy touched and reached into open cadavers while on a summer program in Chicago for high school students considering a career in the medical profession. Body organs, including the brain, heart and liver were also passed around. Although many participants fainted or threw up, my sister did not, and found the whole experience fun and enlightening. This year has also been an SAT year for Mindy. She has decided to declare war on the SAT—studying diligently and taking practice tests regularly. Like her war on the SAT’s, Mindy’s relationship with IBeatyou.com is also filled with much fervor. Although she used to be in the top 100 users over the summer among the likes of Jessica Alba, Steve Nash and Baron Davis, the recent influx of people has lowered her high standing. Oh well. While one may think that she is now stressing out with this self-inflicted workload, Mindy still finds a way to finish her homework, watch Ugly Betty, and sleep before 10 every day, which, in a world of energy drinks and sleepless teenagers—is amazing. Hats off to her.

Kei…
I am happy to report that Kei has inherited my flute, which has been left un-played since I stopped taking flute lessons two years ago. Among the three of us, Kei has the most packed schedule. Every week, she has Math Tuesdays, Mandarin and Catechism Wednesdays, Musical Thursdays, and Girl Scout Fridays (once a month). Even with her crowded schedule, Kei still finds plenty of time to undertake her projects—science experiments, “inventions,” art pieces and short piano compositions. She also has two pet beetles, who live in a covered jar and eat red peppers, and in her own words, “stand on top of each other.” Nonetheless, Kei still dreams of someday having a pet golden retriever whom she plans to name Buddy, after watching several Air Bud movies.

As I write this Holiday letter, I am constantly reminded of the pressing need for optimism in these bleak times. The cynical undertones of the news media, as well as the uncertain global economy provoke overwhelming feelings of anxiety and helplessness—such that we forget that the most destructive chaos lives only in our minds. Although the world seems to be at odds with us, we must not become blinded by our fears; instead, we must stop to think about what we do have. What we do have is you…all of you. Thank you everyone for being a part of our lives.

Happy Holidays! Love from: Hunter, Joyce, Megan, Mindy and Kei