Smeared Type

Jian Ping (2nd right) with IWA Members, photo taken by Susan Hanes

  It was in late 2008 when I first received an e-mail from Kuri Shea, Chair of the Asian Culture Group of the International Women Associates (IWA), an organization founded 31 years ago for women who were either born in foreign countries or worked abroad or did (doing) international business. A mutual friend mentioned my book Mulberry Child to Kuri and she invited me to talk the Asian Culture Group. We’ve maintained contact since then, and today, March 24, was the date we selected for the talk. I took the day off from work and was eager to meet Kuri and her group.   

Heather hosted the meeting at her residency, a spacious, high-ceilinged apartment on the 1^st floor of a well maintained building at Hyde Park. Kuri had informed me that Heather came from Britain and was very interested in Asian cultures. I thought I was early, but was pleasantly surprised to see more than a dozen women in the room as I walked through the door. More, trays of fruits and pastries had covered the counters in the kitchen. The setting was warm and cozy.

Kuri, a Japanese descent, and I shook hands. Her brilliant smile and friendly remark made me feel I was meeting an old friend. Kuri wasted no time to introduce me to Marilyn Clancy, President of IWA, Heather, our hostess, Juling from Taiwan, and a number of others. As I greeted each of them, I realized the majority of the women present were not Asians, but Westerners who were interested in Asian cultures. Interestingly, half a dozen of them were wearing the wide-sleeve, elegant kimonos and they looked natural and beautiful in them. 

Nearly everyone raised her hand when I asked if they had heard of the Cultural Revolution. Seeing this, I optioned to focus on my family experiences during this chaotic era and skipped the introduction on recent Chinese history. Soon I found myself in deep discussions with them about the metaphor of mulberry trees and the resilience of people, the physical abuse rampant during the Cultural Revolution, and the changes taking place in China today. An hour and a half quickly flew by.

We continued to chat after the group session and I was pleased to hear they found my talk informative.

“I hope my accent didn’t hinder you from understanding me,” I said, conscious of my soft voice and Chinese accent.

“Not at all,” one woman said firmly. “You are clear and eloquent,” she moved closer. “You should always keep a touch of that accent. It has character,” she continued.

In the end, Marilyn presented me with book on Chicago titled Our Chicago. She wrote the text for the book. “Thank you for sharing your story with us,” she said. “Please share Chicago with your family next time you visit China.”  

I didn’t know the background of each of the women present, but I felt their genuine interest and open-mindedness—they certainly lived up to the name of their organization.  

With the click of a camera, we registered our shared moment and connection in a frame.  

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China. www.mulberrychild.com

I rushed back to Chicago from a business trip yesterday, Feb. 17, to participate in a men’s book group to discuss about Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China. I had joined discussions in several women’s book groups before, but had never appeared in an exclusive men’s group. I was anxious to meet the guys, wondering what their take would be on a memoir.

My friend Hank introduced me to this group. They meet regularly, rotating the hosting of the group meeting at its members’ homes. Last night, the discussion took place at Bill’s home in Barrington, northwest of Chicago. In the cozy setting of his living room, with ample supplies of drinks and snacks, a dozen men in their fifties and above and I sat in a circle on sofas and armchairs and engaged in heated discussions soon after the introduction. Hank surprised me by distributing a well organized list of events addressed in my book to every one. It placed the year in chronological order in the middle, with major happening in my family listed on the left and China’s political movements on the left. I wished I had thought of such a simple yet clear layout when I was working on the book!

I listened and took notes as each man took his turn making comments. I thought they’d be more focused on political issues vs. the incidents happened to my family. I was genuinely touched when half of the men marveled at the strength of Nainai, my grandmother, who was illiterate, walked with bound feet, but was defiant when faced with political persecution. One member did state he enjoyed reading the historical information presented in the book much more. I nodded to him, fully understood his perspective, and later, when I had a chance to respond to the questions raised, I explained to him and the group my deliberate approach: to focus on the family story, and via which, to show the devastating impact of the Cultural Revolution.

I truly enjoyed their comments on my father’s unwavering devotion to the Communist Party, their comparison of the political movements in China with those in Russia and Germany and their discussion about the changes in China today and the challenges China faces in the economic slowdown, especially in the export segment.

As I joined them, providing more historical information on China, I felt I learned just as much from them.

Jian Ping, author of Mulberry Child: A Memoir of China. www.mulberrychild.com