I am extremely honored today to speak to you not only as a guest speaker, but as a fellow college student, and fellow Chinese-American.  I thank all of you for my being here tonight, especially Kimmie, who first suggested the idea of a student guest speaker over a professor.  I want to be real to you tonight, to really inspire everyone in this room to take great pride in our Asian-American identity.  I want to break boundaries tonight even if it means giving a chunk of my personal story away.  Because you guys are worth it!!  .

So let me ask you, why, why do I feel like we as Asian-Americans are not reflecting the greatness of our culture?  We are much more than just a recognized skin tone, hard worker, good student, and a means to bring honor to our families.  Don’t you feel like we’ve been through countless unique personal triumphs that go beyond the recognition of a typical “good student” certificate?  Some of us have reached those high expectations of our parents, who we know deserve to have the utmost respect.

Any of you plan to move to another country where the people will be so different, the culture absolutely foreign? Everything that you have heretofore sought for comfort will change.  Heck, you have no idea what to expect from this America.  All you’ve heard is that it is the land of better opportunities.  You also know that there is some discrimination against your culture, from the way you’ve been treated in history, from building railroads to reaction from World War II.  And you think about your plans over and over and over, and finally you gather up all your courage to leave for this country.  What’s the worst that could happen?  The thought of your children growing up in a different country brings an ambivalence of fear and hope.

When my parents left for this country, they felt this way.  But you know what, they never even told me this important part of their life!  It was only this past summer when I started looking for my Asian-American identity that I realized how brave and loving they really are!  Our parents meant for the best!  How many of you can relate to what I’m talking about?  If you are still questioning your parents’ intentions, at least know this much – that they loved you beyond belief to make it all the way here, halfway around the world!

And then comes our story – the Asian-American experience.  How many of you, like me, were ashamed of being called Chinese, Japanese, Chinese Japanese in school?  Even if you’re not sensitive to those comments, hearing those comments at least ring a question of desperation, right?  How many of you have sought meaning to your lives through religion or spiritual systems?  You see, we’re all different – we come from similar backgrounds, but react to our backgrounds differently.

My experience was so extreme that I had to seek counseling, take a year off from school, even write a book about it.  Yes, not a poem, not an essay, nor a paper, but a two-hundred page book as a form of catharsis.  In the end, I took enough pride in my experiences that I can now proudly publish it as a means to not only inform countless Asian-Americans and others about my story, but as a means to bring honor to my culture.

Have you ever felt so much pressure you wanted to run away?  Was your sister a National Spelling Bee winner or your father an alumni of MIT’s school of nuclear engineering?  Whether or not our personal experiences are similar, we’ve all had to make the adjustment at some point or another.  And still do.

When I came to college, even though I was no longer physically tied to my family in South Florida, I was still very much emotionally tied to the expectations of them.  I wanted so badly to continue reaching their high expectations, which were for me to find a practical and respectful position in society – basically to do something that would bring much honor to them and myself.

But I was so undecided about what I wanted to do.  And I looked innocently, like all of you, for the most convenient answer to a hard question.  I’ll be a doctor, it’s practical, and an Asian thing to do.  I’ll definitely have something stable to rely on the rest of my life.  My parents will no longer need to worry about me, right?  But the following year I found my admiration for Yoyo Ma.  And then I knew I didn’t want to be premed anymore.  But how was I going to get over my parents’ reactions to my dreams?  Only you my fellow Asian classmates can understand that.

I spent weeks and weeks working out in my mind how I was going to tell them.  And when I finally got the nerve to tell them, it was a terrible terrible moment.  Even now, I’m sure they worry about my future as a musician, but through this heart-breaking process, they have learned as much as I have that we are much more than an impressive resume, good daughter and son – we are people with real hearts.  And we should take what we learn from our experiences and share them with our children.

Every Asian-American can Find their Identity By Being Themselves
1. Being true to heart – Be yourself
2. Confronting and confirming their – reconcile w/ your parents
      3.   Never forgetting – keep teaching

You are wonderful.  I am so proud of what you’ve done.  My story is like yours, and it’s in my vulnerability as a fellow Chinese-American that I tell you– we are the reserved, quiet group of UF still somewhat uncertain about who we are.

A friend of a friend– took Calculus II in 9th grade, won national chess club competitions, etc. – but couldn’t get into Harvard b/c he was boring.  A very few of us have been successful, I encourage you to leave your mark not only as an American leader but someone who is exciting, emulate not only great scholars, but the great entertainers.  Experience everything to the fullest – abundant life is God’s chief source of love.  I pray that just as He helped me affirm my identity in Him as a strong follower of Christ, and helped me find my identity as an Asian-American, He would help do the same for you.

Today we stand on the threshold of not only being great Americans, but also great Asian-Americans, and here’s where it gets exciting – is that we will never forget that we are asian-Americans.  Our behavior and physique will always remind our culture that we are their brave ancestors.  We are the phenomenal group of people raised in a very different way in a very different country who are slowly beginning to build up a very special identity because of our unique backgrounds.

So what’s next?  Are we to be typical American college students who disregard our heritage and just blindly conform to the American culture?  Of course not, but where do we find a balance between the two?  When does freedom come, after we are through with our education?  Or when we have found the perfect career?  I have questioned why I want a doctorate in music.  Is it b/c I’m Asian?

What I realized is that we can teach the young through our Asian-American perspectives.  When I obtain my doctorate, I have an opportunity to teach old and young people.  Everything I say and do will have an Asian flair – everything I say and do will have an Asian flair –

Be wise how you live the rest of our lives.  Won’t we all be faced w/ tremendous choices, not the least of which is, Does it make a difference if I marry an Asian? Does it matter that I stand here today proud of who I am but most of all because I am a part of you and this group and all that we’ve achieved b/c we’ll look back some day, and history will remember us as the strong ones that overcame the odds with very little experience or history to turn to.
I am driven to compile a collection of our experiences as the largest generation of Chinese kids raised by parents from a different country AND growing up in America!!  After doing so, I want to publish it so that countless thousands of young Chinese-Americans will know what it was like for us, their ancestors, to adjust from the Asian culture to the American culture.  I encourage everyone to share whatever experiences they’ve been through, good and/or bad, in terms of adjusting to the Asian-American culture.  I want to hear all of your stories, get to know each and every one of you, hear your thoughts.

On this night we remember that we as Asian-Americans will go on and on , and as you celebrate the night, we celebrate with them.  We affirm here tonight that we can take great pride in our identity.  My success is your success.  Who we make of ourselves now is the legacy we will leave – become a world leader!
We have a LOT to be proud of, let’s stand up and give ourselves a strong round of applause!!

Happy Chinese New Year!!!