My parents came from the same city, Fuzhou, in the Fujian province of China. They both came in 1993 and met in 1996. They brought their religion with them. They were both strict Buddhists when they arrived and still are today. Scattered throughout my house are various trinkets and altars that are important in Buddhism. The most important part was the altar mounted to the wall in the living room. This altar contains a statue of Buddha, various fruit offerings, sticks of incense, and red light bulbs that are never turned off, no matter what, always illuminating the room. Every night, without fail, when they come home from work they would always stand in front of the altar, light new sticks of incense, and pray. Buddhism is a very large and important part of their lives, and I believe that they would stick by it, even if they were persecuted. Despite all the religious paraphernalia and the strict beliefs of my parents, they have never really pressured me or my brother to follow their religion. They believe that we would come to our own conclusions on our faith and would support us, no matter what we believe in.

– Andrew Wu

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