Joong strengthened my bond with my popo (grandmother) and me. She immigrated to New York from Hong Kong in the nineties with her 3 kids (my mom included) and her husband. She had wanted a better life for herself and her family, often working several jobs. Growing up, she was the one who took care of me when my mother and father worked day to night to pay for our mortgage. While our relationship wasn’t distant, I found myself feeling out of place. There were times when she would ask me to do something or start a conversation, but my Cantonese was limited. Though she was not fluent in English, she expressed her love through food. Every year on a certain day, she would make these big batches of joong for the Dragon Boat Festival, which is celebrated in China for Qu Yuan’s patriotism and contributions. His death from plunging himself into the river caused many people to throw joong into the river to keep the fishes from eating his body. Therefore, joong was always a must-have traditional food in celebrating this festival, and each time it was amazing seeing my popo stuff them with pork belly, peanuts, and salted duck egg yolk in sticky rice wrapped in bamboo leaves. Watching her wrap and make joong, I felt we had bonded more and I had learned more about my culture.

– Stephanie Chung

Relationship:  Im/migrant Im/migrant