My family is a big fan of keeping records of our history, even during turbulent times. Opening the family book "吳氏書記" or "Chronicles of the Wu Family," the oldest record was from the early 20th century when my great grandfather left Canton for Sichuan province. It is said that before he left, his mother, or my great-great-grandmother, gave him a pendant of white jadeite. Shaped in a smooth circle, it represents my great grandfather's desire for smooth travel. It also has a name too. Its name is "恆瑞結白 "or the "Gathering White on the Everlasting Fortune." Gathering Greenery refers to the jade. The jade bears the auspicious wish of everlasting fortune. My grandfather was given this pendant when he was born, and he bore good wishes even when his hometown, the city of Chongqing, was under siege. He survived, and he passed on this pendant to my father. My father carried on the risk-taker tradition and participated in the 1989 Democracy Movement in China. And now, this pendant was passed down to me when I left China. My family hoped that it would provide good fortune as it did for three generations. I will continue the tradition of passing down the everlasting fortune to the next generation.

– ZW

Relationship:  Im/migrant who arrived as a child Im/migrant who arrived as a child