Traveling to a Better Future In 1975, Khmer Rouge, a communist party, gained control of Cambodia. This event marked the start of my great-grandmother’s long journey to America. Under their rule, intellectuals and those who spoke languages other than Cambodian were killed. As a child, my great-grandmother had gone to a Chinese school, since she and her parents valued education. There, she learned math, how to read and write, and much more. Her parents had also taught her Cantonese as well (they were Chinese). So, years later, when the Khmer Rouge came, to keep her family and herself from being killed, she had to hide the fact that she had gone to school and could speak Cantonese. Having to hide her knowledge didn’t keep her from teaching others, …show more content…
The dove represents love, gentleness, kindness, hope, and of course, peace. The reasons for these meanings lead back to different religions and mythology. For example, in Greek and Roman mythology, Aphrodite/Venus, the goddess of love, is depicted with doves flying around her. Because of this, doves symbolize love. Another example is in Christian religion, where after the world is flooded, the dove flies back to Noah with a birch branch, symbolizing that there is hope from them, since it’s proof of land. Also, in early Christian art, doves were used to show peace in the soul. The dove represents many aspects of my great-grandmother’s story. One aspect is when my great-grandmother was loving. She loved her kids so much, she risked her life to educate them so they could lead better futures. Later, she also hoped that she could make it to America to live a better life with her family. When she accomplished her goal of getting to America, she felt peaceful. As a result, her feelings of love, hope, and peace were represented by the …show more content…
She also traveled to Thailand multiple times in order to get to America. The journey she went through showed her intelligence, curiosity, perseverance, strength, hope, love, and much more. My great-grandmother’s story will stay with me forever to remind me of what my great-grandmother accomplished and how, if not for her, I wouldn’t even be in America and I wouldn't have as many rights and privileges. Her story will also be a reminder to me of the importance of being curious, working hard, having hope, and making wise choices. The story of her journey will also push me to work hard when things are difficult because her story shows that anyone could get through everything if they work hard enough and keep