Taiwan 台湾
I was fortunate enough to visit the homeland in December 2019, right before the discovery of the Coronavirus. My grandmother had passed away and my family and I flew back to pay our respects and to see family—my dad is the only one of his family to come to the US. The last time I had been back prior to this was 10 years ago.
Being back to the motherland was surreal, healing, humbling. Despite the political turmoil Taiwan finds itself in, the people and the culture left me feeling like I was home. Did I ever even leave Taiwan? I remember the sour, stinky smell of 臭豆腐 cooking in the storefront outside of my aunt and uncle's home. The feeling of the tropical sun shining on the sweat rolling down my temples. The adrenaline rush when walking through the chaotic and festive night markets. That orgasmic feeling when I ate 露肉饭 and 牛肉汤面 like it was my first time (for the record, I am only vegetarian in the US... anywhere else is fair game).
I think about how Taiwanese values are instilled in the very streets and infrastructure that make Taiwan Taiwan: community, compassion, respect, dignity. I think about the values instilled in me reflected in a distant homeland. My grandmother passed away but I still feel her presence coursing through my nerves; her legacy lives on through the large (and ever growing) family line. A powerful woman, a humble woman, a selfless woman.
