Bloodlines

Bloodlines.... Are they really that important?

Right now as I'm typing form my phone which is a scapegoat for my social awkwardness that I've tweeted about earlier today. I am at an awkward lunch with long long long long lost relatives from China. Like I've said no one has any idea how they found us. My father and his siblings take this situation as something of great importance. However I view this situation in a different light. I hardly know these people, never met then before until today, we are fluent in different languages. Worlds apart basically. With my deceased grandfather (15 years) is the only connection, hanging by a thread. If not for that, we would have not known the existence of each other and remain strangers. Maybe that's how the most people become strangers, lost connections after a generation has lost touch.

To me this lunch is nothing more than a formality, a recipe for awkward conversation and shy smiles. Which brings me back to the question, ARE BLOODLINES REALLY THAT IMPORTANT? I suppose if you're of royal blood, and it's necessary to fight for your butt on that throne. Then, the value of bloodlines would be extremely significant . However this won't apply for a otherwise common average girl like me.

My grandparents, like many other grandparents in Singapore, left their home town either in China or Malaysia to start a new life in Singapore. There must be a reason besides the part of money constrain that we aren't introduced to them during their life time. Everyone has their reasons for leaving their pass behind. Of course they would never talk of it, their past and secrets are taken to the grave with them. For all we know, this lunch might be a platform for them to dig out the past that my grandfather have left behind. The ugly past probably (I'm not being stereo typical or speculating anything). Obviously, this surreal "reunion" is qualified for novel material that it gives me a bad hunch.

Enough of me pouring my thoughts over here. Let's just say I've never been more glad that they speak Canto instead of Chinese. Canto is something that I can speak better in. Though if you think about it, it should have been Chinese that I'm better at, having had almost 10 years of 2nd language eduction in school. I guess nurturing starts at home. We spoke more canto than Chinese most of the time.

xoxo Shan