At 50 years old, my father said "I'm sorry" for the first time. A story of faith, reconciliation, and generational healing between a Dragon and a Rooster.
I read this post a few months ago (before I joined Substack) and it brought me to tears as I reflected on my own relationship with my parents, one of whom is a first-generation Asian immigrant. Indeed, the experience of growing up in poverty and having a single mother who had to work incredibly hard caused them to never hear the words "I'm sorry" and therefore never said those words to me either. But praise God that He gave you the humility to be the first to apologize, and that He has restored your relationship with your father! I pray that one day I would be able to take that step in reconciliation too, you have inspired me to have hope in such bleak times!
Hi Izzy! Lovely to meet you here and thank you for reading and sharing how these words spoke to you. It means a lot that our stories can inspire others to pursue reconciliation in what is often seen as an 'impossible' situation. I often think that as second-gen we have been given the privileges and tools to grow in emotional intelligence, and we can use what we know to serve the first generation and to help them heal. It's not an easy task and reconciliation is never guaranteed, but with God's help I know that anything is possible. Saying a quick prayer for you and your parents.
That is a great way to look at it, I never thought about it that way, that we can serve the first generation with the opportunities for emotional growth we have received. Thank you for the wisdom and for your prayers!
I read this post a few months ago (before I joined Substack) and it brought me to tears as I reflected on my own relationship with my parents, one of whom is a first-generation Asian immigrant. Indeed, the experience of growing up in poverty and having a single mother who had to work incredibly hard caused them to never hear the words "I'm sorry" and therefore never said those words to me either. But praise God that He gave you the humility to be the first to apologize, and that He has restored your relationship with your father! I pray that one day I would be able to take that step in reconciliation too, you have inspired me to have hope in such bleak times!
Hi Izzy! Lovely to meet you here and thank you for reading and sharing how these words spoke to you. It means a lot that our stories can inspire others to pursue reconciliation in what is often seen as an 'impossible' situation. I often think that as second-gen we have been given the privileges and tools to grow in emotional intelligence, and we can use what we know to serve the first generation and to help them heal. It's not an easy task and reconciliation is never guaranteed, but with God's help I know that anything is possible. Saying a quick prayer for you and your parents.
That is a great way to look at it, I never thought about it that way, that we can serve the first generation with the opportunities for emotional growth we have received. Thank you for the wisdom and for your prayers!