Family is Family

We've really been amazed at what has been happening. Within two weeks we met some amazing new people through our "English evenings," and even met some family members we didn't know we had (see Becca's post here). Suddenly, we found ourselves quite busy.

One unique thing about Chinese Families is that here, Family is Family. If someone meets another Relative, they don't immediately ask, "What part of the family do you belong to?"  Instead, they just know they come from the same Ancestor, and His name is at the top of every part of the family. Unfortunately, this has become a problem in the States, because not all of the family gets along. They disagree about some things and, as a result, some parts of the family don't associate with or talk to other parts of the family. But this is not the case in China. Family is a high priority for all of the family members, and they easily accept each other for who they are.
It's also unfortunate that many Americans try to share thier family problems with young, Chinese families. They pass on their baggage and cause a lot of confusion for the Chinese families.

I know that some of the Chinese families I've met aren't perfect, or even do things like my family back home. But I don't believe it's my job to air dirty laundry in China and teach different parts of families to dislike, not get along with, or even hate each other. If they do have problems or don't have everything right, it's our job to help them figure it out or even, "show them the way more perfectly" (my personal paraphrase of a quote from a brother of mine long ago).

It's amazing to me that the families in China get along so well and the only ones who don't can thank some Westerner for sowing discord in their family. In China, Family is Family, and I'm thankful for that.