Nguyen – Hello Everyone,
When reading Wing‘s fantastic blog post about her upbringing, I’ve decided to write about my childhood experiences. My family is an essential part of my upbringing and they help augmented my curiosity in learning new knowledge such as the importance of physical activity and academics. My parents escaped from Vietnam in 1986 as refugees during the Vietnam War. My parents met in Vancouver and moved to Toronto later on. I am forever grateful that Canada has kindly welcomed my parents and has given them a safe haven to raise a family.
As the firstborn child raised in Toronto, my family and I faced terrible struggles and hardships; particularly with regard to employment as work opportunities for immigrants was indeed limited. Although both of my parents had earned a university education, their education was not accredited in the Canadian system. My parents worked long hours to provide both my brother and I an opportunity for a better life. In particular, the regular swimming and skating lesson my parents enrolled me in strongly shaped my character at a young age. Both activities may be accredited with catapulting my personality from a very shy individual to an outgoing and confident person. Now, I attribute physical activity to be the reason behind my improved social skills, confidence, and my ongoing interest in physical health and learning. As a result of my upbringing I have developed into an autodidact with diverse talents as a musician, graphic designer, athlete, philanthropist, and Master’s candidate.
I remember when my mom took me and my brother to school (grade 1 and kindergarten respectively) and she shielded us from the blazing snow storm (like the picture of Dr.Strange on left)
However, my past experiences help shaped my personality which brings forth my constant curiosity to pursue new knowledge will be a crucial skill that I may apply towards my success in the field of research.
All I am saying is … Thanks Mom and Dad!