“Mai” from Vietnam

"They shot at our boat as they chased us."

 

Mai was only six or seven when she fled Vietnam. She doesn’t remember a time without war in her homeland. Her parents, unable to escape with her, made the painful choice to send her and her older sister ahead, trusting that a better future would await them in America. She remembers the journey vividly — her mother told her they were going for a swim, but when they got to the beach, she found her brother-in-law waiting by a boat. They hid in the engine room, and that night, a tiny fishing boat took them out to sea and transferred them onto another vessel. Her father had warned them before they left that their escape plan had been leaked, and as they were sailing away, Mai heard bullets as their boat was chased by patrolling soldiers.

 

They drifted for four days before finally arriving on an uninhabited Malaysian island. Fortunately, the people Mai was travelling with secured funding from an American church to travel to the US.

 

In the US, Mai lived with her sister and sixteen relatives in a house. She reminisced, saying, “It was a chaotic but fun time”. At first, it was tough for her because she couldn’t speak the language and was teased at school for being a refugee. Mai still remembers how her older cousins would go to neighbouring towns, buy grapes at a low price, bag them, and give them to her to sell door to door. 

 

Mai ended up becoming an interior designer. She reflected that this was her calling. Having to grow up without her parents, she wasn’t told what to do to be successful, so she just did what she loved. Now, when she looks back, Mai  remembers the challenges, calamity and struggle of her childhood, but also appreciates the strength that she gained.