My father was born in Guangdong before World WarII. My mother was born in Tahiti and as it was the custom in those days, my grandfather sent his wife and his children back to China so the children could have a Chinese education. My parents are Hakka from Huiyang. Except for my eldest sister, who was born in China, I and my other 3 sisters and 2 brothers were born in Surinam. Among ourselves, we spoke Dutch, which is the official language in Surinam, but to my parents we had to speak Chinese, of course. They did very well obliging us to speak Chinese, since there are overseas-born Chinese who blame their parents for not having taught them Chinese. They taught us Chinese manners we had to know and which we applied very well in life.

The Chinese community was not very big, and it became much smaller shortly before the independence of Surinam in 1975. Many Chinese emigrated to Holland, where they were assured of a rather safe future. Like the majority, my father owned a grocery store. We in the grocery store had to listen to insults from the blacks and East Indians, who called us thieves and told us to go back to China. Only when I grew older did I know how to answer back.

They also used to mock us speaking Chinese, but this did not affect us in our habit of speaking Chinese. I know this mockery is what stops children from speaking Chinese. After lunch on special days, such as New Year's Day, there used to be lion dances. The students of the Chinese school used to perform dancing and singing. I liked those days when the Chinese school existed, because it was like our second home, to which we always used to go on Sundays. I still remember the song "Chinese school is our home, we students should return home..."

What I regret now is that I did not continue studying Chinese. I only did it a little on my own when I was older. In Surinam we were all Hakka, so we only knew how to speak Hakka. New arrivals from Hong Kong spoke Cantonese among themselves, se we understood some Cantonese. Mandarin I learned from the movies and songs. In recent years new mainland immigrants have arrived in Surinam from other parts of China. They are not Hakka and speak only Mandarin. This means that Surinam does not belong to Hakkas anymore. Now Mandarin is being taught in a new school. This is very good, because Mandarin should be spoken by all Chinese, so they will not have to communicate in a non-Chinese language. Imagine for example Cantonese and Hakka-speaking people having to communicate in English. Why should we if there is a Chinese language we all could use? I used to work in a hotel where I met foreigners who spoke to me in Mandarin. Fortunately I had always loved Mandarin and had done my best to speak a little, so I did not have to say "I'm sorry, I don't speak Mandarin."

I have been in Brazil since 1985. I have given birth to twin girls and a boy. Since I became an adult, I had always intended to give my children only a Chinese name. At home the children and I speak Hakka, as I want them to be able to communicate with their grandmother and aunties and uncles in Surinam, Holland and Hong Kong. Also speaking Hakka would facilitate learning Mandarin.

Last week I saw the movie "The Joy Luck Club," from which I learned many things. There is one episode on which I have to comment, as I have always wanted to call the attention of all overseas-born Chinese to this. When the mother of the American guy, the boyfriend of Lisa Lu's daughter in the movie, refers to her as being Vietnamese, she replies she is not Vietnamese, she is American. One thing we should learn is that no matter where we were born, we are still Chinese.

Over here people ask me if I am Japanese, because the majority of Orientals here are Japanese, and I tell them I am Chinese or Chinese-Surinamese. Imagine how confused they would be if I told them I was Surinamese. If people ask me if I am Japanese, they certainly want to know my roots and not my nationality!

I hope that very soon we Chinese will be able to communicate in one language, Mandarin, which is one of the most beautiful languages in the world!