27 Signs You Were Raised By Asian Immigrant Parents
Dear friends,
This is really funny. When I was growing with my parents in Howell, New Jersey some of these ’embarrassing’ events did apply. LOL. Humour is great! Laugh and let go of what you cannot change.
Enjoy this and have a good day!!
Tsem Rinpoche
Specifically East Asian (Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, etc.)
1. Before prom, your parents had stern words for your date:
2. On vacations, your parents took photos like this:
You laughed, rolled your eyes, but years later you realize you should’ve taken more photos of them.
3. They did this at the fruit aisle:
4. And ordered hot water at restaurants.
5. They coached you on starving before a buffet and gorging only on ribeye and lobsters. Seafood-phobes were deadweight in buffet olympics.
6. When the bill came, older relatives fought, i.e. yelled and screamed in the middle of the restaurant, for the right to pay.
7. Some distant cousin or family friend’s son/daughter is always being trotted out as a paragon of perfection that you’re falling short of.
8. When you got sick, your parents fed you bitter herbal brews, or sent you to weird bruising traditional treatments:
It didn’t actually hurt, but you were always afraid someone would report you to Child Services when you changed for gym.
9. Your mom’s always convinced it’s too cold without a jacket outside.
And you would never, ever, leave the fan on when you’re sleeping.
10. Your relatives stuffed you with awesome food. And they didn’t hesitate to comment when your waistline ballooned.
Expert food trolls, those Asian aunts.
11. You ate savory breakfasts littered with jarred pickles. Rice was always involved.
12. When they visited you, they always crashed on some relative’s couch, or kicked you out of your own bed.
They’re convinced hotels were a ripoff.
13. The remote control is wrapped in plastic wrap.
14. For a household that was low on luxury, there were a lot of foot massagers, back massagers, massage hammers and massage accessories.
15. Your mom put fluffy dried pork into your sandwiches, and your friends said it looked like hair.
Scarred for life.
16. Your fridge was packed with jars whose labels never matched the food within.
You also saved every jar to store pickled stuff.
17. You only had bowls. No plates.
18. The dishwasher was only used as a drying rack.
19. In the drawers were free napkins, cups, utensils, and mini shampoo bottles they’ve hoarded from hotels.
Also shower caps, though no one in your family has ever used one before.
20. Saturdays, you studied your parents’ native tongues. Sundays, you practiced an instrument. Your dad was rad if he let you pick the guitar.
21. Your friends were always wondering why your parents are arguing. That’s just how they speak.
22. Everyone was your Aunt or Uncle but you had no idea if they were actually related to you.
Also your parents call each other Mom and Dad instead of their first names. In fact you didn’t even know adults had first names.
23. You know what durians smell like.
24. People always assume that you’re related to another Lee/Chung/Nguyen/Hong/Kim that they know.
25. Nothing will stop your aunts from trying to set you up with royal bores with Ivy League degrees.
“Mom, we have nothing in common.” “But she’s a doctor from Harvard!”
26. Every year, you got money in red envelopes on New Year’s.
27. Finally: your parents gave you everything they had and spent nothing on themselves. They know firsthand the dangers of the world, and their work isn’t done until they see you settled and safe.
Their clothes are twenty years old, but they sent you to college. They may be too stoic to say “I love you” but you know they do, and you wouldn’t change anything! Thanks Mom and Dad!
Source: http://www.buzzfeed.com/daozers/27-signs-you-were-raised-by-asian-immigrant-parents
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Thanks for the article sharing, it’s funny yet it’s true. Most on the picture tells the actual play which I experience. I had a great time laughing to the pictures.
Lol!!!!…these pics and captions are really funny that i don’t know how to describe in words. Really made my day and weekend ahead. Thank you very much Rinpoche and blog team for these funnies! 🙂
Guilty, guilty, yep, yes, uh huh, still have that habit, …
These pictures are really funny but true. Some are applicable to me even now. Lol.
Picture 6 – is so true among our communities. We always want to be the one who pay. Happened most of the time during family lunches or dinner.
Picture 27 – I think Asian generally do not express their love in words but through their actions.
This post is hilarious! The most applicable ones for me are #2, #3 (I still do this!), #5 (it just makes sense!), #6 (too true!), #10 (they commented on the weight as a substitute for saying ‘hello’), #15 (delicious!), #19 (the clear shower caps though!!!), #22 (so handy and lazy if you don’t want to remember people’s names hehehe), #23 (one word: DELICIOUS!) and #26 (the only perk of Chinese New Year hahaha)…figure it out LOL!
This is so funny. Why are the parents holding guns diratly at there son
This is so funny . I find this weird that why are the parents holding guns? I wonder if the puppet show was funny to the kids. I think that they were bored and they have nothing to do.
Dear Rinpoche, most of them are true. I have seen a few images in this post that are from a few youtube videos. They swear quite a lot but their ideas are really good. Sometimes my family would all be busy and can’t or wouldn’t talk with me. So I ended up watching all these funny youtubers. And yes, my parents do bring back shampoo bottles when they come back from hotels. Hehe!
Haha, really funny. Thanks Rinpoche for the sharing.
Actually there are some scenario above really happen in my real life.
As a young generation, i think i will look at myself either i have this “feature” or not.
But the thing that concern me the most is asian usually too attached to family especially our children.
As a buddhist, even family, relationship also can be one of the attachments. Hope that many asian parents will realize that and be more open minded.
I am of Native American descent and found myself laughing and nodding to many of these. Step mom: Don’t eat that, you’ll get fat! Aunts, eat this, you’re too skinny!! And getting thrown out of my room so my cousins could have the bed. Oh yeah.
Hahaha! This is really funny yet true! A few of them did actually happened o me, like the plastic wrapped remote controls, dishwasher being used as a container to dry plates and cutleries and the watermelon thingy etc..hehe..fun memories. Thank You for sharing Rinpoche, I enjoyed reading through all of them.
Wow! this is so true.
I have seen some of these kind of habit in some of my friends.
Some of these photos are really funny and some of them are also embarrassing.
Only Asian people will do this kind of things. But sometimes normal people also do it.
Sometimes when we had family dinners my aunts and uncles would fight to pay the bill.
Another thing that my relatives do is that they always want to keep the used jars of food to store other things ,sometimes went we went to some restaurants they will give you some hot water in plastic bowls where they would put the sauce plate,cutlery’s and tea cups in and then you would just wipe it.
I don’t know my uncle and aunts name .
omg ahhahaha! this is all so funny and true! 🙂 this really made my day, i wanna see more things like this Rinpoche 🙂 thank you so much for sharing this with us, Rinpoche really has a good sense of humor.
Even though my parents has shown only few of these signs, I can see all this in most parents. Even that small bits has been passed on. Can’t imagine if they committed most of these acts. LOL.
Hahaha… this is so weirdly true on way or another, there is some truth in all of this. I think the most common one is this; “Everyone was your Aunt or Uncle but you had no idea if they were actually related to you.”
I had never even thought it as weird till my mat salleh, kaui low friends asked me why and I was like “Oh yeah why do we call everyone auntie or uncle?” But I guess this is how we show respect to the elders… like all sentient beings are your mothers so treat them with love and respect? Somehow the Asian culture and values makes us more warm, polite and morally to a certain extend. I enjoyed reading this funny post 🙂
Haha, very funny and trying to think whether the situation did ever occur in my family, Some did. I love the dried pork sandwiches until I became vegetarian. Now they have the vegetarian alternative. It is special to be Asian. Hehe……
Dear Rinpoche,
The article is funny, yet true in certain extend. the pictures were simply adorable…
and the last part was so true. My parents will give up everything for me..and i will gladly do so for them. even for my children too. Since i am Asian and i am brought up this way 😉
Being my spiritual dad / guru / guide, i will gladly give up my life for Rinpoche’s to be longer, so you can benefit more people in more ways than i can.
Thank you Rinpoche.
Regards,
Edwin
This is a very funny article because it is so true! And it’s not just Asian immigrants but Asians in Asia!! Asians are an eccentric lot but these little habits are being lost in the younger generation more so because people are becoming more affluent, unlike our parent’s time – especially post war when things were scarce. Our parents do love us though many Asian parents would never say so. My dad’s version of “i love you” is “come I’ll take you shopping”!
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this funny but really true article! These pictures really brings back so much memory…….. although these is funny but our parents used their way to love and take care of us!! We should appreciate them, love them and take care of them while they still with us.!!!
My grand ma was nothing Asian, but she had expensive embroided sofas that were wrapped in plastic, I remember the awful sound they made… I only ever saw the embroidery through the transparent plastic, never otherwise…
I had to laugh at the episode when Asian would order hot water in restaurants, that’d be such an awkward thing to request in a western environment…
My mum visited me in Malaysia a few times. The first time, she actually scolded the waiter in a restaurant because he took my empty plate away before she had finished hers, and she felt this was very rude while the waiter thought it was the right thing to do… I had some explaining to do to both the waiter and my mum that day…
Most of them are quite true! It is really funny indeed. Haha… I guessed many Asian families have similar ways of living their lives. The one about bed sharing happens every time relatives drop by visiting. My family the few ones living far away from their parents and relatives. It became a sort of place for accommodating them because my relatives wanted to visit Kuala Lumpur. The plastic wrapping of remote control did happen when we were younger. The remote control is harder to use because of infra signal for controlling the TV is obstruct by the layer of plastic. 🙂
OMG! This is soooooo farnee…. My parents mark check on many of the points on this list. This is sooo funny and they are not really immigrant but I guess all Asian parents are still steadfast in their asian values and yet open and are really cool parents in their own way. Its only when I am all grown up that I understand and appreciate my parents for what they have done for me.
It would be cool if parents today support/care for this kids in the same way and also give them Dharma. Allow their freedom to think and encourage them to explore spirituality (well, not force-feed them). It’s not an easy balance but it can be done. The best way is to show by example of course. No kid would follow any hypocritical examples. Kids really reflect their parents and upbringing.
Haha! OMB it is actually quite true, most of it… perhaps I’m not too Asian? Whatever it is, I’m proud to be an Asian lolx. Everyone’s an Aunt and Uncle… that’s so true hehehe, eventhough we’re not related they always end up calling our friend’s mother/father aunt/uncle.
Thank You Rinpoche for sharing this light articles. Honestly,I did most of them, at least 50%. I extremely agreed on item#27, this how my parents did on me.
These are not only funny but extremely true to the asian stereotype and the parent stereotype. However, my mother is out of the norm I guess. No one tries to guess I am related to any Wangs as that would just sound embarrassing. Great share! Thanks.
Haha, this is funny. These pictures brings back many memory. I have seen my parents and relative shouting and fighting for the bill at restaurant. The waiter also don’t know which person he should hand the bill over to. Many remote control is also wrapped in plastic wrap in my home. My parents said it like this so it wont get spoil so easily. These bright up my day. Thank you for sharing Rinpoche.
wow, everything is so true and funny. but our parents do love us and we must never forget that, think about what they give us like a roof above your heads, your food you eat everyday, your education, your entertainment and their love and hard work all for you. so if you are going to argue with your parents think about them and just love them.
LOL… Truthly Asian…
Dear Rinpoche, many of us especially Asian are being educate by our parents since young. So this education system make us the 27 signs.
Hopefully we may learn and practice more Dharma especially start from our ownself then only can educate our next generation for a better and peace life style…
Yes this is indeed funny but oh so true! It reminds me also of an email a friend sent me ::
If you are Chinese …
At the restaurant
1 — You will dip your chopsticks in hot water, along with the soup spoon, and the tea cups
2 — Almost always the table cloth is red/pink — sometimes, it is a plastic sheet
3 — Fighting to pay the bill — telling the restaurant boss that the other person’s money is fake
this is just hilarious, thanks for sharing Rinpoche.
Awesome post, made me have chuckles while reading it.
Love you Mum & Dad!! 🙂
Hahaha, these are all so hilariously accurate. I think asian cultures are the only one who call all elder men and women uncle and aunties. Resding some of these ‘signs’ really make me miss our reunions back home for Chinese New Years, you would always see these signs appearing here and there. Its just a thought to smile about. Thank you for sharing this Rinpoche. It made me smile.
OMG! These are so true to the tee. This article is super funny, realistic and LOL. I have to share this on FB. The photos depict real lives in typical Asian families but I can see the Generation X, Y or Z are already breaking out of this norm now in this new age. Thank you for sharing, Rinpoche.
These are funny yet so true. Not only the remote control is wrapped in plastic, sometimes plastic covers on new cars are also not removed to prevent the seats from getting dirty. Time has changed but some culture will stay on to the next generation.
Yes what Rinpoche wrote on this article is really true hahaha! I call every single of my mother or father’s friend untie and uncle. And my mother will always argue with my untie (real untie) when it comes to paying the bill. So funny!
When read on the note 27, it make me felt like crying and touching…that’s is how my parents taking care on me..
Dear Rinpoche, this is a funny article! I could relate to a few signs although my parents aren’t exactly immigrants. Hehe Only the children of the Asian families could understand the signs. Lol!
But jokes aside, whatever our parents antics may be, it is for our benefits.. All parents love their children and wants only the best for their children. So we should be thankful and repay their kindness by treating them with love and compassion, taking care of them, and better yet, the most wonderful gift of all, Dharma!
This is one of the reasons why I am vegetarian. Because of the countless reincarnation, the animals’ meat we are going to consume could be the meat of our kind mothers’ incarnation in our previous lives. I definitely would not eat my kind mother’s flesh!
Thank you dear daddy and mummy for raising me and nurturing me to who I am today.. I love you two! =D
Thank you very much for sharing, Rinpoche!
This is really Asian are doing, I think only Asian did these
6. When the bill came, older relatives fought, i.e. yelled and screamed in the middle of the restaurant, for the right to pay…
This is really a speechless moment, when I’m paying at the counter,
my friend’s father would shout across the restaurant and say don’t take his money, it’s fake one… hahaha, it can be quite embarrassed.
These pictures brings back so much memory, but now lesser and lesser people doing this already, time changes, and younger people are learning the culture from other countries. Nothing stays the same, even cultures like this who stays for so many years, it will still change as time passes.
Hahahaha… The pictures are soooo funny! No matter how it may be true or embarrassing, I am thankful and grateful to have my family as my family. And the best part is… my mum still wrap the remote control in plastic and my aunts and uncles still crash at my house whenever they feel like it! lol
LOL! Quite true. Some of us have picked up some of those signs from our parents/grandparents and could be passing them down to our children. And the legacy lives on.
Hahaha..this whole thing is really accurate and funny! Especially the part about having the remote controls wrapped in the plastic bags, i used to see them around the house when I was living in Penang. Until now, I still do not know why..
Thank You for sharing Rinpoche.
Love, beatrix.
Cute Rinpoche! make me appreciate my parents more
Wow, everything is so true, well except for the remote control wrapped in plastics. Thanks for bringing the smile at the memories. The missing one is when the whole family crammed into one hotel room during holidays.
Well, everything is true including the remote controls. My mum bought a clear plastic pouch that fits onto the remote in much the same way as the shrink wrap in this picture. Anyway, I couldn’t resist revisiting this post because it is so true and funny. The only thing my parents didn’t do was to matchmake me with some girl from an Ivy League College. They know the futility of that one for me. I am going to post this on social media again for good laughs!