Crossing the Mekong

3

Faye grew up with six siblings and another two siblings she never met. Muey was the oldest. Being kind, gentle, and patient, she had the qualities needed to be an older sister. She never raised her voice at others and was a mellow woman. Meuy grew up to be a mother of two boys and six grandchildren.

Nai was the second oldest and was the boss of the family. Her high commanding voice can instantly be heard if you step into their house. She was known as the girl that wanted things her way, but if you listen to her she would treat anybody nicely. Nai became the mother of seven kids. The first four, Cheng Nai, Meuy Nai, Kao, and Brian, from her first husband and the next three, Chris, Diana, and Alex, from her second husband. She is also a grandmother to three kids from her first child, Cheng Nai.

Ton and Fahm are the two siblings Faye never met. Faye's father explained to her that her brother, Ton, died from a disease. He said that Ton had a high fever one morning and since they lived in a village they were far from a hospital. But by the time they got to a hospital Ton had died.

Fahm also died by a disease. She was known as the one-year-old girl you could instantly fall in love with. Faye's mother told her that Fahm's cute face attracted anybody. One day after a long day working in the crop fields, Fahm and her cousin found a dead squirrel and brought it home as food for themselves. Fahm died from food poisoning a couple of days later, but her older cousin wasn't affected.

Two years later Faye was born. She worked in the fields by the time she knew how to walk with her siblings. But once they were done working, Faye would go on to her own adventures. She would make her own fishing poles out of bamboo sticks and fish for food. She became independent when she snuck out from the refugee camp in Thailand to make more money for herself. Her tough demeanor and witty name calling made her able to fight back bullies. Faye has lived a rough life but she has managed to raise two daughters along the way.

Coi was born next. She was the most intelligent out of her family. Once they immigrated to America she easily understood the American education. Besides learning English, she also learned some Spanish. She easily assimilated because she was talkative and friendly. Later, Coi became a mother of two boys Gamil and Karim.

Liew was born as the youngest sister and the black sheep. She never worked and only played all day. Her stories were extravagant with lies that oozed out of her mouth. She would get in trouble for the cost of wanted attention. She now has four kids, Vera, Valon, Symphony, and Kaynione and a grandchild.

Chai is the only living boy, the youngest overall, and has his birth certificate. Out of all of his sisters, he knows his exact birthday because he was born in a refugee camp in Thailand. When his mother took the U.S citizen test and, passed he was automatically a U.S citizen at age 16. When he was young he was spoiled because he was the only boy in this Asian family. Now he's a hardworking uncle to 17 kids, doesn't have his own children, and an assistant manager to an Asian market in Portland, Oregon.