Showing Love

I've always wanted to say this but never got the chance. till now.

If I hvta choose one thing I dislike about the typical Asian/chinese norms, it'd be the fact that the showing of affection to family members seemed to be a taboo of sorts.

Now, don't argue with me first. Your family might be the touchy-feely type, then good for you. But ask around, I'm sure many of your chinese frenz would be able to tell you that they don't feel comfortable doing physical bonding with their parents.

Meaning that "hugs, kisses (on the face of coz, duh) and I love you's" are big no-nos. There you have it, glaring evidence that a lot of chinese families can't or just do not know how to start showing affection to each other physically.

I know that the parents definitely love their children, but somehow chinese/Asian parents seemed to prefer to show their love thru everyday stuff or not at all. Not that this is wrong or anything but sometimes teenagers who are lost (figurately) just need someone to tell them they are loved, directly face-to-face. That is why a lot of teens get cheated when they seek for love outside the family. Those people who tell them they love them but harbour nothing but bad intentions. This is how the poor impressionable teens get caught in this tangled web, in their quest to be loved.

Don't you wonder why lovers can throw "I love you's" all around but saying that to your parent or child is taboo? Weird, isn't it? And sometimes, it's strange why we're more polite to our frenz/strangers than our own family members. We take the latter for granted sometimes, don't you think? Until the time comes we see them less and less, then we'll start to appreciate them more. Pardon me for this cliche phrase but Absence does make the heart fonder.

June was one of the worst months in my life. It was nothing but study study study. And lots of s.t.r.e.s.s. Thank god for my parents who gave me emotional support. Of coz, dear dear, you helped a lot too! =) If not, I think by now you'd see me waving happily behind bars with a crooked smile in some psychiatric ward. hahaha.

I used to wish that my parents would give me substantial evidence of their love thru words or direct actions. But they never did. [yeah yeah, I was a confused teenager then]

Until I decided "hey why don't I don't start the ball rolling first?" and it took me A LOT of courage for me to give them hugs before I set out for the big city. Dad was a bit awkward while Mum was natural. lol. Now, I'm definitely going to give them hugs everytime I set out from home! hehe. I also make it a point to show them my appreciation in little ways nowadays. Like praising mum's cooking [and tell you what, there is nothing - absolutely nothing - that beats home cooking!] or giving Dad an easy time by making sure the siblings are quiet etc etc.

Erm... yeah, I still haven't said those 3 words to them yet. Still working on it. :P

Anyway, you get my point, don't you? So why don't you try these tips out yourself! It's going to take a lot of courage (hey I've been there!) but the rewards you get is definitely worth-it. Trust me.

So pluck that courage out of you and give your parents a hug or say those 3 words today!

PS: How come I feel my last sentence is like some sort of commercial's slogan or smtg? lol.