This photo was taken a few years ago at an uncle's wedding. I'm the tallest one above. My mom and dad are on the far left, my sisters are Tudo, Tam, and Niki (in from left to right). In the middle is my Grandmother and my brother in law. It is one of the few recent family photos we have, and my dad has been clamoring to get another complete family photo as soon as all of us are home again. Everytime I come home from college, he reminds me that we have to get that photo taken. Perhaps my dad is growing old and sentimental. Or perhaps he wants something to remind him of how far our family has come and grown over the years in America. I'm not sure...but for me, I do recognize how much our lives have changed, not only in the way family members grow up but how our family life has changed as well over the years. I've always knew our family was different from other families. I knew we came from a different land. We've crossed oceans and continents; languages and social class. This was what I knew, but really, I did not really know. I knew we were part of the "boat people" but I did not really know what they were about. I remember growing up in America, but I don't know how our family managed...

I do not ownership of my parent's past, and the past that I know is a collage of my own memories, other people's stories, and my own research into books. Some memories and stories are mine, some I heard from family members. This photessay will be a journey through the photos from Vietnam and of our new life in America. It is a story of my family through change and transition. It is a story of a family that, as my dad put it, found "life admist death."