"China Pearl" (excerpt)
by Julie Jia-Ye Greene
I look at my grandparents across the pink tablecloth and try to think of something to say to these relatives whom I haven’t seen in nearly a decade. My Cantonese is pretty much limited to “I have this,” “I want that,” “I eat this.” I am silent, nervous. I am thankful for the loud chatter from the other tables in the restaurant that fills the silence at ours.
Kau-mo picks up the blue and white teapot. She stands and reaches across the table to pour for my grandmother, my grandfather, my other aunt, me, and finally herself. I mentally scold myself for not paying attention to the state of everyone’s tea. I am the youngest at the table and should have poured.
Yi-ma breaks the silence with a burst of uncontrollable giggles. She gestures in my direction. “How can it be that someone who looks like this could have come from people who look like that?!” she says, motioning toward my grandparents.