Kimberly Chang

A hero to me is someone whose courage and strength has caused others to look up to them with awe and admiration. They give people who may not have it as well the hope that things can get better.

It is important to have a hero because you must have an idol to look up to. They present you with a goal to reach: achieve greatness to their level. Whether you are an athlete looking up to a professional, or someone in a tough situation admiring someone who came from nothing, having a hero gives people that encouragement to continue on in life.

Kimberly went on in life to graduate from Yale. (belladermmedspa.com)

Kimberly Chang portrays the characteristics of a hero in many ways. In the prologue she talks about seeing a little girl sitting in a bridal shop next to her mother working. She says, "I know how it will go: she already spends all of her time after school at the shop, helping with small tasks like sorting beads; later, she will learn to sew by hand and then on the machines until, finally, she can take over some of the embroidery and finishing work, and then she too will spend her days and weekends bent over the unending yards of fabric." (2) This is the way she had to grow up and being older now doesn't want this child to grow up that way. This is the first way she is a hero. Kimberly and her mother came to America with nothing so she worked hard in school and ended up becoming a doctor, therefore, bringing them up from nothing. She worked hard all throughout school and ended getting a full ride scholarship to Yale. Then she ended up getting pregnant. She went to the office to get an abortion but changed her mind when she said this, "In that moment, I started to love him, Matt's child. And mine forever." (288) Kimberly was heroic in this situation because she put the child before herself and saved its life. Years later she has the opportunity to tell Matt that she ended up keeping the child, but changes her mind because he is now happily married with kids and she doesn't want to burden him with this news. She displays the characteristics of a hero again when she says, "I break the sacred bonds. May you live happy, forever, Close to the one you love." (290) Kimberly Chang is the main hero in the book because she brought her and her mother up from nothing, she saved her child's life by not getting an abortion even though it would have made her life easier, and she kept her secret from Matt so that he could go on living a happy life from his family.

Kimberly Chang should be inducted into a hero hall of fame for several reasons. First of all, she left Hong Kong to move to America even though she barely knew any English. Her and her mother made about five dollars an hour doing extremely strenuous work and most of that money went to paying back her aunt for paying to bring them to America. By the end of the book she had gone to Yale and then on to Harvard medical school to become a successful doctor and did more then just support her family. She gave them a happy and fulfilling life with luxuries she never dreamed of before. Second of all, she left Matt with a guilt free conscious by not telling him that they had a child. She could have told him and made him choose between helping her and leaving his wife or the other way around. She was brave enough to raise him on her own. Kimberly Chang is a hero for many reasons.

Interview with Kimberly Chang:
-Hello Kimberly thank you for joining us today.
-It's my pleasure.
-My first question is what was it like to have to work in the factory and make next to nothing?
-It was probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my entire life. The hours were long and the work was difficult, but I couldn't abandon my mother when she needed me.
-I can't even imagine how hard that was for you. How did you balance it with school? I understand you went to Harrison Prep, a very prestigious school.
-I would often have to stay up till late hours of the night studying or finishing my homework. I was constantly tired, but it finally paid off in the end.
-What does it feel like now to know that you achieved everything you hoped to?
-The only thing I wanted out of life was to make a good life for my family and now we live in a good home, with all the necessities plus more. This is more than I ever hoped for.
-When you found out you were accepted to Yale on full scholarship what were you feeling?
-I felt like all of my hard work over the years was finally paying off. Every extra hour studying or extra book I read seemed like it was worthwhile.
-You said that shortly after finding out about Yale, you also found out that you were pregnant with your son Jason. What was the first thing that popped into your head?
-My future. I felt like it was all gone. That nothing was going to work and that I had ruined my life in that one moment.
-And later?
-After I went to see my first ultra sound I immediately changed my mind. I loved Jason more that I had ever loved anything in my entire life. Suddenly my future wasn't my first priority, he was.
-So what did you do after all of this?
-I postponed Yale for a year and took care of James. I'm so grateful I had my mother to help me throughout it all.
-How did you get by after you both quit your jobs at the factory?
-We both worked from home for a beading company that paid decently. It was enough to get us by until I could go to college and get a better paying job.
-What was the hardest time in your life?
-When my mother and I first came to America. Neither of us knew much English and we had almost no money at all. We had to work in my Aunt's factory to pay back our debt to her since she paid to bring us to America.
-Who is your hero in life?
-One of my heroes is Oprah Winfrey. Her upbringing wasn't the same as mine, but she also brought herself up from nothing and made something of herself.
-Thank you so much for talking to me Kimberly it's been a pleasure to meet you.
-No, thank you.