The Invisible Man

"He did not normally live at home with us.  I was told that he worked overseas.  Maybe in the military.  I am not sure." she recounted.

"My father only visited us periodically.  When he came home, however, it was a big deal.  In our village, there would be days of celebrations on end.  Everybody came to greet him.  There would be Chinese opera troupes performing in town during his stay.  It was like a festival.

Although I was a little girl, since I was the oldest child, they would dress me up in bright-colored silk suits for little boys, and put a little hat on my head.  My father liked to carry me over his shoulders as we  strolled into town.  I must be very young, then.  I remember he said to me in a gentle voice, "Hey, hold on to daddy's head, but don't cover daddy's eyes.  I can't see where we are going!'  I loved it when my father was home.  Everything was better when he was home.

One time, my mom gave me a bowl of cold rice soup and some pickle vegetables.  I cried and refused to eat.  My father heard me cry.  He came over and asked mom what was wrong.  Mom told him that I was being fussy.  My father squatted down to my level and asked me what I wanted.  'I don't want pickles.  I want to eat pork!' I told my daddy.  Mom very quickly pointed out that meat was reserved for adults.  Pickles were good enough for a little child.  But my father smiled and said, 'How much can she eat anyways?  Let her have it.'  He climbed on a stool to fetch the big piece of dried pork inside the basket hanging on the wall.  He cut a few slices of pork and put it in my bowl.  'Be good.  Eat your meal now,' he said to me as he wiped my tears.  I was so happy.  My daddy loved me very much."

She let out a sigh as she continued.  "I was too young to know what really happened.  One day, my mother brought me along to meet an uncle.  That uncle gave me a fish hanging from a piece of string as a present.  The fish was so big that its tail was dragging on the ground even though I held my hand up.  

Not long after that, my mother moved in with that uncle.  I later learnt that my father died and my mom remarried.  I and my little sister could not go with mom because her new husband did not want his bride's daughters from a previous marriage.  Had we been boys, perhaps they would take us on.  But we were girls.  Nobody wanted girls.  

I am my father's oldest child.  By tradition, they had to allow me to keep my family name when I was given to a new family.  I have no idea where they sent my little sister.  Maybe to an orphanage?  Who knows if she survived?  I can't even look for her because I don't know her name.  Who knows if she kept her birth name, even if she is still alive . . . 

My happiest memories from my childhood are those days when my father was around.  After his passing, everything went downhill.  I drifted from household to household.  Poverty, hunger, beating and mistreatment of all sorts.  That was my youth."

That was my mother recounting her memories of her beloved father.  

Mama was so young when my grandfather died that she cannot even remember his face.  Given her generation, she does not have a picture of him.  In fact, she does not even know his name.  

Recently, I did an online search with the name of Mama's native village.  To my surprise, I managed to find some information about this tiny little village.  Indeed, most of the villagers share the same family name as my grandfather, and they are supposed to be the descendants of a famous general from Tang Dynasty.  There are still fourteen ancestral temples in the village.  And that gives me an idea.

My mother was very excited when I told her the information I found about her home town.  Then I told her about my plan:

"Given the festivities when grandpa came home, I suspect he must have been some kind of prominent figure.  If he was a descendent from the village, there is a good chance his name was recorded in the family register.  Although we don't know his name, but we know your name and grandma's name.  That would be our keys for searching for his name.  If we are lucky, they might even have additional information about him and his family.  Would you be interested in finding out who your father was?"

After a long moment of silence, Mama replied, "Can you really look up such things on the computer?  The modern technology is such an amazing thing.  You know, a big regret in my life is that I don't remember what my father looked like.  He loved me so much, but I don't even know what his name is.  So, yes, yes, I'd love to find out about my daddy.  Even if  all we can get is his name."

I don't need a crystal ball.  I know where I will be going once COVID-19 is over.