A Filial Yankee

     Not too many stories satisfy both my interest in ancient Chinese philosophy and my allegiance to the New York Yankees.  But this piece in today's NYT, about the formidable Yankee pitcher, Chien-Ming Wang (or Wang Chien-Ming for purists), fits the bill.

     Wang is from Taiwan and has imbibed some elements of Chinese culture.  It seems he was adopted but he did not discover this until he had to file papers for a baseball competition:

“We were going out to a competition and needed our personal documents,” Wang said, explaining that meant the names, relationships and birthdates of family members. “When I got my documents, I learned who my biological parents were. My parents didn’t tell me.”

Wang found out then that his biological father was the man he knew as his uncle, Ping-Yin Wang. Wang’s parents had no children of their own and offered to raise him. They later had a daughter, Hsiu-Wen Wang, who is two years younger.

    Such arrangements are not uncommon at all.  What is not mentioned in the article, but which I bet is the case, is that his biological father most likely already had at least one son, and heir, and felt secure that his family name would be carried on in the next generation, as per Confucian practice.  Gaining an heir by adoption, as Wang's sociological parents did, is perfectly respectable and acceptable in Chinese culture.

     And it seems like the parents who raised him did a good job; Wang has a clear sense of filial responsibility:

“I felt I had to work even harder in order to help two sets of parents,” he said, adding later, “Most of my money I send home to let my parents manage. The rest I use for living expenses in America.”

In the off-season, Wang and his wife, Chia-Ling, live with the parents who raised him. He loves his mother’s cooking, he said, but the overriding reason is cultural.

His parents, who manufactured metal products like spoons and lunch boxes, have been retired for about 10 years. In Taiwan, Wang explained, it is customary for sons to stay at home and take care of their parents. Long after learning his personal background, Wang remains very close with the parents who raised him.

“In Taiwan there’s a saying: ‘Raising a child is more important than giving birth. Raising a child is greater,’ ” Wang said.

 I haven't heard that saying before.  Does anyone know it in Chinese?  Whatever the case, I think the sentiment is correct: having a child is much more than giving birth.  The real work comes after, for years and years.

    So, three cheers for the filial Yankee, Wang Chien-Ming!

Comments

[Ko]

養育之恩重於生育之恩.
Ya.

[Sam]

Ko,
Thanks!

[nickwong]

I don't think the words have a traditional chinese term(maybe I donot read enough books),although it's very sensible and correct,in classical chinese about filial piety,the usual sayings are "孝顺"、"身体发肤受之父母"etc.
so the saying maybe just a saying among common people(or "老百姓") and I also suspect it's affacted by modern thoughts already.

[hui]

What Wang said about biological and sociological parents may come from Taiwanese. It can be literally translated into "You may put aside the one who gave birth to you; the efforts of the one who raises you are greater than "tien"--the sky above.