I Wrote this Article in My Childhood Bedroom

I’m sitting here on a queen size bed in my parents’ house as I’m writing this post.

Decades of memories and items litter the bedroom.

• books ranging from art to engineering

• an old laptop that ceased to function long ago

• stacks of CD’s that I curated as librarian of the anime club in college

The bed itself is nearly as old as I am as it’s the one that my parents slept in when I was a child.

Each time I return to their house, I’m flooded by nostalgia and reminded of the fundamental fact that I am creating a digital heirloom to capture this sensation for my own children.

Here are six things about me that stem from my upbringing.

1. Passion for content creation

To date, I’ve posted thousands of short form content, hundreds of videos, and dozens of articles.

These are the leaves to the tree.

When I trace back to the roots, this comes from putting together game guides as a kid.

(BTW, I’m a PC gamer, and that’s a part of me that will never change.)

It’s what brought me to writing, and I have an entire YouTube channel dedicated to sharing how to complete one game.

2. Teaching and mentorship

Throughout my life, I’ve taught everything from martial arts to math to music.

Now, I regularly train technicians on how to run tests that I develop at work, and I teach Chinese to middle school-aged kids every weekend as well.

I never thought too hard about it, but children and adults repeatedly tell me that I’m a good teacher because I don’t do it “like other teachers”.

It’s because of my background both in academia and in the arts. I always try to explain concepts from one area in terms of the other.

Silos are meant to store grain, not to stifle education.

3. Creativity and imagination

I used to think that I wasn’t creative at all.

The reason for this? Most of my accomplishments in my life are based on execution based on a template.

• I performed music based on the score provided to me.

• I rehearsed choreography taught by other dancers.

• I practiced lines from the works of Shakespeare.

What I completely forgot about were the flip side when I was the one creating:

• I wrote my own musical score for an a cappella group in college.

• I choreographed dances and coordinated performances at multiple venues.

• I was the fight choreographer for a version of “Romeo and Juliet” set in the Edo Period of Japan.

In all those instances, I created from scratch.

Now, I’m creating a digital heirloom as I learn how to leverage my skillsets from a lifetime of exploration.

Nothing learned is ever wasted effort.

4. Acts of service

This is my love language.

All I need are words of affirmation to keep going.

• It’s why I’ve written every single night for the past few years.

• It’s why I am involved in my children’s lives and their activities.

• It’s why I keep to the rule in my household that how it looked in the morning is how it should look before I go to sleep. No excuses.

Whether you’re a parent, a teacher, or an employee, your every selfless action extends comes back to you tenfold in fulfillment and purpose.

Give more. Get more.

5. Versatility and consistency

This is a piece of feedback that I constantly get from my manager, my late Tai Chi master, and my community across social media.

Whenever I ask “what am I good at?”, the term “everything” gets thrown around initially before digging deeper and realizing that it’s not true.

It’s just that I’m relentlessly consistent.

I have a natural knack for ignoring “limbic friction”, and I execute no matter the circumstance.

It’s a double-edged sword, but it’s worth learning to wield with care.

6. Attention to detail and immersive work ethic

Ok, this one may be due to some mental condition that borders on OCD.

I hate dirty environments, and I have one wife, two boys, two dogs, and four cats who need care every single day.

It’s a disaster when I come home from work, and it drives both my wife and me nuts.

As it’s a health hazard to leave things to grow mold, I roll up my sleeves and dive in.

• Dishes aren’t going to clean themselves.

• Laundry isn’t going to magically get put away.

• Everyone is hungry, and I looooove cooking (seriously).

Nobody likes food poisoning or cluttered surroundings.

Who lives like that?

I can’t.

Something to try for yourself

As I look up again in this room, I can feel my legs resting over the side of the bed.

Even though there are two desks, they’ve long been occupied by odds and ends that accumulated over the years.

Someday, I want to go through everything in here and bring it back to a functioning bedroom for my kids to use when they visit my parents.

I want to show them the things in here that made me who I am.

It took me a long time to articulate the foundations of what drive me as husband, a parent, and a person.

These six concepts shed a little more light on why I’m writing the digital heirloom newsletter.

Each aspect of myself is what I strive to flesh out, and I want to expand on each of these areas in more depth as I go.

If you’re particularly interested in me focusing more on any one of these areas sooner rather than later, feel free to comment!

P.S. Happy Lunar New Year! 🐍