from France: February 2011

Chen left our company end of January, a year ago.

The management insisted on economic conditions and despite my efforts it was impossible to arrange a new work contract for her.

I felt sad to see her go away although I knew, for her professional and personal development it was better to find another job.

I liked her curiosity and willingness to learn when she arrived for her internship two years earlier and during her stay with us she fulfilled the job expectations.

She opened my mind to the Chinese culture and speaking with her, I learned a lot about it. We visited together the Guimet Asian museum in Paris. It was interesting to see it with her who is familiar with this culture. The exhibits I liked most were yet not Han but Tibetan Buddhist deities expressive of passions and Korean ancient paintings and logically structured Taoist manuscripts.

She used to be very fond of traveling and she went on several trips in Europe during those two years she spent with us. I liked her Norway landscape photographs and those from her last Christmas trip to Laponia.

I once invited her to our place and she showed us very nice pictures from Budapest. It was a pain to me to see that my family members did not try to be more open to her and didn't show much interest to her Chinese background.

Like many foreigners she suffered injustice from immigration laws in France and from egoism of many people.

She suffered pain early in life, loosing her mum at age of eleven and more recently being ill.

All the difficulties she had experienced have not affected her courage and her determination to build her life her own way, a true Chinese phoenix, Fenghuang.

After her internship with us she graduated from the French school and I must say Chen, on the ceremony day you looked beautiful, in your qipao.

I learned from your friend, another Chinese girl who is working in our company, that you found a job in Luxembourg and moved there.

Today, like everyday, I wish you all the best from life, Chen and happiness you look to.