Lucky Child Loung Ung Sparknotes

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Angela Huang Ms. Smith 7/8B April 22, 2024 Life SMTH According to Sucheng Chan, a historian working at UC Santa Barbara, between 1975 and 1994, nearly 160,000 Cambodian refugees fled to the United States because of the Cambodian Civil War. One of the many who arrived was 10-year-old Loung Ung. In the memoir Lucky Child by Loung Ung, Ung writes about immigrating to the USA and struggling with the new culture while dealing with the scars of living under the Khmer Rouge’s reign. The book starts with the day she arrived in America and ends with her reunited with her family in Cambodia. Loung overcame the obstacles of PTSD, grief from losing family, and learning English, which shows that one can persevere through hardship to achieve their dreams. …show more content…

One day, while watching the news on the television, footage of an Ethiopian woman with her child reminded Loung of Keav, her older sister’s last moments. “... Pa didn’t get to bring her home and Keav died alone, scared and away from us all. On that day, Pa and the rest of us also died with her” (126). When Keav died, Loung was devastated and felt like there was no hope left. However, the traumatic experience only fueled her determination to prevail over the difficulties she faced in America so she could tell her sister's story. Over time, she slowly started to accept their death, as she and the rest of her siblings organized a big Buddhist ceremony to honor their parents, Keav, and Geak. “... my eyes stung and my chest swelled... in my silent prayers, I told my lost family only that I loved them and missed them... I looked at Chou... and we walked together back into the crowd” (265). Although Loung still missed her family, she ultimately chose to shift her focus to the present and living, away from the past. She overpowered the bitterness and anger, made peace with their deaths, and moved on. This proves that one can push through any barrier with enough strength, determination, and

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