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Hong Kong Tran
 I could have been someone else. At the time of my birth in the city of Hong Kong, my parents didn't have a name for me yet, because in some Vietnamese families, a child isn't named until after his/her personality develops. In order to issue a birth certificate, however, doctors needed a name. With a pen, my mother wrote down "Hong Kong." And that was the beginning of what has now become a never-ending exchange of confused and intrigued looks whenever I introduce myself. But I never get tired of having to repeat my name, to explain myself, or to entertain misunderstandings. Because in a sense that's what journalism is all about. It's the desire to know, to find out, and to clear misunderstandings that drew me to this field.
I graduated from the University of California, Irvine in 2010 with a B.A. in literary journalism. I met some of the greatest people there and learned from the best professors. Having been exposed to some very moving stories as a young writer, I think I now have the insight, inspiration, and courage to share my own story. Lastly, to make this seem more like a bio: I enjoy spending time with my siblings, will never say no to a game of tennis, and want to learn how to cook as well as my mother.
The story behind the story: One of the most frustrating experiences when writing a story is not knowing a piece of information. Facts generally complete a story, and if you don't have all the facts, what you're left with is something incomplete, underdeveloped, and unthoughtful. If you read my piece, you'll find that there are missing pieces of info that seem like they should be included in the story. Although it is counter-intuitive, the point of my story doesn't lie in finding things out. The points it to not know. After my mother sat me down and told me my father's health was affected by Agent Orange (the subject of my story), I "looked into" the silence, the uncertainty, the denial, and the refusal to know about the details of my father's death to tell a strikingly parallel story of Agent Orange.
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