Your Stories

My family migrated to England in the 70s and I grew up in Newcastle. I went to explore the world at the age of 22 and didn't come back to the UK until 2006. I took this opportunity to retrain as a massage therapist and started my own business in early 2008. I'm continuing training and enjoy building my business.

My main fear is the health of my mother as I lost my father in 2008. You always worry about losing your parents. My hopes are for good health for myself and my family and all those around me. I would like to be more successful in my business as it gives me job satisfaction and a sense of achievement. I also hope that people who are experiencing bad times during the credit crunch get some relief and find a way to manage their individual situations.

It took me over 20 years to find something I enjoy and get job satisfaction from. I always knew I would be my own boss, maybe it's a Chinese thing or maybe it's because I want to call the shots. I've done jobs where I have had job satisfaction and some with significant financial rewards but never one where all elements are there. I can enjoy my work, meet people, get job satisfaction and make a good living.

After living in the Far East for over 16 years, I appreciate the space and greenery that the UK has. In Hong Kong there's a lot of beautiful countryside but you have to go looking for it. Here in Newcastle I can go to Jesmond Dene, walk through Heaton Park or chill out on the grass around the Civic Centre or drive to Seahouses or Alnwick. I hate the isolation that many people put themselves in – they live, work and play within a three mile radius and have no curiosity for what's out there in the big wide world. I'm not advocating everyone should leave home and live halfway round the world but dipping your big toe in the water would be beneficial for anyone.

Confident, optimistic, mindful.

A lawyer because they make a lot of money but then when I had to pick my O levels I discovered that you had to spend years and years training and wouldn't be earning the big bucks until you were about 27. At 14 years of age, waiting until you were 27 to get the reward for years of hard work at school and university seemed too long to wait.  So I gave up that idea.

I'm the youngest in my family so probably have been indulged too much in my lifetime. My family gives me the security and courage to take risks and do things that normally a conservative Chinese woman would not have done and I'm grateful for that. They can also be suffocating and overbearing because I am the youngest and they overprotect me which is probably the reason behind my move to Asia. I overcame the frustration of always being seen as the 'baby' of the family around the age of 31 and now just accept it's something I can't change. Also divorce doesn't happen in my family, I have only ene cousin who is divorced so my sense of family is very strong which is probably why I haven't chosen to be married yet, not because I don't want to be but because it's a very strong ideal to live up to. My parents were married for 60 years.

Waitressing at the Happiness Inn Restaurant in the Haymarket. I was around 17 years old and my parents told me that I wasn't getting pocket money any more so needed to get a job. My father had already spoken to his friend who was the owner of the restaurant and I started that next weekend. I used to babysit for my siblings' children but since my parents retired they took away all my business. I worked weekends while my school friends were out at parties and nights out. It gave me a good work ethic and now I get bored if I don't work.

My greatest regret is not having children. I love kids and have many nieces and nephews and a few great-nieces and nephews too. I wouldn't have a child just because I wanted one, I want a child as part of a family so, unless I meet someone whom I want to share the rest of my life with, I'm resigned to the fact that I won't have any natural children of my own. In my twenties, I always thought there was time and then in my thirties I didn't want to have kids with the men I was dating.

I'm very comfortable being on my own and can go off to think anywhere. Sometimes it just takes a coffee shop and my iPod and I can think about the big and small things in my life. Now that I'm back in the UK I like to take a drive into the surrounding countryside and get out of the hustle and bustle.

One of my happiest memories would be being able to read at the age of six, about six months after I started school in England. I never went to school before immigrating to Newcastle. I joined when all the other kids had been in school for about three years of their lives. Being so young I picked up English very quickly and soon grew bored of the Janet and John books I was given as part of the 'slower' reading group. I wanted to join my friends and read the book the rest of the class was reading. I asked a friend to speak to the teacher if I could change books and she let me after hearing me read. I haven't stopped reading since and having a good book to read is one of the best things in life.

If I ruled the world I would make sure that all the people who leave school are able to read as being able to read affects many aspects of one's life from completing application forms to reading road and street signs. There is a wealth of knowledge and information out there and to be excluded from it by something as basic as the ability to read seems obscene when schooling is free in this country. I don't think it's the fault of the person concerned because they don't want to learn, it may be that the way they've been taught is not right for them even if it is right for 99% of others. We shouldn't neglect these people and hope they catch up, they seldom do. How can we expect them to get a fair chance in life without the ability to read?