Dear Hsiao-en,
Your mother tells me you are writing a report on our family, so here is what I remember.
Your great-grandmother came south alone at seventeen and worked as a maid for a family in Tainan. She married at twenty-four and had six children; two of them died as infants. The old photograph on your grandmother's wall was taken the week the youngest was born.
She never learned to read, yet she insisted that every daughter finish school. Your grandmother became the first nurse in the village because of her.
Come on Sunday and bring a notebook. I will find the box of letters in the attic before you arrive.
Love,
Aunt Mei
Family History Workshop — City Library, Room 3
Bring any old photographs, letters or name lists you already have. Names of living relatives are never copied or shared. Children under twelve must come with an adult. Places are limited to twenty-five; register at the front desk before 8 October. This workshop will not be repeated this year.
In many towns the person waiting at the school gate is not a parent but a grandparent. As more couples take jobs in distant cities, children are left in the care of the older generation. Officials in one county say that almost one child in five now lives this way.
The arrangement has clear benefits. Grandparents pass on dialect, cooking and family stories that a busy household often loses.
Yet the burden is heavy. Many carers are over seventy and manage the housework alone. Support groups now offer them free health checks, and one afternoon a week when somebody else looks after the children.
A city office asked 1,000 households who does most of the daily housework.
| Main person | 2005 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Mother | 68% | 44% |
| Father | 9% | 21% |
| Grandparent | 18% | 19% |
| Paid helper | 5% | 16% |
Exactly the same question was asked in both years.
The same households took part both times, and almost all of them replied.