Wang '28 Awarded Scholastic Gold Key

Earlier this year, Joey Wang ’28 wrote his memoir, entitled “The American Dream.” This highly personal work intimately describes the experiences he recalls from working at his immigrant father’s Chinese restaurant.

The spot was called Lucky Whale, and it served food in downtown Richmond. In the piece, which spans seven pages, Wang tells the reader about his struggles, such as late nights and ill-mannered customers. He also argues that the United States is built on families like the Wangs, who make countless sacrifices and contribute hard work that isn’t always recognized.

He was recently recognized by Scholastic for his writing, which won him their most prestigious award: a Scholastic Gold Key. By virtue of this win, he was also nominated for the American Voices Award.
Wang has shared an excerpt from “The American Dream,” with The Pine Needle. 

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Excerpt from “The American Dream":

 “My eyes at school were as thin as toothpicks as I struggled to keep them open throughout the day. People started to take notice. I can recall sitting in my 7th-grade history classroom, fighting tooth and nail to stay awake. I felt myself begin to drift off, the corners of my eyes became darker and darker – my vision slowly started to fade away. The weight of my eyelids then began to cave in on itself.”
 
Later on, when my mom asked if the restaurant was too much for me to handle, I responded with a mouthful of lies. I told her I actually preferred going to bed so late. I told her that I had plenty of time to do homework while working. I told her I loved what I did.
 
Why would I do this? I knew that my parents loved me dearly, the second I mentioned that the restaurant had anything to do with the recent downfall in my life, I knew they would immediately hire somebody to take my place – somebody that they couldn’t afford to pay.
 
Sadly, I feel like the power of love amongst our current generation is dwindling every day that passes by. In a world where interactions have become digitized through channels like social media, the idea of “how to love” is slowly being eroded. While my days in the back of a kitchen are becoming a distant memory following the ultimate closure of my fathers restaurant, the lessons of love I learned have still stuck with me in everyday life.”