Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Deepen the Heart of Your Story by Embracing Your Heritage and Culture

By Songju Ma Daemicke


I grew up in China. Every Chinese mom is basically a Chinese medicine practitioner at heart. I remember vividly that my mom used smashed dandelions on my cheeks when I had the mumps. The cold mush soothed my inflamed neck and chin and the dandelion’s natural anti-inflammation properties helped me fight the virus and recover.

I remain a strong believer in Chinese traditional medicine. Here is a picture of a night lily I grew on the night it was blooming. (This mysterious flower only blooms in the nighttime and the bloom only lasts for a few hours.)


By the second day, the flowers will go into my soup. It has detoxifying properties, strengthens one’s lungs, helps one’s immune system, and even benefits one’s skin with its rich collagen. The flower is also both beautiful and yummy!

When Tu Youyou received the Nobel Prize in 2015 for the discovery of Artemisinin, which has saved millions of lives and made her the first Chinese woman to have ever been awarded this honor, I knew that I had to tell her story.

I wanted to tell not only Tu Youyou’s personal story, but also share Chinese culture and precisely, Chinese traditional medicine. Tu Youyou cherished traditional Chinese medical wisdom and embraced its possible use in the modern age. At the heart of my book, TU YOUYOU'S DISCOVERY: FINDING A CURE FOR MALARIA, is the idea of embracing and learning from one’s cultural heritage.




My story begins with Tu Youyou getting very sick with TB at a young age. While antibiotics saved her life, her mother’s herb soups helped slowly nurse her back to full strength. Youyou witnesses the power of both modern and traditional medicine. Inspired, she sets her heart and life goals in science, deciding to study medicine to help save lives.

As the story progresses, Tu Youyou is assigned to head an important government project, one specifically designated to find a cure for malaria to help Vietnam soldiers during the Vietnam War. The first things she does are to study many traditional Chinese medicine books and then travel to visit Chinese medicine practitioners and malaria patients. She hears popular folk sayings recommending a qinghao/sweet wormwood remedy.

Embracing her heritage and learning from her ancestors leads Tu Youyou to an “a-ha moment”. When her experiments fail again and again, she turns to an ancient Chinese remedy book, A HANDBOOK OF PRESCRIPTIONS FOR EMERGENCIES, for inspiration. The book was written by Ge Hong, a pharmacist, 1700 years before. Youyou rereads the 15 Chinese characters specifically describing the ‘Qinghao remedy.'

青蒿一握, 以水二升渍, 绞取汁, 尽服之。

“A handful of Qinghao immersed in two liters of water, wring out the juice and drink it all.”

She ruminates over each word in her mind and realizes that the temperature used in the preparation could be the key!

The book ends with Youyou being awarded the Nobel Prize in Science. Basking in the glory of this tremendous honor, Youyou graciously credits Chinese medicine for her amazing achievement. “Artemisinin (is) a gift from traditional Chinese medicine to the world.”

This is the heart of her work and also this book: Embrace your cultural heritage.

My hope is that no matter what background you may come from and whatever you might do with and in your life, value, embrace and learn from your heritage and culture. This will fill your life with deeper meaning and heart, and give your stories an extra set of wings to fly further.

Now it’s your turn. Give it a try:

1) What subjects/foods/traditions/holidays/animals/plants/events hold special meaning to you? Research them and find special persons or amazing subjects. Does the subject share some cultural heritage with you? Think about how you can make your story more personal and unique by utilizing or incorporating these cultural elements into your text, back matter, even your pitch. Write from your personal connection to the subject.

2) Research and brainstorm your own personal family heritage. Where did your parents or grandparents grow up? Have you ever visited that place? What is your most memorable moment/thing? Write that.

3) What is a favorite or interesting story that you heard from your grandparents? Can you reinvent/retell that story? The concept of my debut book, A CASE OF SENSE, came from a folktale I was told by my grandpa. (This book is one of 176 recently banned in Duval, Florida. )

4) Who were your heroes, imaginary or real, when you were little girl/boy? Perhaps you can tell one of their stories. My second book, CAO CHONG WEIGHS AN ELEPHANT, was inspired in this way.





Meet the Author:
 
Songju Ma Daemicke, a former software engineer, is an award-winning children’s book author. Her latest book, TU YOUYOU'S DISCOVERY - FINDING A CURE FOR MALARIA, is a finalist for the 2023 SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Books. Songju’s picture book, CAO CHONG WEIGHS AN ELEPHANT, was a Best STEM book, the Winner of 2018 CALA Best Juvenile Literature, an Outstanding Science Trade book, a Notable-Social-Studies book, and a Mathical Honor Book. Her next book, OUR WORLD: CHINA, is a board book, coming out from Barefoot Books in the Fall of 2023. Learn more at songjumadaemicke.com.

50 comments:

  1. I love TU YOUYOU'S DISCOVERY, Songju. Thanks for sharing the details of this true story and inspiring us with it!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed it. Happy you found it inspirational.

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  2. Songju--BRAVO for your post with these splendid ideas!

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  3. Loved your post. My ancestors had special powers and used many herbal remedies. I've written two historical fiction novels based on them. It's my way of honoring and remembering them.

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    1. That's wonderful! Glad they have you to pass on their story and knowledge!

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  4. Thanks for sharing your dandelion story... one more use for those amazing little flowers.

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    1. Thank you so much, Sue. Yes. Little flowers with big powers! Often overlooked.

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  5. Thanks for sharing your story. There is a lot of food for thought in this post. I look forward to reading your book.

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    1. You are very welcome. Hope you enjoy reading the book.

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  6. Incredible! Thanks so much for sharing!

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  7. I especially appreciate your reminder that we can go back and mine our memories and traditions without necessarily having to physically travel to the places of our ancestors. Thank you!

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  8. TU YOUYOU'S DISCOVERY is such a terrific book! I'm sorry that A CASE OF SENSE has been banned in FL; those book bannings are so ridiculous, I don't know where to begin.

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    1. Thank you, Teresa. Yes. The book ban is truly a case of nonsense!

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  9. It's amazing how we can mine our pasts for present stories. I've also added to a story told by my grandmother and sold it to a magazine. Story is the great gift of history and culture. Well, on great gift.

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    1. So true. Bravo on getting your grandma's story sold to a magazine!

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  10. Congrats, Songju! I always love reading the backstory behind picture books.

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    1. Thank you, Susan. I love reading the backstories too!

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  11. Thanks for sharing. I'm a strong believer in Indian traditional medicine. I wish I knew everything my auntie ground up for my stomach aches.

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    1. Thank you, Manju. I can imagine the wonderful remedies in Indian traditional medicine!

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  12. Congratulations on your books! I love hearing about your research and thought process.

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  13. Some of life's best stories come from home. Thank you for sharing!

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  14. I loved learning about the inspiration behind Tu YouYou's Discovery. Can't wait to read the entire picture book. Thanks for this great post, Songju!

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    1. Thank you, Michelle. Hope you enjoy the book itself! By the way, I love your books!

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  15. Such an interesting post, an interesting story you’ve written from your heart. As far as banning books…grrrrr.

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  16. I don’t mean to stay anonymous!!’

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  17. Wonderful. Best of luck with your new ideas!

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  18. SONGJU: THANK YOU for the INSPIRATION to make our stories "more personal and unique" by journeying DEEP into our past in order to get to the TRUE HEART of each and every story. You've given SUCH VIVID and BEAUTIFUL examples of how you have done this and how we can too. I ESPECIALLY APPRECIATE the questions you've provided for us to ask ourselves to help us excavate the stories within our hearts. THANK YOU!!!

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  19. I'm so glad you're bringing these important stories to kids!

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  20. Songju, I love your advice, ". . .value, embrace and learn from your heritage and culture. "

    Thank you.
    Suzy Leopold

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  21. Songju, we need more writers writing non-fiction drawn from their cultures. Your book are an inspiration to picture book authors all over the world. Thanks.

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  22. Sonju, thank you for sharing the importance of using our cultural backgrounds when thinking of nonfiction projects. My grandmother taught me many simple things to do for certain health situations.

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  23. I love your Tu Youyou book! And as both a writer and a media specialist in Florida *sigh*, I sympathize that your other title was banned. It's a daily struggle here, and so exhausting! But keep on writing, and we'll keep on fighting to keep the books on the shelves.

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  24. These are amazing books by a wonderful author! Grateful to be in the same launch group!

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  25. Songju, thank you for your sage advice and for your helpful exercises. Congratulations on your writing success which, in a way, includes your book being banned. It seems to me (librarian) the best books make those lists. Sooner or later I believe truth will prevail over those who try to keep it hidden.

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  26. Songju, your books are important and help break down barriers. Thanks for encouraging me to write about my culture and heritage.

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  27. Your post has made me start thinking about how I can deepen my stories. Thank you for sharing yours, Songju!

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  28. This was a great post, Songju! Thanks for sharing.

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  29. Thank you, thank you for sharing and your ideas to work on my own.

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  30. Thanks for sharing these great tips Songju! I have always wanted to write a story about my own family heritage and have not figured a way into that yet. Love your book on Tu YouYou! Great story!

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  31. Native American peoples name the full moon each month. February is the Cherokee month of the Bone Moon. Thank you for helping us newbies give an authentic voice to our NF PB's. Appreciate all you do!

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  32. Awesome post Songju. And enjoyed trying out your suggestions for mining for ideas in my life. Thanks!

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  33. Thanks for these suggestions, Songju! I strongly believe in the marriage of traditional with modern, and benefiting from both. Congrats on your wonderful biography!

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