My first interview--George Lin

Always wearing a hat, sometimes a Virginia Beach ball cap or winter hat, but always in suits neat and tight, he carries a cart zooming along his way.

“I’m like a lady going to the grocery store,” He mocked at himself.

He is George Lin.

His back was injured two years ago. He was “stupid to try to take up a heavy box on the shipyard by [himself].” The ligament between the connecting bones of the spine collapsed; from then on, he could not carry anything heavy, even groceries. The cart accompanies him wherever he goes.

Worse still, he had a heart operation last year. He now has a long scar from his neck to chest, and he lost eight pounds from the operation. He puts on a hat to keep him warm as he feels weak most of the time.

“I have become dry and skinny. I take in literally no meat and rice.”

Either way, at church, on stage, in the babysitting room or at prayer meeting, he is there.

He is the deacon of the American Family Bible Church.

“I did not mean to stay in the state,” he said, while laying down the whole-wheat bread with lettuce and smashed avocados he prepared for us.

The youngest and the only boy in a traditional Chinese family, Lin was a star in his family yet second-rated in school. A defeat at a public exam brought him to church and God.

“The church occupied one of the apartments, and I lived next to it. Everyday, I was serving the church in the daytime, having Bible study with brothers, and at night I studied hard.” But the puritan-like one year study was not encouraged by his family.

“My mother urged me to stop serving the church, but I insisted.” His eyes glittered. His hard work was not in vain; he trumped at his second attempt of the public exam and was admitted to a university.

Three years after graduation, an entry ticket to a reputable company was at hand. However, he refused.

“Many Taiwanese studied abroad for different reasons, including political ones. All I wanted was to learn more and see the world.”

Anyway, as it turned out, what was supposed to be an eye-opening trip became a life-long journey.

After earning a masters degree in mechanical engineering in the Old Dominion University, he took his parents advice to stay in the states as Chiang Kai-shek was in rule in Taiwan. “His rule was similar to the communist party,” George said. In 1979, he quickly landed a job at General Electric on the TV production team.

He quickly reached the pinnacle of his career while working at GE. However, “You know. It’s the cheap labor and the rising power of China. In the 80s, Deng Xiao Ping’s economic reform [was] a huge success. Everything moved to the mainland. In 1983, GE had to shut down the whole unit three years after I joined,” he said.

“Last in, First out.” He was sacked.

He kept equipping himself by returning to ODU part-time to get some practical training. A new turning point awaited him.

“The defense needed people, you know. They built big ships and marines. 700. Reagan raised the defense expense at 1984. I went to work at the Norfolk Navy Shipyard,” he said, “It’s been over 20 years now.”

Good memory.

Above all, the real force tugging him to this foreign place was his family.

During his college years, he met his wife, Vicky, a college teacher who was originally from Tai Shan, a Chinese province.

The couple formed a new family, and added three more members—their children. George’s parents also came to join the family 13 years ago after their retirement. Vicky’s mother, who had a stroke and became paralyzed the year George lost his job, staying with them, and Vicky looked after her full-time.

“I always appreciate what my wife has done. For 15 years, she had to take care of her mother at home full-time, from feeding, changing diapers to bathing every day! You know, you cannot interact with her. She can only utter the sound ‘Ya’.”

It is only four years before his retirement. “I have no further plans,” George said. “Thank God, for giving me one day. That’s what I say every morning.”

“If I can reach the day I retire, I will get a part-time job at Wal-Mart saying ‘good morning’ at five dollars an hour. I may volunteer at a hospital as well,” he added. “I want to keep myself busy and serve.”

George’s longtime friend from church, Pam, said, “He is a marvelous, easy-going man. He won’t ask for a reward and he’s ready to help whatever he can--even after the surgery.”

“I thank God for what he gave me. I am blessed. I am not particularly smart, but I have more than I ought to have. All my children went to Virginia Tech.”

Going back to Taiwan?

“My family is here, my roots are here. Of course I won’t go back,” he said.

“But if I went back after finishing my masters degree, it would be an entirely different story then, wouldn’t it?” He almost winked with a smile.