Conversations with my Parents by Oanh Thi Tran

1. What is ironic about the way the author and the father become close? What has to happen to the father?

It is ironic because the thing that brought them together could also tear them apart as the sickness could kill him.

2. How would you characterise the conversation that the author has with her parents?
I would characterise the conversation as very formal. It's not like the phone calls we're used to, where we talk about how we've been. It's more present and to the point.

3. What is it that worries the author most about these conversations?
Oanh is worried because she is has never told them that she loved them. Because the author is far from them she feels that she should tell them but she doesn't know how.

4. There is a gap between the author’s need to express feelings common in western countries and her family’s lack of desire to express their feelings verbally. How does the family still express their feelings for their child, just not verbally?
They subtly try to see that she is okay. They ask about the weather to see if she will be too cold and  they ask if she I healthy so they can know that she is well. This is how they express their feelings.