12x06 - The Lotus Seed

[bunniefuu]

♪ Reading rainbow ♪

♪ Butterfly in the sky ♪

♪ I can go twice as high ♪

♪ Take a look ♪

♪ It's in a book ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪

♪ I can go anywhere ♪

♪ Friends to know ♪

♪ And ways to grow ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪

♪ I can be anything ♪

♪ Take a look ♪

♪ It's in a book ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪

♪ Reading rainbow ♪

Hi. There's always something
magical about a garden,

No matter how big
or small it is.

There are many fascinating
and beautiful things

To see and smell.

This garden has flowers
and trees

From all over the world.

Here's one of my favorites--
a lotus.

Some of the world's
most beautiful lotuses

Come from asia,

Where the lotus
has always been loved

For its beauty
and sweet smell.

When a lotus drops its petals,
its pod is left behind.

A pod is merely
a carrying case for seeds.

[Rattling]

That's the sound of the seeds

Inside this pod.

This seed is strong.

It can last for over 100 years
and still grow.

A lotus seed can travel
almost anywhere in the world

And still grow
into a beautiful flower.

Here's the story
of one lotus seed

And its journey from
the faraway country of vietnam

To america.

It's called hot-shyen--

The lotus seed.

My grandmother
saw the emperor cry

The day he lost
his golden dragon throne.

She wanted something
to remember him by,

So she snuck
into the silent palace

Near the river of perfumes

And plucked a seed
from a lotus pod

In the imperial garden.

She hid the seed
under the family altar,

Wrapped in a piece of silk
of the ao dai, her dress.

Whenever she felt
sad or lonely,

She took out the seed

And thought of the brave,
young emperor.

And when she married
a young man

Chosen by her parents,

She carried the seed
inside her pocket

For good luck,
long life,

And many children.

When her husband
marched off to w*r,

She raised
her children alone.

[Bombs falling]

One day,
bombs fell all around,

And soldiers clamored
door to door.

[People shouting in vietnamese]

She grabbed the seed

But left her favorite
mother-of-pearl hair combs

Lying on the floor.

Her family scrambled
into a crowded boat

And set out
on a stormy sea.

My grandmother
watched the mountains

And the waving palms
slowly fade away.

She held the seed
in her shaking fingers

And said good-bye.

[Woman speaking vietnamese]

[Horns honking]

She arrived
in a strange new land

With blinking lights
and speeding cars

And towering buildings
that scraped the sky

And a language
she didn't understand.

She worked many years,
day and night.

So did her children,
her sisters,

And her cousins, too,

Living together
in one big house.

Last summer, my little brother
found the seed

And asked questions
again and again.

He'd never seen
a lotus bloom

Or an emperor
on a golden dragon throne.

So one night,
he stole the seed

From beneath
the family altar

And planted it in mud
near our onion patch.

My grandmother cried

When she found out
the seed was gone.

She didn't eat,
she didn't sleep,

And my silly brother forgot

What spot of earth
held the seed.

Then one day in spring,
my grandmother shouted.

We ran to the garden

And saw a beautiful pink lotus
unfurling its petals,

So creamy and soft.

"It is the flower
of life and hope,"

My grandmother said.

"No matter how ugly the mud
or how old the seed,

"The bloom
will be beautiful.

It is the flower
of my country."

When the lotus blossom
turned into a pod,

My grandmother
gave each of us a seed

To remember her by.

She kept one for herself

To remember
the emperor by.

I wrapped my seed
in a piece of silk

And hid it.

Someday,
I will plant it

And give the seeds
to my children

And tell them about the day

My grandmother
saw the emperor cry.

Although she never guessed
it could still grow,

That grandmother carried
the lotus seed for years,

From vietnam to america.

Wheneople move
to a new country,

They leave a lot behind,

But they bring things
as well--

Music, food,
language, memories,

A different way of life.
A

That's norway.

Iceland,
right here.

[Girl]
my name is bong mai,

And I was born
in vietnam.

I live with my sister
and my mother.

I arrived to this country
eight years ago.

I was 4 years old when I came
to this country.

Life in vietnam was
very different from america.

The house I lived in
was very simple.

It's like staying outside.

Vietnam is a beautiful country--

Green trees,
the sky looks beautiful,

The beaches was very nice,

And the street is crowded,
but not a lot of cars--

A lot of bicycle
and people walking.

We left vietnam in 1985,

And we arrived to america

And came to jersey city,
new jersey.

At first we see the people,
we was scared,

Because they look
different from us--

The color of their hair
and clothes they wear.

They speak different language,
and we couldn't understand.

When you
place your feet
on the person...

The first day in school
was very hard for me

Because I couldn't
speak the language.

When the teacher asked me
to do something,

I can't do it,
and kids laugh.

The kids look different.

Bong mai, would you
show and tell?

It changed when I learned
some english

And could speak to the teacher
and understand some schoolwork.

This is from vietnam.

My grandmother sent it
to my mother.

That's the only way
we could do it.

All my friends are
from different countries--

Some of them from india,

And some of them came
from puerto rico

And spain, muslim,
and so on.

You ready?

[Speaking vietnamese]

I admired my mother

Because I wanted to be
a doctor when I grow up.

My mother took me to america
so I can be what I want.

Ha ha ha!

F-l-o-w-e-r-s.

Flower.

My sister was born here.

Growing up
is different from me.

She learns vietnamese
and english at the same time.

"Haven't you
ever seen
a wet suit?"

[Speaking
vietnamese]

Mm-hmm.

She doesn't know anything
about vietnam,

So she's different from me.

[Speaking vietnamese]

My mother want me to keep
the vietnamese heritage.

She want me to cook
vietnamese food,

And when I grow up,

I could teach
my children to cook.

They could pass it on.
The foods won't die.

At home, I speak vietnamese,

And at school,
I speak english.

[Speaking vietnamese]

I'm forgetting
my vietnamese language

Because I spend more time
at school than at home.

It makes me feel sad

Because I want to keep
my language.

O.k., What?

Hey, tria,
what's your favorite movie?

I am vietnamese
and american.

Poetic justice.

The part of me
that I'm vietnamese

Is the way I look--
my face--

And the part of me
that is american

Is that I speak english...

I like robin hood.

I dress like an american,
and I eat american food.

Ha ha ha!

White.

Blue. Yeah,
color it blue.

Weren't we supposed to
have three colors?

We have to make, like...

My personality
stays the same

When I speak vietnamese
or english

Because I'm always myself.

The language is different,
but I'm always bong.

Coming to a new country
and finding your way

Is like walking
in two worlds--

The world of school,
movies, and friends,

And the world at home

Of parents, family,
and a different culture.

Walking in two worlds
can be a balancing act,

But it's not the same
for everybody.

[Man chanting]

[Man]
I am a muslim,

And I still keep
my religion with me.

My religion is part
of my blood.

I come to the mosque
to pray for my god.

My name is gamil alkutiny.

I was born in yemen,
and I'm 16 years old.

Yemen is a country
in the middle east

Near saudi arabia.

Yemen is
a beautiful country.

It has mountains,
villages,

And big cities
and busy streets...

Also marketplaces.

I like being
in this country

Because there's
more opportunity.

Maybe I'll be
a kindergarten teacher

Or a doctor.

I don't know yet.
I'll see.

My first school, I was
the only kid speaking arabic.

[Speaking arabic]

What was difficult
in this country was

The language
was hard to learn.

I thought I wouldn't
learn it.

I was afraid to walk
the street.

I thought I'd get lost,

And I can't even ask
for directions.

[Reading in arab]

Having two ways of life
in one country

Is not too difficult
for me

Because I go to mosque
and pray,

And I go to park and play,

And I also go to school
and movies like americans.

Here we go!

Whoa!
Aah!

[Boy]
I'm arsenio andreev.
I was born in russia.

I came here
about three years ago.

[Speaking russian]

My grandparents
came here first,

A year before we came here.

[Speaking russian]

I really respect
my grandfather

Because he taught me how
to get used to this country,

So my grandfather
means a lot to me.

When I came, he told me
I can be anything

Because it's
a free country.

In america,
you must try hard

To be someone
you want to be.

I'm, like, half russian
and half american.

On my russian side,

I still like
to talk the language,

And I eat foods
which are russian.

What I do that's american

Is hang out,
party with friends,

Ckey.
And play

I don't know
what I want to be.

I can be a vet, businessman,
hockey player.

I could be anything.

[Singing in xhosa]

[Girl]
what I've brought with me

From my culture

Is definitely music.

That's what keeps us going.

Music is life
for us south africans.

Name is
nombuyiselo ntshinghwe.

I'm from south africa.

♪ Doo loo loo loo
loo loo ♪

I came to the united states

Because edution opportunities
were very limited

For black south africans.

My parents decided that
it would be a good idea

To continue my studies
in the states.

♪ Eee,
la la la la la ♪♪

One of the surprising things

That I've come across
in america

Is the kind of questions
that people ask.

They make me laugh
sometimes.

They will ask
questions like,

"Do you live
in the trees in africa?"

And, "do you live
with animals?"

No. We have
the same life you have

In the united states.

[Speaking xhosa]

I brought with me from home
african clothing.

Sometimes, you get homesick
once in a while,

And you feel like putting on

Your beautiful clothes
from home.

The name of my people
are xhosa people.

And now...

You just heard
a click there.

That's also the name of
the language they speak--xhosa.

The click is
an "x" sound in english.

[Singing in xhosa]

[Speaking xhosa]

That basically means,
"the skunk was running away

In the desert."

[Singing in xhosa]

This language is very difficult
for americans to speak.

You must be born
in south africa

To understand the language.

Even for south africans,
it's difficult.

[Singing in xhosa]

These are the kind of games

At children play
in south africa.

I grew up playing them.

[Speaking xhosa]

What?

[Repeats phrase]

[Repeats phrase]

What?

What?

[Repeats phrase]

[Repeats phrase]

[Singing in xhosa]

One of the things
I hope I'm giving to america

Is my music
from south africa

Because I get to share
my culture and my history

Like many other people

Who come and share
their cultures and history.

Whoo!

Lots of families embrace
more than one culture.

Maybe yours does.

If you'd like to walk
between two worlds,

Head to your library
for these books.

But you don't have to
take my word for it.

I just read
a wonderful book

Called
I'm new here.

It reminded me
of my own life.

Jazmin comes to america
from el salvador.

She's afraid to go
to the american school.

She can't speak english.

When jazmin starts
her classes,

She can only listen
to the strange-sounding words.

Jazmin feels
very lonely at times.

That's how I felt

When I came here
from singapore.

As time goes on,

Jazmin begins to feel
more at home.

She even plays soccer
with her classmates.

I'm merisa
you don't have to be

From another country
to enjoy this.

It's great
for anyone.

Grandfather's journey
is the story

Of the author
allen say's grandfather,

Who lived half in america
and half in japan.

This biography
is about a man

Who came from japan
to america

To see a different world.

The steamship crossing
took three weeks.

He traveled
north america

By train and riverboat.

The pictures are beautiful
watercolor paintings.

They really capture
the story's feeling.

It's great
that this grandfather

Got to experience
two cultures.

I'm whitney. If I could
do that, I'd love it.

Wouldn't you?

I'm katie. If you ever
wanted to meet somebody

From a different country,

You'd like this book--
halmoni and the picnic.

Yunmi's grandmother,
halmoni,

Has just moved from korea.

She doesn't speak
any english,

And she's afraid to try.

Yunmi is worried.

She thinks that
her grandmother is lonely.

But yunmi's friends
have an idea.

They invite yunmi's grandmother
to a picnic.

Her grandmother is scared
but decides to go.

But the kids like
grandmother's clothes

And love her food.

This a lovely story
about friendship.

I recommend it
to people everywhere.

♪ Many voices ♪

♪ One chorus ♪

♪ Many rhythms ♪

♪ One drum ♪

♪ Many notes ♪

♪ One melody ♪

♪ Many people ♪

♪ One world ♪

♪ Many lives ♪

♪ Come together ♪

♪ Many faces ♪

♪ From many lands ♪

♪ Everyone ♪

♪ Part of a rainbow,
shining bright ♪

♪ Living in america ♪

♪ Many lives ♪

♪ Come together ♪

♪ Many faces ♪

♪ From many lands ♪

♪ Everyone ♪

♪ Part of a rainbow,
shining bright ♪

♪ Oh, living in america ♪

♪ Shining so bright ♪

♪ Living in america ♪♪

What makes this garden
so beautiful is the variety--

Flowers and trees
from all over the world

In one place to enjoy.

It's like our world--

Full of different people
from different places,

Each with his or her
own story.

I'll see you next time.

♪ Butterfly
in the sky ♪

♪ I can go
twice as high ♪

♪ Take a look ♪

♪ It's in a book ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪

♪ A reading rainbow ♪♪

Today's reading rainbow books
are...

The lotus seed
by sherry garland,

Illustrated
by tatsuro kiuchi,

Published by
harcourt brace & company.

Halmoni and the picnic
by sook nyul choi,

Illustrated by karen m. Dugan,

Published
by houghton mifflin co.

Grandfather's journey
by allen say,

Published
by houghton mifflin co.

I'm new here
by bud howlett,

Published
by houghton mifflin co.