Today we’d like to introduce you to Chung Lip.
Hi Chung, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
It has been over ten years since I left Cambodia. Not a day has passed I don’t think of the alternative of my life if I was not given the opportunity to leave, to have a family, and to have the education I do today.
My life journey was unique, yet I am not the only one who experienced incredible hardship. I was one of the millions of children around the world who had the potential to make a difference if only they were given the opportunity to do so.
This book is about the true story of one of these unknown children who were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to change not only his life but others around him in ways he had never imagined possible. I did not write this book for me but for all the children whose lives and experiences are unknown and unheard of to the world because they do not have the privilege of knowledge and opportunity to tell their stories.
You and I, just like our life stories, don’t have to be beautiful because we are real. Over the years, I found that sharing my life journey with those who are willing to accept me for who I am have been a tremendous help for me to cope with all that I went through. This story is one of the countless others that someone has yet to share.
Whether it is through word of mouth or written scripts, I hope that my story finds its way to your heart and inspires you to share yours. I thank you for reading this memoir from the beginning to the end. It has been a privilege to be in my position, to be able to voice myself and to be heard.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The struggle is an understatement. But I’m forever grateful for all the support I have received from my family and friends over the years. Being the first family member to go to college, the only child to be in America and do what I do today has put me in a spotlight in my family.
Even though I am the youngest of seven, my siblings look up to me. They expect me to be the representative of our family, to fulfill the role that is normally expected of the oldest child. It has been a long journey trying to navigate American life while maintaining my Cambodian self-identity.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a writer by day, a Cardiology ICU Registered Nurse by night, and a Cambodian interpreter by occasion. I love everything I do, everywhere I go, and everyone I encounter every day. But I’m extremely proud of my recently released memoir, HERS, which sold over 38,000 copies since its release in November of 2022.
HERS details my childhood experiences growing up in Cambodia, the trauma and violence I endured as a child, and so much more. I wrote HERS based on my journal, which was one of the most difficult projects I’ve done. It wasn’t about the skills required to write, the work and effort needed. It was the fact that I had to practically re-live my trauma to create HERS.
I decided to share HERS with the world full of strangers in the hope that readers can find bits of my journey relatable and inspiring. I hope that my story will not be just another “memoir” in the marketplace, but the path to the truth about the common experiences people share regardless of where we come from, who we are, or what sex or color we are born into.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs, or other resources you think our readers should check out?
My American parents, Nicholas and Cynthia Fisher-Broin of Wannamingo, MN, have been my utmost supporters since the day I met them. They have been there for me through my ups and downs, loving and caring for me regardless and not despite who I was or where I came from. I am forever thankful to them for supporting me through whatever I do.
Their kindness and belief in me have made me the person I am today and the person I want to be tomorrow. They are the people who inspire me to pay forward, to be kind, and to help others in need. Because of them, I have promised myself to do good in the future by funding a scholarship foundation to help kids in need in Cambodia.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://fultonbooks.com/books/?book=hers&fbclid=IwAR1y8TyzoKB8YsW4cqp-wSIyisBbwgVfAgr-OOSz-d43ZzDdVujJAreBUVw&mibextid=Zxz2cZ
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/nurse.chung?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/khmernursing?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chunglip
