It is a long-standing tradition for Asian parents to goad their kids into achieving more with the classic “Look at [other high-achieving Asian kid] — why can’t you be like that?” It was tough enough already, and now Dr. Jonny Kim has raised the bar impossibly high. Check out this Tweet from the U.S. Embassy in Seoul:
Congratulations! Dr. @JonnyYKim, former enlisted #NavySEAL member, math degree holder @uofsandiego, & @harvardmed alumnus, for becoming the 1st Korean-American @NASA astronaut to embark on assignments to the @Space_Station, Artemis missions to the Moon, and potentially Mars! pic.twitter.com/WbANp3aHKA
— U.S. Embassy Seoul (@USEmbassySeoul) January 13, 2020
In response, Jenny Yang tweeted exactly what I was thinking:
NOBODY SHOW THIS TO OUR ASIAN PARENTS https://t.co/FKXRVJLpOq
— Jenny Yang #NoWarWithIran (@jennyyangtv) January 13, 2020
I can take some solace in these facts:
- Hardcore Tiger Moms are reading that announcement and thinking “…only the moon and potentially Mars? That’s not even a quarter of the solar system. Slacker.”
- I have infinitely more apps in the App Store than he does (I have 2; he has none), and
- For the time being, I have more Twitter followers:
