Lew Nam
| Town/City | Melbourne |
|---|---|
| First name | Lew |
| Last name | Nam |
| Country of Origin | Ha Wang Chun, Wang Sui Heung, Toishan, China |
| Date of Birth | Dec 7,1882 |
| Year of Arrival in Australia | 1898 |
| Submitted by | Peter Liu, OAM |
Story
The remarkable stories of Lew Nam and his son Dr Eddie Liu OAM, OBE, Hon.D. Qld Univ. Part 7.
Eddie and his wife, Elizabeth had six children: Mayling, Peter, Francis Xavier, Maria, Elizabeth and Milissa. From that progeny, there are 13 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren. Lew Nam had 9 grandchildren.
More than ever, children need role models and not just critics! After all, there are few successful adults who were not at first successful children. Chinese believe success is relative but the more success the more relatives! Voltaire said: ‘Each player must accept the cards life deals him or her; once they are in hand, he or she alone must decide how to play the cards in order to win the game.’ In other words, the hand that is dealt you is determinism; how you play it is up to how you exercise your free will!
War robbed Eddie of his mother and a white-collared profession but what is an eloquent tribute to him is his awesome effort in realizing his full potential given the hand of cards he was dealt in life. For Lew Nam and his sons, progress was not simply an accident or stroke of good luck but a compelling necessity to ensure that future generations make a positive and meaningful contribution to our nation.
In Chinese culture, well-known people are known as ‘mingren’ with the character ‘ming’ meaning ‘name’ and the character ‘ren’ meaning ‘people’, in other words, denoting people who make a name for themselves. There is a Chinese proverb, ‘Shisi zhao yingxiong’ which literally means, ‘Circumstances create heroes’. Typically, Chinese heroes courageously emerge to rise above and eradicate oppression, tyranny, and justifiably unpopular, decadent, and morally bankrupt regimes. Chaos creates the opportunity for a hero to put right the unbearable burden of gross injustices inflicted on the less fortunate. As majestic kites rise against, and not with, the wind – so do heroes seeking to make our universe a better place to live!