I was not born in Los Angeles, CA, nor was I raised in the old LA Chinatown. In fact, I’ve only been there a couple of times, mostly during our vacations or when visiting family and friends. Those days usually fall on weekends or during the festive season, so seeing shops not opening for business didn’t really attract my attention…. but not this time. These closed shops, and the people….they whispered to me, on a Thursday afternoon, sweating profusely under the hot Spring sun.

We were there for a “special mission” – to buy Hangzhou White Chrysanthemum. So, we scout through Chinatown looking for a Chinese herbal shop that sells it. After all the sweating and sore legs, just when we were about to leave that place disappointed, we found a shop that sells the product. The seller is a young lady. Let’s call her Angel. Her posture of confidence and her voice full of energy are a stark contrast to the quiet and almost dead town. It’s a ray of youth and hope vs the quietly listening shopkeeper of an old bakery and the struggling sellers on the street. Together, they whispered to me that, just like the town, they, too, have a story.

This is L.A.!

By Joaquim