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Because we hope to

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be a living, vibrant

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candidate — not someone who just shows up

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and reads out a platform, right? Right, right.

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That creates distance. A lot of residents

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actually want to hear a real voice.

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Yes. The next day, when he sent me the photo,

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I was moved to tears.

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You know, we really have to

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yourself,

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be the best of

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yourself. Be who you are,

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be your best self, and let yourself shine.

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As a woman running for office,

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when you first ran eight
years ago, did your family

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object, or put any obstacles in your way?

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No, I've been quite lucky in that respect.

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My family has been very supportive.

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How is running this year different from

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eight years ago, in terms of mindset?

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First, I'd like to say

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to everyone who has stepped up to run,

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I want to say they

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are truly brave, because when you run,

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you put yourself in the public eye.

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That

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in itself takes courage. So

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I think

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family support in particular

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is very important, because this road

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is hard to begin with.
Without family support,

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the road is bound to be even harder. Yes.

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Chris, you just mentioned

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that your family is very supportive.

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We think you're really lucky.

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Many of my friends' families

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are against it, because in politics

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you're exposed to the public eye,

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right? You have to take responsibility,

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make all kinds of commitments,

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and show

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what you can do for the community.

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It takes a lot of courage to step forward.

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Over such a long time preparing

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for the campaign, were there any low

46
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moments? Times you felt depressed,

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or wanted to give up?

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That's a great question.

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Actually, every one of us,

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not just because of a campaign,

51
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but with pressure from work and life,

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everyone has their low moments.

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And especially in politics,

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when Chinese women step forward, they face

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even more pressure, no doubt about it.

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They'll definitely face more challenges.

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So yes, there were low moments, but

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I've been pretty lucky,

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because I have so many positive friends.

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The encouragement from friends, to me,

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is priceless. It can carry

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you through any darkness.

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Sometimes I feel so grateful.

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I think, how did I get so lucky?

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I'm just an ordinary person.

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What did I do to deserve so many friends

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standing with me, supporting me unconditionally?

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It's truly moving. Sometimes,

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at the campaign office, it's lovely,

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someone comes to pick up signs to help,

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asks what else to do. "Don't go hungry,

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I brought you a box of cookies."

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"Make sure you eat on time."

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Just a simple word of care, but

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it gives you endless strength.

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Of course, my decision to run came

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quite late. By

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September, I had little time to prepare,

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so things were a bit rushed. But

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my friends would all come to me and ask,

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"What do you need help with?

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Tell me what you need.

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Just tell me, and I'll get right on it.

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Do you need a driver? Someone to put up

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signs? Fundraising? Something else?

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Just say the word. I know

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you're busy. I'll take care of it."

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I'm truly grateful.

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Along the way, for example,

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there's an elder in Chinatown

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He's actually quite

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influential in his circle. Once he saw

93
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and said, "I'll put up a sign for you."

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After you gave him the sign,

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he very carefully

96
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placed it in his shop,

97
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in a really prominent spot. For that,

98
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he took his glass display
window, which was old

99
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and maybe not very neat

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or tidy...

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The next day, when he sent me the photo,

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When I dropped it off, it looked one way.

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The next day, when he sent me the photo,

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I was moved to tears, you know?

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He

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cleaned it spotless. He took the glass

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out and set my sign inside. He said,

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"I can't put it outside, it'll get stolen.

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and I'll keep it safe."

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had he known you for a long time?

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We hadn't known each other long. When we met,

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it was our very first meeting. And

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he used his own real,

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practical actions, whatever he could do,

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to genuinely support me.

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It seems your good deeds

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have already lit up many lives.

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And word spreads, from
one to ten to a hundred,

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and then even strangers

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join in to support you.

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He even added a red couplet,

122
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handwritten, like at Chinese New Year,

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wishing me a win. That couplet

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was put up right there — so festive.

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So different from the afternoon before,

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when I dropped it off. Next day he sent

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me a photo. I said, "Oh my goodness."

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I said, a gesture like this must take

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him at least two or three hours.

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For an elder like him

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to be willing, for a younger person,

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to support me like that, it's truly

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heartwarming. The older people are,

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the wiser they are. They can see

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what lies beneath, whether
someone's intentions

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are genuine.

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When he senses that, he's willing

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to do something for what's genuine,

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to contribute in his own way. Yes.

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And today he asked on his own where to vote tomorrow.

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"I'm voting tomorrow," he said. "Tomorrow

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I'll rally my friends to vote too."

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I'm so grateful.

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This campaign has actually been a really good

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experience, letting you feel

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the power of all this warmth and love,

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and it'll strengthen

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your resolve to serve the community.

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In this race, do you think

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if you're elected,

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what's the first policy you'd want to push,

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or which Park Board

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policy would you carry out? Which measure

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do you think is most needed?

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00:05:41,782 --> 00:05:43,900
Personally, I'd still say public safety.

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Public safety.

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Because safety affects

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the quality of life of every one of us.

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If your parks and streets aren't safe,

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no matter how good the
community centre, no one wants

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to go, no one dares to go, right?

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If your community isn't safe,

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the economy can't do well either,

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because the business environment suffers.

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For example, when Chinatown was rough,

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people just wouldn't go there. Over

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the last four years, with our
reforms, Chinatown has improved

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a lot, and people are slowly coming back.

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It's all connected. That's why,

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as Mayor Ken Sim has said,

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if Vancouver could do only one thing,

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we'd definitely focus on public safety.

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because it's a crucial
foundation for the stability

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and prosperity of our whole society.

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You're absolutely right.

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A few years ago,

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an Asian girl in Burnaby's

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Central Park, that incident, right?

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And also,

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the public safety issues in
Vancouver you just mentioned

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really are affecting all

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our communities now. Every community.

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Let me give you a simple example.

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We had a charity

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project, the Leo Club,

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where I was an advisor for three years.

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We'd take the kids

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to pick up litter in the neighbourhood.

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We did it every fall.

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In just two hours,

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cleaning up around one neighbourhood,

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when you check the bags at the end,

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you'd find at least

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twenty or thirty needles.

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Think about it, needles
scattered in parks, right?

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Near schools, they could prick

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a child, a pet, a senior, anyone.

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None of that is okay.

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It's very, very dangerous.

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Your three kids

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00:07:26,029 --> 00:07:29,162
are all in university now, right?

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All in university.

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00:07:30,949 --> 00:07:33,034
In terms of your parenting philosophy,

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what do you think is most important

205
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to nurture in children?

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I think our kids are probably

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much like anyone else's, because Canada's

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system raises kids to be

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quite well-rounded. Maybe what sets

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00:07:49,025 --> 00:07:50,795
ours apart

211
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is that because of my
involvement in politics,

212
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they've absorbed it growing up,

213
00:07:54,575 --> 00:07:57,113
so they care about the
community, and like to take part

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in charity work and volunteering.

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00:07:59,395 --> 00:08:01,108
Especially when they were little,

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many people asked me,
"You're already so busy,

217
00:08:03,647 --> 00:08:05,599
how do you find time for all this?"

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00:08:05,673 --> 00:08:06,192
I said,

219
00:08:06,266 --> 00:08:09,571
"It's simple. My secret
is, I bring them along."

220
00:08:10,183 --> 00:08:12,424
Getting them involved is
great, especially teens.

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00:08:12,461 --> 00:08:14,628
Young people have their own ideas.

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00:08:14,702 --> 00:08:15,804
Because you've brought them
along since they were little,

223
00:08:15,841 --> 00:08:17,859
their teenage struggles are smaller.

224
00:08:18,239 --> 00:08:20,276
They're always with you, so they see Mom

225
00:08:20,313 --> 00:08:21,649
gives a lot to the community, and

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00:08:21,686 --> 00:08:23,043
they respect you from the heart.

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00:08:23,080 --> 00:08:24,487
Because in adolescence, sometimes

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they feel they're all grown up:

229
00:08:25,798 --> 00:08:26,844
"I don't need to listen to you anymore."

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00:08:26,881 --> 00:08:28,834
But if you often take them out

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00:08:28,871 --> 00:08:30,776
into the community, they'll observe,

232
00:08:30,813 --> 00:08:32,443
and deep down they'll respect you.

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00:08:32,480 --> 00:08:34,072
So our kids haven't had much

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00:08:34,109 --> 00:08:36,712
teenage conflict.

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00:08:36,749 --> 00:08:39,174
Some, of course, but not much.

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00:08:39,443 --> 00:08:40,276
Right. So

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00:08:40,350 --> 00:08:43,178
it seems that's part of
your parenting philosophy:

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00:08:43,215 --> 00:08:45,591
bringing your kids to serve the community.

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00:08:45,665 --> 00:08:47,516
Yes, yes, yes. And I also

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00:08:47,553 --> 00:08:49,885
often encourage them. I tell them

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00:08:49,922 --> 00:08:52,230
our society is diverse.

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00:08:52,813 --> 00:08:55,151
You can't make everyone like

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00:08:55,188 --> 00:08:57,933
you, that's just hard. But always be

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00:08:58,248 --> 00:08:58,952
yourself,

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00:08:59,304 --> 00:09:00,483
be the best of

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00:09:00,520 --> 00:09:01,869
yourself. Be who you are,

247
00:09:01,906 --> 00:09:04,044
be your best self, and let yourself shine.

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00:09:04,081 --> 00:09:05,526
Then, naturally,

249
00:09:05,563 --> 00:09:07,044
you'll build a circle of friends

250
00:09:07,081 --> 00:09:08,916
full of positive energy. As
for people who don't like

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00:09:08,953 --> 00:09:10,526
you, just let them keep their distance.

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00:09:10,600 --> 00:09:11,387
Right.

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00:09:12,081 --> 00:09:13,665
So powerful. Be yourself.

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00:09:14,693 --> 00:09:16,461
Yes, this really is...

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00:09:16,970 --> 00:09:18,961
Only such a wise mother could raise

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00:09:18,998 --> 00:09:21,601
such outstanding kids.
Talking with you today,

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00:09:21,638 --> 00:09:23,313
I've learned so much. Thank you.