Hey friends! Believe it or not, I’m actually a pretty private person. But – in support of my effort to open up and share my story God’s story with the world, I thought I would start by sharing a few fun, random things about myself! I was born on the 16th and I happened to come up with 16 fun facts, so here we go!
#1. My name “Christine” is Greek, meaning “Follower of Christ.” My parents wanted my name to include “Christ” and chose my middle name “Diana” (Latin for “divine”) after Lady Diana, Princess of Wales. They adored her and were actually scheduled to meet her at dinner aboard a cruise liner right before she passed away. (Also, my sister’s middle name is “Grace” after Princess Grace of Monaco. We love the royal family!)
#2. I’m a “fewer but deeper” person. I love intentional quality time and deep conversations, and am so grateful for my amazing family and life-giving circles of friends. But it often surprises people to learn I’m also an “extroverted introvert” and need lots of down time to recharge!
#3. If I could have any job in the world, I would want to be a professional dancer and choreographer on Dancing With the Stars! Or I would settle for being a contestant. My hashtag would be #TeamTango.
#4. I have really wild dreams and actually remember most of them. Typically, I’m either some type of animal, or I’m pregnant. In my dreams, I have given birth to a melon, laid a giant golden egg, and had a set of tiny triplets who were all wrapped in aluminum foil like little baked potatoes.
#5. A few of my favorite things: Downton Abbey, handwritten letters, candles (I admit I have a “candle budget”), cooking and hosting dinner parties, Disney movies, wrapping and giving gifts, Mommy/Daughter dates with my sweet mom, Italian and Mediterranean food, traveling, my 5 o’clock tea time, pistol-shooting with my grandfather, Christmas (I LOVE Christmas. My tree goes up in October, I’m one of those people!), and late-night chats with friends with homemade treats and cozy blankets!
#6. I had straight A’s in college until getting a B in an elective called “Weight Control.” No, it wasn’t because I couldn’t control my weight. It was because of all my tardies . . . Oops.
#7. My favorite Disney Princess is Cinderella. The most classic and timeless of all! Whenever I was little and my parents had to put me in time-out, I had a little red chair in the corner of the dining room and I would sweep the floor with my little toddler-sized broom and sing “In My Own Little Corner” from Rogers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella. Then my parents would kindly remind me that I was in time-out and that I could sing after it was over! (Haha). But the princess most like my personality would probably be Jasmine. Or Moana. I love trailblazers.
#8. Each year instead of making New Year’s resolutions, I ask God for a “Word of the Year.” My favorite word that He ever gave me was for 2019 – “BEHOLD.” He taught me so much through that one single word . . . more on that to come!
#9. One of my worst habits: except for work, I’m never on time. I’m usually 10-15 minutes late to everything. (As you can see from #6). My family and friends will trick me by telling me to arrive earlier, so then I end up being “on time.” It sometimes works!
#10. My great-grandfather, Khan Ling, was a royal descendant of the Qing Dynasty of China. His grandmother was a princess and the granddaughter of Emperor Xianfeng. She married the royal commander of the Imperial Army which unfolded into an extraordinary story! My aunt wrote and published a book on our family history called The Rising Son.
#11. My friends joke that God gave me the spiritual gift of organization. Every drawer, cabinet, and closet is so precisely organized and labeled, I can get things done in the dark pretty easily if there’s ever a power outage!
#12. Growing up, my sister and I had two female sister hamsters named Popcorn and Carmel . . . or so we thought. Carmel turned out to be a boy. We accidentally bred over fifty hamsters and sold them for five dollars each at our elementary school.
#13. When I was in Jerusalem with my family visiting the Holy Land, a stranger asked for my hand in marriage. In exchange, he said he would give my family 70 camels. After I politely declined, he said he would give them 100 camels and flocks of sheep. Ummm, thank you but still no thank you!
#14. I’ve traveled to 19 countries and among my favorites were Spain, China, and Turkey. Still on my bucket list: Singapore, Monaco, Abu Dhabi, and Egypt.
#15. In 2001, my dad was named “Plano Father of the Year.” I grew up watching The Brady Bunch and my favorite episode was when Marcia wrote an essay about her dad, Mike Brady, and he won “Father of the Year.” When I was in 5th grade, the City of Plano held a similar competition and I wrote an essay how my dad completed our family by bringing my baby sister home. He was so surprised when people showed up at our house to share he was a Finalist, and even more humbled when he was awarded the honor at a black-tie gala a few weeks later. To this day, he is the most humble, faithful, hardworking, sacrificial man I’ve ever known and am so grateful for how he loves and leads our family so well.
#16. If I could relive any thirty seconds of my life, it would be when I was five years old and I met my adopted baby sister Carolyn for the first time. I accepted Christ when I was five and then spent the next few months specifically praying for a baby sister. Little did I know God was working behind the scenes in the most extraordinary way to write our family’s story!
Irene Tang says
LOVE IT !!! And not because I’m biased! May God be so glorified as you touch and bless lives through your powerful messages!!!!