Ellen P. Lea is a Floridian artist who specializes in conceptual illustrations based on society, portraits, cover designs, and viz-dev. She loves food, dogs, and her two beautiful younger siblings. Although her days are busy, she enjoys contributing to great causes with her illustrations when life needs them. She finds Inheritance magazine an inspirational part of her life due to her once being a lost, questioning soul herself, who now has found her true self. You can find her at: ellencreative.com.
How Capitalism Echoes the BibleAs a Chinese American female and the oldest of 12 children who lived in one of the poorest sections in Chicago, I did not grow up having the latest clothes or toys that were flung at us in television commercials.
Yick Wo and the Good SamaritanWe owe a lot to Yick Wo. By we, I mean Asians living in the United States, whether we’re citizens or not. And by Yick Wo, I mean the man who went to jail for running a laundromat in a wooden building.
Erasing MarginsI once asked my mom, “Why is it that so many of the models in Malaysian advertisements are white or Eurasian?” “It’s the colonial mindset,” she replied.
From Nepal with LoveI received a call from my Kaki (aunt in Nepalese) in Nepal the other day. It seems she is feeling unwell again, and I am worried her body is becoming weaker day by day.
One Pot of RiceAfter graduating from college, I bought a one-way ticket to South Korea. A professor had invited me and two close friends to join a radical progressive group of activists in Incheon, where they were looking for English teachers.
Leaving the RoadI always feel like I am translating the latest leadership advice to make it useful. I rarely identify with the opportunities or challenges that these leaders discuss at length.
I Am the One PercentMy grandparents, the first generation in my family to immigrate to the U.S. from Hong Kong, ran multiple restaurants and were considered middle-class. Although they were not rich, they were able to save enough money to invest in real estate where they used most of that money for their current retirement.
Imagining Beyond the Bottom LineI was too close to the edge of my seat not to fall out, and when I finally did, my partner next to me returned my grin. The film we were watching had my support long before I walked through the movie theater doors, but seeing someone who looked just a little bit like me drew me deeper into the story.
Gut CheckWhen I was about 7 years old, I remember feeling very distraught as I questioned why houses in the hills were much nicer than the houses on the boulevard. Our home overlooked Echo Park and downtown Los Angeles, and we could hear the roar of a Dodgers game and see fireworks from the stadium on certain occasions.
Capitalism’s Murky CompassI’m currently being trained as a Christian social ethicist in a doctoral program. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned so far is that although Christians often assume we “already know” how to discern right from wrong making ethical choices is more complicated than we think.
Do No Harm in a Broken System?Our health care system is broken. Few, if any, would disagree, though some might argue the extent of its brokenness.
Moving from Guilt to ResponsibilityI recently moved to New York for my first job. For the first time in my life, I am somewhat financially comfortable. Yesterday, a direct deposit into my savings account made me feel independent and safe from having extra money sitting around.
Faith in ActionOver 20 years ago, as a freshly minted lawyer at what was then known as the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, I was fortunate to work on a landmark case under the mentorship of Julie Su, representing 80 Thai workers who had been enslaved behind barbed wire in an El Monte sweatshop and forced to sew garments for some of the nation’s leading manufacturers and retailers.
Embracing Inconvenience“You know you’ve made it into the Mann family when you start washing Ziploc bags to save some plastic.” I laughed at my brother-in-law as we both stared at the dripping Ziploc bags hanging from the kitchen sink handle.
Minimalist TeachingFacebook recently showed a picture of me as a special education teacher in my very first classroom almost a decade back. When I looked at this image, all I could focus on was all the stuff.
Dumplings and Benjamin FranklinRussell Jeung says Chinese people can speak two love languages fluently: food and sacrifice.
An Ode to My Melancholy MilitantsI have vivid memories of Victory Outreach Church while growing up in northeast Spokane, Washington. Although I was not a congregant, the building that Victory Outreach was housed in was unforgettable, primarily because of the murals it featured on the exterior of the building.
How Capitalism Echoes the BibleAs a Chinese American female and the oldest of 12 children who lived in one of the poorest sections in Chicago, I did not grow up having the latest clothes or toys that were flung at us in television commercials.
Yick Wo and the Good SamaritanWe owe a lot to Yick Wo. By we, I mean Asians living in the United States, whether we’re citizens or not. And by Yick Wo, I mean the man who went to jail for running a laundromat in a wooden building.
Erasing MarginsI once asked my mom, “Why is it that so many of the models in Malaysian advertisements are white or Eurasian?” “It’s the colonial mindset,” she replied.
From Nepal with LoveI received a call from my Kaki (aunt in Nepalese) in Nepal the other day. It seems she is feeling unwell again, and I am worried her body is becoming weaker day by day.
One Pot of RiceAfter graduating from college, I bought a one-way ticket to South Korea. A professor had invited me and two close friends to join a radical progressive group of activists in Incheon, where they were looking for English teachers.
Leaving the RoadI always feel like I am translating the latest leadership advice to make it useful. I rarely identify with the opportunities or challenges that these leaders discuss at length.
I Am the One PercentMy grandparents, the first generation in my family to immigrate to the U.S. from Hong Kong, ran multiple restaurants and were considered middle-class. Although they were not rich, they were able to save enough money to invest in real estate where they used most of that money for their current retirement.
Imagining Beyond the Bottom LineI was too close to the edge of my seat not to fall out, and when I finally did, my partner next to me returned my grin. The film we were watching had my support long before I walked through the movie theater doors, but seeing someone who looked just a little bit like me drew me deeper into the story.
Gut CheckWhen I was about 7 years old, I remember feeling very distraught as I questioned why houses in the hills were much nicer than the houses on the boulevard. Our home overlooked Echo Park and downtown Los Angeles, and we could hear the roar of a Dodgers game and see fireworks from the stadium on certain occasions.
Capitalism’s Murky CompassI’m currently being trained as a Christian social ethicist in a doctoral program. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned so far is that although Christians often assume we “already know” how to discern right from wrong making ethical choices is more complicated than we think.
Do No Harm in a Broken System?Our health care system is broken. Few, if any, would disagree, though some might argue the extent of its brokenness.
Moving from Guilt to ResponsibilityI recently moved to New York for my first job. For the first time in my life, I am somewhat financially comfortable. Yesterday, a direct deposit into my savings account made me feel independent and safe from having extra money sitting around.
Faith in ActionOver 20 years ago, as a freshly minted lawyer at what was then known as the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, I was fortunate to work on a landmark case under the mentorship of Julie Su, representing 80 Thai workers who had been enslaved behind barbed wire in an El Monte sweatshop and forced to sew garments for some of the nation’s leading manufacturers and retailers.
Embracing Inconvenience“You know you’ve made it into the Mann family when you start washing Ziploc bags to save some plastic.” I laughed at my brother-in-law as we both stared at the dripping Ziploc bags hanging from the kitchen sink handle.
Minimalist TeachingFacebook recently showed a picture of me as a special education teacher in my very first classroom almost a decade back. When I looked at this image, all I could focus on was all the stuff.
Dumplings and Benjamin FranklinRussell Jeung says Chinese people can speak two love languages fluently: food and sacrifice.
An Ode to My Melancholy MilitantsI have vivid memories of Victory Outreach Church while growing up in northeast Spokane, Washington. Although I was not a congregant, the building that Victory Outreach was housed in was unforgettable, primarily because of the murals it featured on the exterior of the building.
