Her mom, who lived nearby, called every day and visited regularly. "Even though I didn't grow up with her, she was a very integral part of my life." And they've become even closer in recent years, as Ling recognized regular turbulence in her own romantic relationships and began seeing a psychologist to discern the source of her fears of abandonment.
"My therapist asked about my upbringing and my mother and her upbringing and people I didn't know anything about," explains Ling. "So I started asking questions." She subsequently learned that her grandfather, now deceased, ran a number of brothels in Taiwan in the 1930s and '40s and had three wives—his first being Ling's maternal grandmother. Ling is now writing a book on her family history, and has even traveled to Taiwan to do research, her mother in tow.
"When she first told me she wanted to write this book I felt a little resistant," Mary Ling confesses. "I choose to block my memory of my childhood because it's a past I don't really want to know. But Lisa said it would be very healthy for us and actually, it hasn't been too bad."
Her daughter does recognize that dredging up the family's past has been painful, but maintains that the experience has been therapeutic for everyone. "When you take the time to understand why your parents did the things they did, you stand a good chance of learning more about your own behavior. We are such a product of our upbringing and environment."
As for Ling's own environment, it changed drastically after she announced her departure from The View. Now based in Washington, D.C., she is traveling internationally to create hour-long documentaries on issues such as China's AIDS crisis and the conflict in Colombia for National Geographic Explorer on MSNBC. And though it was hard to walk away from the strong friendships she's fostered at ABC, she's ecstatic about her return to investigative reporting.
"I've been so disenchanted with the apathy amongst young people for what's going on around the world," Ling explains. "Our generation will inevitably assume the problems our country is faced with, and we are so ill-equipped to do so. My hope is that I can somehow raise the level of consciousness about world events." And given her youth—she's only 29—single status and carpe diem philosophy, there's no time like the present to be trotting the globe.
"Our time on Earth is so random," she concludes. "Try to accomplish things you have always dreamt of while you can. I know it sounds cliché, but the biggest lesson I have learned is that life is precious; enjoy it while it lasts."
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