A couple in their 60s from Taipei last year had their first children, a twin boy and girl.
Chao Hsiang-chen (趙祥珍), 63, works on the customer service desk of the Taipei City Government Water Department.
For a long time, Chao and her husband, 64, did not plan on having children.
Photo: Chen Wei-tzu, Taipei Times
“My husband did not want children. He said raising kids would be an extra burden,” Chao said.
Two years ago, the couple went on holiday to China. Their relatives and friends persuaded them to try to have a baby because the couple is still in good health. So after returning to Taiwan, the couple decided to try for a child.
“We just decided to let nature take its course, if it happens, it happens,” Chao said.
At the age of 62 last year, Chao became pregnant and gave birth to healthy twins.
“They are the most precious gift the gods have given to me,” she said.
Chao now regrets not getting pregnant earlier and is encouraging women to start having children at a younger age.
“When doctors told me I was pregnant I could not believe the news,” she said.
“During my pregnancy, I did not feel any discomfort. Maybe it’s because I accompanied my mother on hikes in the mountains every day when I was young,” she said.
“Two days after giving birth, I got out of bed and did some exercise. Soon I was back home and out shopping for groceries at the local market,” she added.
She said her babies, Chen Feng (陳鳳), the girl, and Chen Lung (陳龍), the boy, do not cry often and only make sounds to indicate they are hungry and want to be fed.
A series of discussions on the legacy of martial law and authoritarianism are to be held at the Taipei International Book Exhibition this month, featuring findings and analysis by the Transitional Justice Commission. The commission and publisher Book Republic organized the series, entitled “Escaping the Nation’s Labyrinth of Memory: What Authoritarian Symbols and Records Can Tell Us,” to help people navigate narratives through textual analysis and comparisons with other nations. The four-day series is to begin on Thursday next week with a discussion between commission Chairwoman Yang Tsui (楊翠), Polish-language translator Lin Wei-yun (林蔚昀), and Polish author and artist Pawel Gorecki comparing
TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT: A US Air Force KC-135 tanker came less than 1,000 feet of an EVA plane and was warned off by a Taipei air traffic controller, a report said A US aerial refueling aircraft came very close to an EVA Airways jet in the airspace over southern Taiwan, a military aviation news Web site said. A report published by Alert 5 on Tuesday said that automatic dependent surveillance–broadcast (ADS-B) data captured by planfinder.net on Wednesday last week showed a US Air Force KC-135 tanker “coming less than 1,000 feet [305m] vertically with EVA Air flight BR225 as both aircraft crossed path south of Taiwan” that morning. The report included an audio recording of a female controller from the Taipei air traffic control center telling the unidentified aircraft that it was
MOVING OUT: A former professor said that rent and early education costs in Taipei are the nation’s highest, which makes it difficult for young people to start families The population of Taipei last year fell to the lowest in 23 years due to high rent, more transportation options and the expansion of northern cities into a single metropolis, academics and city officials said on Monday. Data released this month by the Ministry of the Interior showed that the capital was home to 2,602,418 people last year, down 42,623 from 2019. The decline is second only to 1993, when the population fell by 42,828 people, while Taipei’s population was the lowest it has been since 1997. Taipei saw the biggest drop among the six special municipalities, while Taoyuan led the group in
‘EFFECTIVE DETERRENCE’: If the Biden administration suspends arms sales to Taiwan, the military could still ready a nimble fighting force for defense, an analyst said The “US Strategic Framework for the Indo-Pacific” last week sparked debate among analysts after US President Donald Trump declassified the document 20 years ahead of schedule. Trump on Tuesday last week released the document that had governed US strategic action in the region since the US leader approved its use in 2018. The document, which outlines US priorities in the region, emphasizes the importance of defending Taiwan against military aggression and facilitating the country’s development of asymmetric strategies and capabilities. The overall directive of the document is for the US to prevent China from establishing sustained air and sea dominance inside the first
RSS