Taiwanese child Internet sensation Ming Ming grows up

Ming Ming, the famed Taiwanese child who once caused a global Internet sensation with her faceless ghost costume from the animation Spirited Away, has grown significantly in the seven years since that event. Now nine years old, Ming Ming is in her third year of primary school and consistently ranks within the top five of her class.

Ming Ming originally rose to fame in 2016 when she wore a meticulously crafted costume to her school’s Halloween event, causing her shocked classmates to burst into tears.

This extra effort put into her costumes has become a yearly tradition, with Ming Ming’s mother investing in distinctive outfits for her and her younger sister every Halloween. Last year, Ming Ming even started designing her own costumes and bravely participated in her school’s costume contest.

Ming Ming’s mother describes her daughters as extremely close, despite their contrasting personalities. Ming Ming’s younger sister, a Sagittarius, is a cheerful chatterbox who never misses a day without telling her mother, “I love you so much.”

Ming Ming, on the other hand, is less expressive with her emotions but finds ways to care for her mother, such as secretly buying small presents and creating treasure maps for her mother to follow.

The parents encourage their daughters to explore a range of activities, from modern dance and ballet to surfing, piano, golf, and rock climbing. The family’s parenting philosophy is not to over-explain but to let the children explore and understand little by little, experiencing life for themselves.

Ten seconds

This approach extends to their studies; rather than forcing them, they choose to listen, follow, and respect their decisions, reported Sanook.

Whenever she finds herself losing patience with her children, Ming Ming’s mother takes a deep breath for ten seconds to calm her emotions before addressing the issue.

For instance, when her daughter persistently resisted swimming lessons and always found reasons to miss classes, she had to confront her psychology. The mother patiently explained that besides learning to swim, the more important lesson is learning to overcome difficulties, confront oneself, resist pressure, and solve problems.

Ming Ming’s mother believes that spending more time understanding her children has helped them to become more empathetic, self-loving, and confident in expressing their opinions. This has, in turn, reduced conflicts between the parents and the children.

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