I thought Jerry would live forever so I never managed to get all the details of hisextraordinary life. It was complicated by the fact that he always had some unknown newpiece of the story that distracted me from getting more details about the last story. Whoknew that he had lived in Brazil? But when I think of him I always imagine a young mangoing off with his mates to MIT and getting stranded in Cambridge MA for the duration ofthe Second World War and needing to be the banker to his friends when they were all cut offfrom funds from home. The same friends that decades later would make up the raucousgroup of old men driving around France trying out every Michelin starred restaurant theycould get into. After finally getting home to China after the war, he had to leave homeagain for HK. I never asked him how he got through all the upheaval. I wish I had. But hewas more likely to enthusiastically talk about “real” Shanghainese cuisine. He packed somuch into a life like no other, but ultimately it was his inspiring generosity that made himsuch a pleasure to be with. Even my mother who only had dinner with him once was struckby the richness of his life. I’m glad I had the chance to get to know him — he was truly amensch.