Harvard University

I stood frozen in the produce aisle at ShopRite, wondering which of the five varieties of oranges to buy. Valencia, blood orange, organic, Florida navel—what were the differences? When I asked my mom which variety she was looking for, she responded curtly, "It's your choice. Pick what you want." The thing was, I didn't know what I wanted. For my parents, this level of freedom—even in the orange section of the grocery store—is somewhat unique to the United States. The lingering policies of the Cultural Revolution in 1970s China dictated life choices for my parents; growing up in poverty, their…