I am grateful to the motherland and the people. I feel honored to fly into space on behalf of hundreds of millions of female Chinese citizens.

Thank you for the confidence put in my by the motherland and the people, for giving me this chance to represent China's millions of women by going into space.

For a long time, men weren't respecting women. They weren't understanding Mother Earth, Mother Nature, the Motherland, all the motherly stuff. And now we are.

Mothers have always held such symbolic weight in determining a person's worth. Your mother tongue, your motherland, your mother's values - these things can qualify or disqualify you from attaining myriad American dreams: love, fluency, citizenship, legitimacy, acceptance, success, freedom.

Motherland is a blessing, a gift, sometimes fatiguing, often strange and infuriating when politicians wipe their hands clean of any responsibility.