After witnessing the beheading of his uncle, a very young Doc Ping and his family escaped from China on foot in fear for their lives. They left everything behind, including his father's position in the nationalist Chinese government and all of their possessions, and fled the country—first to Bangkok, and then to Taiwan. When Doc was nine, his father secretly arranged for him to travel on a freighter with 15 other civilians to the USA to live with the woman who helped resuscitate him from drowning a few years earlier. Instead of offering him a better life, the woman was abusive, and after leaving her home, Doc lived in four more foster homes before joining the US Marine Corps after high school. In the marines, Doc played football in Japan before deploying to Vietnam to fight for his country. Following his time in the Marine Corps, Doc earned a master's degree, coached Little League baseball, worked as an assistant principal, became a master of Jishukan-Ryu Jujitsu, and founded his own professional sports agency representing NFL players.

As a result of the (highly) eventful life he's led, more than one of Doc’s friends have referred to him as a “real life” Forrest Gump—and they might be right. Both overcame difficult childhoods, achieved athletic glory, fought for their country in Vietnam and shook JFK's hand. Both then went on to achieve great things in life, including finding love and having a family. The main difference here is that Forrest Gump is a work of fiction. Doc’s stories, on the other hand, are actual accounts of his real life. This memoir contains some of the compelling stories from his remarkable journey.