Happy Lunar New Year!

We used to take loads of pictures with Piri like this {where we're making a bunch of silly faces}, but not so much anymore. He kinda gets over it way before we start taking pictures. Hey.. I say.. if you're 80+ years in human age, you can do and care about whatever the heck you like. 

Today is Lunar New Year - Year of the Monkey. It's called Gu Jung in Korean.

We aren't really big on celebrating {although it is a pretty big holiday in Korea} but we like to acknowledge it and we usually make ddduk guk as well (even though we eat it also on January 1). Today though, there is no dduk guk {too lazy to make}, but we think we'll stop by the Korean market to pick up some rice cakes {I love the ones with honey inside}.

As a kid, I remember going to the countryside for Gu Jung where my grandparents lived and there was always something good to eat. All the kids played freely outside from morning to night, roaming the alleyways that was filled with old fashioned homes that had windows and doors made with wood and rice paper. The air was crisp and slapped our skin and we all ended up with bright rosy cheeks. It was so vastly different than playing in playgrounds in the city. So much better, although I probably didn't realize it back then.

The biggest event though came when we all got dressed in hanbok and bowed {full body bow} to all the adults and in return we got envelopes filled with money. I'm not sure if there was a favorite uncle or aunt who gave especially larger sums of money -- I don't think I cared too much about getting money and I didn't fancy wearing a hanbok either. I remember being embarrassed to wear it for some reason.

I am far away from family now to celebrate in this way, but I am thankful for my childhood and the memories I have of it. I sit here recalling back to the sights and sounds and the first thing that I feel is gratitude and appreciation that I had the opportunity to experience something like this and remember it enough to be able to retell it. 

I'll probably end up talking about it again with Yangkyu and we will end up comparing how different and similar our Gu Jung with family was. 

Happy Lunar New Year or as we say in Korean Sae Hae Bok Mani Bat Ue Sae Yo {wishing you lots of luck in the New Year}. 

TBT: My grandmother. Date unknown. Somewhere in Korea.

This is my mom's mother. My grandmother. I never met her and only heard a couple of stories about her. And I just realized, I don't even know her name.

She had my mom when she was old - I mentioned before that by the time my mom was born, her oldest brother was old enough to be her dad. In fact, his daughter, I believe, was born around the same time as my mom. 

My brother met her when he was little but I don't think he has any recollection of her. I think when she passed away it was hard on my mom. It's not something she outwardly told me, it's just an inkling I have. While she had her older sister to lean on, I think my mom leaned on her own mom the most.

When I was a kid, and even now, I loved cold buckwheat noodle soup, or neng myun in Korean. Any time we were out, whether it was summer or winter, all I wanted was that. I recall my mom always saying how my grandmother would've loved seeing me eat neng myun so well. My grandmother loved neng myun, too. And my mom also added that my grandmother would've made me her famous Pyongyang {yes, Pyongyang as in North Korea Pyongyang} style neng myun just for me. 

My mother's family was originally from the northern part of Korea. That was before a random line, the 38th parallel, was drawn that would split Korea into two, North and South. Right before the war broke out, my mom's family came down to the southern part of Korea and took refuge there. A few months ago my mom told me this wild tale about their trek down and how their family unfortunately got split up but then was reunited by a miracle -- something to do with her oldest son and how he was able to get an army vehicle to help them.  I just don't know whether I can believe her or not. It just feels like the whole story is made up from her illness, but a small part of me thinks, what if she's telling the truth?

When I see so much hated, ignorance and mockery spurred at the people of North Korea, for being backward and almost delusional, my heart sinks with sadness. I think people, even those who live in South Korea, forget that we are all the same. We are one. We are all Korean. Not South Korean or North Korean, but Korean. That for some of us, we may still have family there. The whole Korean War and it still being divided in two is a sad story, one that started with greed and politics. And inbetween were families who were separated. When I think about my grandmother and my mom's wider family, I wonder if I too have distant relatives who I may never get to know, who live in a part of the country where the entire world seems to think it's ok to mock and degrade. That makes me sad.

 // Linking up with Want / Need

Halloween.

My first Halloween was in 1986. I was in the 2nd grade. I had no idea what this holiday was about. My family had come to the US from Korea in August of that year and so we were learning a lot about different things in our new surroundings. 

I was a bunny that year. My costume was homemade. My mother put me in a white cardigan and sewed a rabbit's tail on my skirt. She topped the costume off with rabbit ears we picked up at Toys"R"Us. I remember liking my costume but once I saw what other kids were wearing I remember not liking it so much. I wanted what the other kids had -- the plastic looking pumpkin and ghost costumes from Party City. It didn't particularly look nice but it was just what everyone else was doing. Oh how I look back and think how ungrateful I was. 

Halloween was never particularly my favorite holiday. I think I stopped dressing up after 6th grade and did once more in my senior year of high school. We haven't had trick or treaters come by where we lived in so many years that I forgot what it felt like to hand candy out. 

Maybe it's the feeling of finally being rooted somewhere {our new home} but I've been getting kind of into the Halloween spirit. We were going to dress up but probably won't, but instead we dressed our home up a little. We also have candy once more and think that there is a good chance we'll have trick or treaters. I am guessing that there will be a lot of Elsas, Annas and Olafs. But by golly Halloween better come around quickly because I may just finish all our candy before it does. 

PS -- My favorite Halloween costumes as of late are the ones where people mash up names. Like.. Stevie Wonder Woman or Pee Wee Herman Munster or Carrot Top Chef. Oh I also saw a I Love Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds costume floating around the Internet somewhere. If you could, what would you do for a mash up costume? 

"i'll wait for santa right here"

piri has claimed the tree skirt as his and will wait for santa to bring him his wish list right here. he won't move until he sees the bearded man in a red suit. 

one christmas when i was younger, in korea, my brother and i waited up on christmas eve to see santa claus. we were so determined. we brought out all our toys to play with so we wouldn't fall asleep. i think we put our mama in a predicament because she promised that he would drop by at the stroke of midnight. she thought we would surely fall asleep. but mamas are clever. and she had a counter plan.

at around 11:30 pm she told us that we would have so much more fun if we played in my room instead of the living room where our papa was watching tv. so off we went. and being little kids that we were we lost track of time. we ran out to the living room wide eyed and asked if santa came by. mama said "why yes! he came and dropped off these presents but he was so busy he had to go without saying hello. but he says you two have been very good. and merry christmas!"

we were stunned. first because there was a pile of presents that we didn't see before, and two, because we missed him. we kept saying "mama, but you should've stopped him~~" and asked where he parked his big ole sleigh. she said on our balcony. we believed her every word.

i don't remember everything i got, but i do remember a getting a dog toy {it barked} and a teddy bear from steiff, which i named bennie. i still have him to this day. i remember my brother got one of those cool mechanical pencil holders and a robot. 

i will never forget this christmas. it was magical. and i hope that whenever i have kids, i will be as clever as my own mama. we really thought santa came that night. 

// linking up with blogpaws wordless wednesday bloghop.