When my mother talks about her childhood in Korea, she often recounts stories that seem, while not exactly typical by US standards, at least not really out of the ordinary. Falling off her bicycle while learning to ride, and my overprotective grandfather then forbidding her from ever riding again. Visiting a family-owned candy factory in …
My dad tells me that he was granted leave at one point. He had not heard from my mom since they were separated outside Pusan, when he was forcibly enlisted into the army of the Republic of Korea. So he decided that during his leave he would try to find her, and my sister, and …
One afternoon, a few years ago, I sat with my dad at the McDonald’s in downtown Flushing. It was then that my dad told me the story of our family’s flight south at the outbreak of the Korean War. After World War II, my family lived close to the border between North and South, in …
I read three articles in today’s paper that referenced either Korea or Korean heritage: Navies of Two Koreas Exchange Fire – Ironic on the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Korea remains divided and seemingly farther away from unification.When I think of this division between the two Koreas, I think of my mother, …
I called my dad today. He started our conversation, as he always does, by telling me we had a bad connection. When in reality, my dad needs hearing aids but refuses to get them. My dad’s auditory denial drives my brother Sam crazy. Me? I feel like when you’ve lived 80+ years, you’ve earned the …