Waves - Joanna Jung

As a Korean American, born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennslyvania and currently living in Boston, Massachusetts, I have had a turbulent relationship between my American and Korean side my whole life. From the beginning of my life, I felt Korean was what I only knew, what my tongue only knew. I thought in Korean, I was spoken to in Korean and ate Korean food. When I began going to pre-school, I felt scared and almost alienated because I only socialized with my parents and my brother who both spoke the same tongue as me. I remember my first day at school feeling terrified and holding onto my dad’s coat asking him to not leave. Fast forward to 2 years, 3 years, 4 years, 5 years and so on later, I feel a disconnect between myself and who I am as a Korean.

I cannot blame anyone but the almost feeling of survival I felt when I attended pre-school, a feeling of wanting to fit in and wanting to feel like I was part of a community despite not truly being aware of these feelings until later in life. Because I was the only Asian girl in my class, and one of the other handful Asians’ in my entire school, I stuck out like a sore thumb. How different would my life be if I lived in Korea? If my family was strict about following Korean traditions? This is what I’m curious about.

1. the transmission of customs or beliefs from generation to generation, or the fact of being passed on in this way.

돌잡이

The highlight of the dol is a custom called the doljabi where the child is placed in front of a table of foods and objects such as string, paint or calligraphy brushes, ink, and money. The child is then urged to pick up an object from the table. It is believed the one selected will foretell the child’s future. For example, if the child picks up a paint/calligraphy brush or book, they are destined to be smart.

If they pick up money, they will be wealthy; If they pick up food, they will not be hungry. If the child picks up the thread, it is believed they will live a long life. These items were used by most households in the past.

The types of objects placed on the table for the baby to choose has evolved over time as a reflection of society’s evolving perception of successful occupations. However, there are many parents who remain more traditional in their selection of objects to place on the table. A sea of items could be used to create a modern doljabi set whereas specific items are necessary to create a traditional doljabi set.

Doljabi is followed by feasting, singing, and playing with the toddler. Most often, guests will present gifts of money, clothes, or gold rings to the parents for the child at this time.

The tradition of eating seaweed soup during birthday celebrations, which started during the Goryeo dynasty, is believed to originate when people observed that whales who just gave birth eat seaweeds.

the korean wave

HALLYU 오나라 오나라 아주 오나∼ 가다라 가다라 아주 가나∼ 나나니 다려도 못 노나니~ 아니리 아니리 아니 노네∼ 헤이야 디이야 헤이야다라 니노∼ 오지도 못하나 다려가마∼

“So to all the students here today, this is the Korea your generation will inherit. And I believe there’s no limits to what our two nations can achieve together. For like your parents and grandparents before you, you know that the future is what we make of it.

And you know that in our digital age, we can connect and innovate across borders like never before -- with your smart phones and Twitter and Me2Day and Kakao Talk.

(Laughter and applause.) It’s no wonder so many people around the world have caught the Korean Wave,

Hallyu.”

Korean Dramas or “K-Dramas” I believe were one of the ways I rode the waves of hallyu. I remember the days my mom would play K-dramas and I would lie down next to her watching these shows that had such interesting visuals that stood alone and kept me interested.

The wave for me was almost sudden, catching my interest so quickly but then as time went by, the wave became calmer and more inconsistent. And thats ok!

I believe that all the times the wave brought me back in were unexpected times of needing a time to appreciate my culture.

Thank you to my grandfather for gifting me the whole disc set of the drama “Dae Jang Geum,” or “Jewel of the Palace” one summer that he visited me and my family in Boston. I remember being so immersed in the drama and borrowing my mother’s laptop to slide the discs in and out many times just so I could watch the whole series as fast as I could. Not only did hallyu bring Korean entertainment around the world in a giant wave, but it gave me the connection back to my culture that I did not realize that I truly longed for. Thank you grandpa I will always c h e r i s h this gift.

in memory of 아빠

Sandoll MyeongjoNeo1 Sandoll MyeongjoNeo 1 Sandoll Bely Noh Optique Apple SD Gothic Neo BC Liguria

Designed by Joanna Jung at Boston University