January 27, 2003
7:24 P.M. In my dorm room, room temperature but warm and sunny outside.
People Present: My two roommates and I
I ask one of my roommates if I could interview her and she agrees. I take notes as we speak in English.
The family celebration that she is describing to me is New Years Day, or Sŏlnal. The time that she remembers is when she was seven and lived in Northern California. She celebrated in her aunt’s apartment with her family. (aunts, uncles, grandparents, parents, sisters, and cousins) She remembers that the adults wore hanbok and the children wore dresses. She remembers that the children had to bow to their elders and say “saehaebok manhi patŭseyo.” (Happy New Year) In return, the elders would give them advice for the New Year such as, “study hard.” Another thing she remembers is that she ate a lot of Korean food at her aunt’s house. (i.e. ttŭkkuk) This was usually prepared by the women of the family. Her sisters were also there, one older and one younger. Her little sister couldn’t bow because she was too young. My roommate didn’t want to bow because she was shy. So her father got angry and told her to bow. My roommate then cried, but now realizes that it was probably because he wanted her to show respect and also because he was embarrassed that she didn’t want to bow. She also remembers that the adults would sit in couples. For example, her parents would sit together, then her aunt and uncle who were married would sit together to receive a bow, etc. Now, she doesn’t celebrate New Year’s Day so formally because her relatives live so far away. Once in a while, she celebrates with just her immediate family. She also celebrates Chinese New Year (lunar new year) and eats ttŭkkuk on that day also. When I asked her whether she would consider celebrating this tradition in the future when she has her own family, she said yes. Whether or not her future husband is Korean, she plans on celebrating New Year’s Day with her parents. Thus, she plans on celebrating it just as she did.
She was born in Seoul, Korea and moved to America when she was 8 months old. She went back twice: 1) after 1st grade: went in the summer, met her relatives, she remembers it being hot and there being a lot of mosquitoes.
2) after 4th grade: went in the summer and attended school there but hated it because she couldn’t speak Korean very well and the teachers spanked her. However, all the kids liked her because she was from America.
Her family is not too “Koreanized.” She lives in a predominately white city. Her dad learned how to speak English in college in Korea; her mother learned in America. From Korea, her parents immigrated to Pennsylvania. Then they moved to Northern California and moved three times up there. Her family then moved to Southern California. (Glendale, then Fullerton, and now Newhall)
She likes Santa Clarita the best because she’s lived there for most of her life. She says her parents became more Americanized after moving here and her family doesn’t practice many Korean traditions as they used to because her parents got lazy. Also, most of her relatives live in Northern California so there aren’t many opportunities to celebrate all together. Now, her parents’ friends are mostly Korean, but also not very “Koreanized.” However, they still speak Korean amongst each other. My roommate has mostly Asian friends, but not all are Korean. She says that in the future, she wishes for her family to celebrate Korean traditions and celebrate their heritage. She would like to hold on to her Korean background and not become completely “Americanized.”