little thoughts
So pretty much every other night, I talk in English with my cousin Hyun Kee for about 30-45 minutes. We do different things, like I have him write little compositions about his day or his opinion on movies and stuff, or I just ask his opinion about different things. I find it pretty amusing, actually, to pick the brain (in English) of my 8th grade cousin. We usually don't talk or interact at all, otherwise, so it kind of provides some insight for me of how my Korean side lives here.
Anyway, today, I'm not sure how it came about, but I was talking to him about our grandfather and I suddenly realized something. My grandfather is either 80 or 81. This is pretty old, actually, and most people die around this age. I know that my Korean side of the family has really good life-living genes, and both my Korean grandparents are pretty healthy.. they eat well, go exercise, are still active and stuff. But what I realized is that I know almost nothing about my grandparents' lives, and I already knew that, but it is a really great shame because I have figured out that they both must have lived incredibly interesting lives. I only recently found out (a month ago), that my grandparents came down from North Korea. My grandfather knows about 5 different languages, and he was at the top of his class at Seoul National University, which is the best university in Korea. My aunt told me all this, my mother never revealed anything about him. What my dad told me was that my grandfather came down to Korea on his own, when he was 18, and his mother and brother also followed. I'm not sure, but I don't think he ever saw his mother or brother again. I also know that he fought in the Korean war. When I was talking to my cousin just now, he told me that my grandfather was originally studying to be a diplomat and was the best candidate but was not chosen for it because he was North Korean, so there was some suspicion.
I figure what I have heard about his great intelligence and bravery has been poofed up a little, but I am very intrigued. I'm mostly intrigued by his life and my grandmother's life, and how they decided to raise my mother. What exactly went wrong, to the point that even now my mother gets in huge fights with them whenever they talk?
Basically, I have decided that I want to start work on a biography of his life (from a child to now), which would include all that history, his personal ideas, and his family. I don't want to do this for any great literary purpose, just for the sake of my own knowledge and kind of for preserving his memory. I think it is interesting how I suddenly feel this way because I have almost resented him my entire life for his religiousness, but I see that these feelings had a lot to do with my mother's biases.
the problem is, I don't really know how to go about starting this. What should I do? Do I just call him and ask him to start interviews? I would have to get really committed about it.. also he lives all the way in Masuk which is far away. And one thing that I really hate about talking to him is that he literally turns every conversation into a Bible lesson.. which is pretty annoying. But I shouldn't make excuses because I really want to do this, and I need to figure out a way to make it possible and realistic.
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Edit, 15 minutes later: I just talked to my aunt and uncle. They are going to China this week for a missionary trip and I just found out that my grandmother and grandfather are coming here to 'look after us.' This is very serendipitous. I am going to think about my new goal more and maybe buy a tape recorder?
Anyway, today, I'm not sure how it came about, but I was talking to him about our grandfather and I suddenly realized something. My grandfather is either 80 or 81. This is pretty old, actually, and most people die around this age. I know that my Korean side of the family has really good life-living genes, and both my Korean grandparents are pretty healthy.. they eat well, go exercise, are still active and stuff. But what I realized is that I know almost nothing about my grandparents' lives, and I already knew that, but it is a really great shame because I have figured out that they both must have lived incredibly interesting lives. I only recently found out (a month ago), that my grandparents came down from North Korea. My grandfather knows about 5 different languages, and he was at the top of his class at Seoul National University, which is the best university in Korea. My aunt told me all this, my mother never revealed anything about him. What my dad told me was that my grandfather came down to Korea on his own, when he was 18, and his mother and brother also followed. I'm not sure, but I don't think he ever saw his mother or brother again. I also know that he fought in the Korean war. When I was talking to my cousin just now, he told me that my grandfather was originally studying to be a diplomat and was the best candidate but was not chosen for it because he was North Korean, so there was some suspicion.
I figure what I have heard about his great intelligence and bravery has been poofed up a little, but I am very intrigued. I'm mostly intrigued by his life and my grandmother's life, and how they decided to raise my mother. What exactly went wrong, to the point that even now my mother gets in huge fights with them whenever they talk?
Basically, I have decided that I want to start work on a biography of his life (from a child to now), which would include all that history, his personal ideas, and his family. I don't want to do this for any great literary purpose, just for the sake of my own knowledge and kind of for preserving his memory. I think it is interesting how I suddenly feel this way because I have almost resented him my entire life for his religiousness, but I see that these feelings had a lot to do with my mother's biases.
the problem is, I don't really know how to go about starting this. What should I do? Do I just call him and ask him to start interviews? I would have to get really committed about it.. also he lives all the way in Masuk which is far away. And one thing that I really hate about talking to him is that he literally turns every conversation into a Bible lesson.. which is pretty annoying. But I shouldn't make excuses because I really want to do this, and I need to figure out a way to make it possible and realistic.
--
Edit, 15 minutes later: I just talked to my aunt and uncle. They are going to China this week for a missionary trip and I just found out that my grandmother and grandfather are coming here to 'look after us.' This is very serendipitous. I am going to think about my new goal more and maybe buy a tape recorder?