Korea on My Mind

Did you listen to this story on All Things Considered today? North Korean Defectors Fight Regime with Radio:

My Mother is Korean. It has been a blessing to live a life with one foot in Korean culture and one foot firmly planted in the U.S. It has also been a struggle to understand and meld these two distinctly differing cultures into my being. Not long ago I learned about Korean Han. Here is what Wikipedia says: What's Han?
Han is a concept in Korean culture, attributed by some as a national cultural trait. Han denotes a collective feeling of oppression and isolation in the face of overwhelming odds. It connotes aspects of lament and unavenged injustice. I would like to add that Han is deep, ancestral regret and despair.

Han, at times, has made my life miserable... of coarse - that's its job in some respects. I have been given some Han from my Mother. I don't believe she did it on purpose. But it is in me. I recently felt a deep connection with Han after Kim Jong Il did his nuclear test. I was overwhelmed with sadness, deep regret (for nothing I did) and despair. Even as I write this I am beginning to feel overwhelmed with sadness. Will my Mother's country be reunified? What suffering must be endured (for there will be suffering), Who will be the winner (probably China) and will I see the famous mountains in Northern Korea? Or will they be barren and grey?

But, I am not one to allow Han, or sadness from any origin to consume me for long. Thank God I have my American, Pittsburgh bred father to throw me some hope and cheer! This is where good old American Idealism comes in! Wash your face! Get up and out! Go DO something to make the world and yourself better! (Maybe make some bucks on the side and get rich...but remember the goal!) You Can Do It!

So I am reading and learning the deep and rich history of my Mother's country. I also am getting well versed in the political stories of North Korea. Next time you hear a story about Korea, know that I am listening and coming to understand and control this...Han...within me. These stories of reunion really get to me. Some Mothers and Fathers are still alive, waiting to see their children...its been 50 years since they last touched. Family Reunions:
Another Reunion story, one that makes me cry.
Starving in Korea