Happy Chuseok, Happy Thanksgiving

[Maria Blake]

          An educator at our school shared this article about Korean thanksgiving, which was  interesting and features colorful pictures. The Korean thanksgiving described is called Chuseok and is celebrated in the beginning of autumn, between September and early October. The last Chuseok was celebrated between September 23 and September 25. Although  Chuseok is celebrated at a different time and place, it seems so similar in its intentions and context, since its celebration is associated with the honoring of the past ancestors, in a similar way that the American Thanksgiving celebrates  past  history and ancestors, though the former is more about familiar ancestors than the national in the western Thanksgiving. The former, also, celebrates the beginning of autumn, the latter is associated usually with the begining of the  holiday/Christmas season. 

      By comparing the two thanksgiving events, it seems to me, the article helps  to create a sense of harmony between different cultures and people, underlining similar needs of remembering the past as a collective consciousness so as to inform and inspire the present, which forms the basis for  hope in the future. The article informs readers about the role the festival plays in the lives of people, which is accompanied by an traditional array of foods, the most popular  being "songpyeon (half-moon rice cakes filled with sesame seeds, red beans, brown sugar, chestnuts, or pine nuts)  [...]with other highlighted dishes including freshly harvested rice; fruit like Asian pear, apples, and jujubes; and rice liquor." 

 Finally, it would be interesting to taste some of the foods, particularly, the rice-cakes, or "the savory pancakes known as jeon," and I wouldnt agree more with the author when he says that "just like American Thanksgiving, it's being together that's most important." 

Happy Chuseok and Happy Thanksgiving to All!

https://food52.com/blog/23068-chuseok-korean-thanksgiving-autumn-harvest-foods-and-rituals

[Len Krieger]

Maria,

I am just getting around to seeing this post now, but I wish I had seen it around Thanksgiving, so I could've wished all of my friends and family Happy Chuseok lol. What I liked most about this post was the fact that other cultures find the Holiday as a time of fellowship and coming together, As we are all aware the day can have a negative connotation to it, especially to the Native Americans. However, I love the idea that Thanksgiving or Chuseok brings people together and allows them the opportunity to catch up with each other and share good comfort food.

Thanks for the post, I learned something I did not know before.

[Author]

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