14: Bill drove his black pickup truck with Barney in the passenger seat. Mina rode with Kenn and Stratford, while Jeffrey and his band drove in the band's equipment van to the Happyville Playland Hotel of Wonders. Bill was deep in thought about his wife during the nighttime drive. The moonlight through the trees spelled out its calming poetry on his dashboard as he made his way closer to his destination.
The moon had always held his fascination. The day's events had left him with an empty place in his heart, but somehow the moonlight was a comfort to him because it reminded him of how he had met Sandy years ago. He had only been five years old, living as the child of rice farmers in South Korea.
It was the day of the Korean celebration of Chusok, during which families go to the graves of their ancestors to honor them. It was similar in concept to the Spanish Day of the Dead. Bill, whose Korean name is Ahn Young Su (Koreans put their family name before their given name), hated Chusok because he had to wear a traditional Korean silk robe called a han bok. It was full of bright greens, purples, yellows, reds and blues which he thought made him look like a girl.
His entire family had come to his house since his father was the eldest son of his deceased grandfather. The women had prepared all the traditional food offerings. There were rice cakes (dok), dumpling soup, pears, bowls of rice, and a reddish orange fruit called persimmons as well as the traditional Korean rice wine called mokoli. There were also incense burners, candles and photographs of the beloved deceased. Everyone made the annual walk to the grave site.
During the long walk, little Young Su, which translates to "Chief", was daydreaming. He looked up in the wide blue sky and saw what looked like a white rock in the sky. He had never seen anything more beautiful in his life. He tugged on the sleeve of his mother's han bok and asked in Korean, "Mother, what's that rock?"
She looked down at him and said, "It is the moon. See the rabbit?" Instead of the man in the moon that Americans see, Koreans see a legendary jumping rabbit of traditional folklore, within the heavenly orb.
That answer didn't make sense to Young Su. He was taught that the sun came out during the day and the moon came out at night. He had seen the moon a thousand times at night, but never imagined that it could come out at daytime. He hoped this would not be the only time he ever saw this.
When his family reached his grandfather's burial mound, the adults offered the food, burned the incense and bowed to the grave. The children were made to bow as well. Young Su saw that nearby was another family who was honoring their ancestors also. This was no new sight during Chusok, but then he saw her. There was a little girl adorned in her own han bok, but when she wore it, it didn't look so garish. On her it was a flower of adornment. Pure beauty. In one day, he had discovered the two most gorgeous things he had ever seen: a daytime moon and this girl. It was the luckiest day of his life. When he had finished bowing, he went to her.
She had also finished bowing and was standing under a tree. He asked her, "What's your name?"
She looked at him and giggled and smiled. "Lee Hae Yoo," she replied, then blushed and giggled some more. It was the most glorious sound he had ever heard. They spoke together for almost an hour before the adults had completed their honoring of the dead. From that point on, Young Su looked forward to Chusok every year so that he could see Hae Yoo. She lived in the next village. When they were old enough, he went to see her whenever he could.
His father died of stomach cancer when Young Su was seventeen and, since he was the eldest son, his family came to his house in Tangjin to celebrate Chusok. His father had been buried in the family's plot of land right next to his grandfather's burial mound. Young Su took his responsibility very seriously to honor his father's grave, but he was not going to let that shackle him to this provincial life.
He had grown up planting and harvesting rice in the water-filled paddies, getting leeches on his legs. He swore that he would not raise his children that way. Throughout high school he worked at a local noodle stand and saved his money so that he could go to college. All through college, he saved his money. He and Hae Yoo dated all through their college years and got married once they graduated. He had studied business and she studied accounting. They had plans to start a business of their own, but the Korean economy was in poor shape.
When Hae Yoo became pregnant with Jeffrey, the two of them decided to move to America to make a new life for themselves and raise their child. His mother hated the idea and tried to talk him out of it, but their minds were made up. They knew that their business would have a much better chance of succeeding in the land of the free. The only thing Young Su regretted was leaving behind his father's grave. His younger brother took on the annual responsibilities at Chusok.
Their baby was born in the summer of 1979 at the Sierra Dophlet Memorial Hospital in Marble Cliffs, Arizona. Young Su and Hae Yoo had started their modest little Asian grocery store and it was beginning to get recognized. Just as many foreigners do when they arrive in the United States of America, the land of opportunity, they gave themselves more American sounding names. Young Su was now William and Hae Yoo was Cassandra. They named their son, Jeffrey and it never even occurred to them to give him a Korean name. That little store of theirs kept growing in popularity and size over the years. Their son also grew through the years.
And now Sandy was gone. This thought brought Bill out of his reverie and he struggled to hold back tears. There would be plenty of time to grieve in his hotel room tonight. There was much to do before then. Bill concentrated on driving for now.
The moon had always held his fascination. The day's events had left him with an empty place in his heart, but somehow the moonlight was a comfort to him because it reminded him of how he had met Sandy years ago. He had only been five years old, living as the child of rice farmers in South Korea.
It was the day of the Korean celebration of Chusok, during which families go to the graves of their ancestors to honor them. It was similar in concept to the Spanish Day of the Dead. Bill, whose Korean name is Ahn Young Su (Koreans put their family name before their given name), hated Chusok because he had to wear a traditional Korean silk robe called a han bok. It was full of bright greens, purples, yellows, reds and blues which he thought made him look like a girl.
His entire family had come to his house since his father was the eldest son of his deceased grandfather. The women had prepared all the traditional food offerings. There were rice cakes (dok), dumpling soup, pears, bowls of rice, and a reddish orange fruit called persimmons as well as the traditional Korean rice wine called mokoli. There were also incense burners, candles and photographs of the beloved deceased. Everyone made the annual walk to the grave site.
During the long walk, little Young Su, which translates to "Chief", was daydreaming. He looked up in the wide blue sky and saw what looked like a white rock in the sky. He had never seen anything more beautiful in his life. He tugged on the sleeve of his mother's han bok and asked in Korean, "Mother, what's that rock?"
She looked down at him and said, "It is the moon. See the rabbit?" Instead of the man in the moon that Americans see, Koreans see a legendary jumping rabbit of traditional folklore, within the heavenly orb.
That answer didn't make sense to Young Su. He was taught that the sun came out during the day and the moon came out at night. He had seen the moon a thousand times at night, but never imagined that it could come out at daytime. He hoped this would not be the only time he ever saw this.
When his family reached his grandfather's burial mound, the adults offered the food, burned the incense and bowed to the grave. The children were made to bow as well. Young Su saw that nearby was another family who was honoring their ancestors also. This was no new sight during Chusok, but then he saw her. There was a little girl adorned in her own han bok, but when she wore it, it didn't look so garish. On her it was a flower of adornment. Pure beauty. In one day, he had discovered the two most gorgeous things he had ever seen: a daytime moon and this girl. It was the luckiest day of his life. When he had finished bowing, he went to her.
She had also finished bowing and was standing under a tree. He asked her, "What's your name?"
She looked at him and giggled and smiled. "Lee Hae Yoo," she replied, then blushed and giggled some more. It was the most glorious sound he had ever heard. They spoke together for almost an hour before the adults had completed their honoring of the dead. From that point on, Young Su looked forward to Chusok every year so that he could see Hae Yoo. She lived in the next village. When they were old enough, he went to see her whenever he could.
His father died of stomach cancer when Young Su was seventeen and, since he was the eldest son, his family came to his house in Tangjin to celebrate Chusok. His father had been buried in the family's plot of land right next to his grandfather's burial mound. Young Su took his responsibility very seriously to honor his father's grave, but he was not going to let that shackle him to this provincial life.
He had grown up planting and harvesting rice in the water-filled paddies, getting leeches on his legs. He swore that he would not raise his children that way. Throughout high school he worked at a local noodle stand and saved his money so that he could go to college. All through college, he saved his money. He and Hae Yoo dated all through their college years and got married once they graduated. He had studied business and she studied accounting. They had plans to start a business of their own, but the Korean economy was in poor shape.
When Hae Yoo became pregnant with Jeffrey, the two of them decided to move to America to make a new life for themselves and raise their child. His mother hated the idea and tried to talk him out of it, but their minds were made up. They knew that their business would have a much better chance of succeeding in the land of the free. The only thing Young Su regretted was leaving behind his father's grave. His younger brother took on the annual responsibilities at Chusok.
Their baby was born in the summer of 1979 at the Sierra Dophlet Memorial Hospital in Marble Cliffs, Arizona. Young Su and Hae Yoo had started their modest little Asian grocery store and it was beginning to get recognized. Just as many foreigners do when they arrive in the United States of America, the land of opportunity, they gave themselves more American sounding names. Young Su was now William and Hae Yoo was Cassandra. They named their son, Jeffrey and it never even occurred to them to give him a Korean name. That little store of theirs kept growing in popularity and size over the years. Their son also grew through the years.
And now Sandy was gone. This thought brought Bill out of his reverie and he struggled to hold back tears. There would be plenty of time to grieve in his hotel room tonight. There was much to do before then. Bill concentrated on driving for now.
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