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November 23, 2004
2004 Korean Thanksgiving Event
Tonight I went to the 2004 Korean Thanksgiving Event at Coffman Union. There were a few highlights of the evening for me. One was just being able to practice some phrases in Korean with so many willing Korean native speakers. Even though I got a few things wrong, it was still fun trying. One person told me I was addressing her too formally. haha. It will take me a lifetime to negotiate just the right amount of formality and respect in my interactions with Koreans. But I’m working on it. It’s built into the language, so the more I learn, the better I get.
The second highlight for me was the food of course! I love Korean food. Give me Kim-chee over Sauer Kraut any day! Although I’ll eat that too. And they had another one of my favorites: Kim-Bap.
Then for something completely new to me, and an experience I won’t forget very soon, they had traditional Korean drumming. It was nice to see and hear in person. Basically it’s a combination of dancing and drumming by a group of performers all in sync with each other. Very well done and interesting. I especially loved how the drummers turned themselves upside down as they followed the edge of the drum around, beating on it.
There was also some great music performed on Cello, Violin and Piano, and a Tae Kwon Do demonstration. I thought that was too long, but it was interesting.
Tonight was an interesting night and I waffled back and forth about a decision I was struggling with regarding taking another semester of Korean. This semester has been really tough so far, and after tonight I decided it would be better if I continued. Learning any language is difficult. Learning it well takes dedication and patience. Leonardo da Vinci said, “Impatience, the mother of stupidity, lauds brevity. Impatient people lack the time for gaining complete knowledge of a particular thing, such as a human body, yet they try to embrace the mind of God, which contains the universe...”
He goes on to comment on how we live with ourselves our entire life and are still ignorant about who we are.
His words are a little harsh I think, but he was a master of observation, especially of physical phenomenon. I still want to master Korean and Russian, and German and several other languages and some that I haven’t dreamed of yet. So I have to patiently persist, knowing that it’s a lifelong process and the rewards are part of the process. Tonight proved that. I have a greater appreciation for the world around me.
We cannot predict how much time we actually have on this earth, since if we don’t die from old age or sickness, we could still die of a freak accident tomorrow, or 10 minutes from now. With Thanksgiving as the theme for the week, I’m thankful for every moment I have here. This is really a beautiful gift to be alive. Take advantage of it and be alive while living!
With the renewal of my trumpet playing, my artistic creativity is kicking up some dust. I was inspired by Leonardo de Vinci, and have the needed piece now to complete a painting I started last year. Then, my wife and I stopped at a bookstore and I found another a book on Ancient Egypt and was inspired for my next project; a relief carving depicting a special story.
Life is always worth living and worth fighting for. Don’t give up, have patience and don’t live in fear. Be alive, be thankful for right now. Peace.
Posted by carl1236 at November 23, 2004 11:39 PM | Attitude