Andrew L.
Dublin Core
Title
Andrew L.
Description
His family roots lie on the Korean peninsula in both North and South Korea.
Creator
Andrew L.
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Text
Andrew *
History is a broad subject, and often times individuals or families are
overlooked, however, they are as much a part of history as any major historical
incident. My family has lived and experienced many historical events and we are a
part of history. My family’s story begins with my grand parents.
My grandfather was born in what is now known as North Korea, and my
grandmother was born in the South. They both lead rather sedentary, simple lives
until war broke loose. With the Northern army advancing south, my grandfather,
escaped with his family to the south. Unfortunately, he was separated from his
family. He eventually got to the South, but at the cost of his loved ones. Years later,
he was able to reach his brother who also successfully escaped South, and learned of
his mother, who was unfortunately still up North. She recently passed away, and due
to the split of Korea, he was unable to see her. There is no information about the
other members of his family.
My grandmother, on the other hand, was lucky and lived on the southern tip
of the peninsula and was sheltered from the experience my grandfather endured. He
lived as an orphan in South Korea until he ran away and started his life. He met my
grandmother and they had four kids, including my mother. In 1970, they
immigrated to the United States. It took them a while to get acclimated to American
culture and unfortunately the first major event she can remember as a child is the
Water Gate Scandal.
In the mid 1970’s Atari was released and became the first major videogame
console to be sold in a retail venue. This was a huge hit with my uncles, and it’s a
passion they still carry with them to this day. My uncles were also passionate
hockey fans (how Koreans developed passion for hockey, I don’t know), and the
1980 USA Hockey team victory over their Russian counterparts was a huge moment
in their lives. They weren’t able to attend but they watched every second of the
game from their little television at home.
My mom described the Challenger explosion as a surreal moment in her life.
It was one thing to watch history, and it is another to watch tragedy as it unfolded.
In 1988, I was born, and that’s a small historical event in its self. Two of my uncles
were also army Rangers and both were deployed into Kuwait for the start of the Gulf
War. Both came home unharmed.
I was still young so I don’t remember my recollections of the Oklahoma City
bombings but my mom remembers being at work and finding about it. She said she
was never so shocked from watching the news, at that moment anyway. Then came
the attacks on 9/11, and the shock factor was incomparable. I was in middle school
English class when our teacher broke the news. My parents came and picked my
sister and I from school and we drove home in silence. We really didn’t know how to
react; this was a first for us. We also had the pleasure of witnessing the inauguration
of the United States’ first African‐American President.
While our history may not show up in a history book, it still has value.
History is the story of the world, from the smallest to the biggest entity.
History is a broad subject, and often times individuals or families are
overlooked, however, they are as much a part of history as any major historical
incident. My family has lived and experienced many historical events and we are a
part of history. My family’s story begins with my grand parents.
My grandfather was born in what is now known as North Korea, and my
grandmother was born in the South. They both lead rather sedentary, simple lives
until war broke loose. With the Northern army advancing south, my grandfather,
escaped with his family to the south. Unfortunately, he was separated from his
family. He eventually got to the South, but at the cost of his loved ones. Years later,
he was able to reach his brother who also successfully escaped South, and learned of
his mother, who was unfortunately still up North. She recently passed away, and due
to the split of Korea, he was unable to see her. There is no information about the
other members of his family.
My grandmother, on the other hand, was lucky and lived on the southern tip
of the peninsula and was sheltered from the experience my grandfather endured. He
lived as an orphan in South Korea until he ran away and started his life. He met my
grandmother and they had four kids, including my mother. In 1970, they
immigrated to the United States. It took them a while to get acclimated to American
culture and unfortunately the first major event she can remember as a child is the
Water Gate Scandal.
In the mid 1970’s Atari was released and became the first major videogame
console to be sold in a retail venue. This was a huge hit with my uncles, and it’s a
passion they still carry with them to this day. My uncles were also passionate
hockey fans (how Koreans developed passion for hockey, I don’t know), and the
1980 USA Hockey team victory over their Russian counterparts was a huge moment
in their lives. They weren’t able to attend but they watched every second of the
game from their little television at home.
My mom described the Challenger explosion as a surreal moment in her life.
It was one thing to watch history, and it is another to watch tragedy as it unfolded.
In 1988, I was born, and that’s a small historical event in its self. Two of my uncles
were also army Rangers and both were deployed into Kuwait for the start of the Gulf
War. Both came home unharmed.
I was still young so I don’t remember my recollections of the Oklahoma City
bombings but my mom remembers being at work and finding about it. She said she
was never so shocked from watching the news, at that moment anyway. Then came
the attacks on 9/11, and the shock factor was incomparable. I was in middle school
English class when our teacher broke the news. My parents came and picked my
sister and I from school and we drove home in silence. We really didn’t know how to
react; this was a first for us. We also had the pleasure of witnessing the inauguration
of the United States’ first African‐American President.
While our history may not show up in a history book, it still has value.
History is the story of the world, from the smallest to the biggest entity.
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Citation
Andrew L., “Andrew L.,” Historical Memory:, accessed October 30, 2024, https://memory.ctevans.net/items/show/3.