During the past month, I weekly met up with my language partner, Somyung and another student named Ariana Kim. This month I wrote my weekly diary and noticed that I developed more in reflecting my thoughts and feelings in Korean. Usually, I would have deep thoughts in English even inside of my head because I think I was training my brain through English for the past 18 years of my life. So I did not give room for my Korean thoughts to develop. These diaries really help me express myself differently since Korean and English have different cultures and ways to express things.
This month my language partner and I had another lesson on proverbs and the idioms. I really like the proverb 우물안 개구리 this translates to the frog inside the well. This proverb has a meaning of how the frog when he is inside his well he thinks that is how big the world is but he does now know how the actual world is bigger. This is a saying that a lot of older adults say to us that the world is a lot bigger and we have more opportunities. A proverb that was new was 첫술에 배부를까 which translates to will you be full on your first shot? This has a meaning of how you can’t be satisfied from the start so there is no point in rushing. I had my own reflection off of this because it is kind of Korean culture too to get everything done fast and quickly so you can rise up faster in society. But doing everything fast and moving on does not mean that we are satisfied at that moment. An Idiom I really liked is 발이 넓다 which translates to “wide feet”. This word is usually used to describe people who know a lot of people. So it is like they have a wide range of connections with a lot of people.
I also was assigned to write down the Korean National Anthem in Korean. I think I always heard the anthem in Korean dramas or on TV but I never really spend time actually reading the lyrics and seeing what the song was about. The song was written with the intention of love and allegiance to the country as well as the independence from foreign countries. My language partner also assigned me to research about 삼일절 which is the independence movement day in Korea. The holiday could break into three other words where 삼 is 3 in korean, 일 is day in korean, and 절 is festival day in Korean. So the direct translation would be the “3 festival day” and this day is remembrance of the public resistance on March 1 which is also known as the Manse demonstration. The way to celebrate this holiday the Korean citizens in South Korea would raise Korean flags around their homes and the streets. Now that I think about it there were specific days in the year where the streets lamppost would be filled up with Korean flags. Now I know the reason for that.
Comments
I personally really like proverbs and idioms because even they are so short, they are packed with so much meaning! I really liked the proverb about the frog inside the well. The proverb is so true. We can often be caged by our own ignorance and self-importance that we fail to see how truly bigger the world is! So true!