Koreanboy6's Musings

Currently Watching: One Punch Man Photo Credit: Clement Soh I know what you are thinking, that’s not his usual kind of anime! And honestly you are correct! I only started watching it because my friend was over and wanted to watch it. The art didn’t initially appeal to me and the synopsis I read made it seem boring. Netflix really does need to get better synopsis writers. As you know, I typically watch Slice of Life Anime and Sword Art Online. However, while One Punch Man has a lot of action, I have nothing against action in Anime. I just usually don’t like the art or characters in Anime that are typically action-packed, but what sets One Punch Man apart is its humor. The humor is what makes this show golden. The Anime is centered on a super hero named Saitama who can defeat every opponent with just one punch! That’s stretching it a little because some of his later opponents take a few more punches, but you get the idea. Along the way he gains a disciple and becomes a...

Beneficial for Adult Adoptees to Use a Homeland/Birthland Tour When Visiting Birth Country I believe it is immensely beneficial to visit your birth country as an adult on a homeland/birthland tour, especially if you have not gone before. I used to not think this, but going to South Korea on the inaugural Mosaic Tour hosted by Me&Korea changed my thoughts on this. Why? Because of the natural support group you have, and being on a tour uniquely catered for adoptees. I noticed on that tour that adoptees who had not gone back to Korea before dealt with many complex emotions and had to face thoughts and issues they had not grappled before or had swept under the rug for years. By being on a tour with fellow adult adoptees they could express their feelings and grapple with their issues among people who understood and could fully support them. It can be hard for an adoptee not having people who fully understand you and can empathize rather than sympathize. For instance, we vis...

Importance of Having an Adoptee Support Group When I was younger I didn’t realize what a benefit it was to know and be friends with fellow Korean Adoptees. I’m not saying they have to be your best friends, but it’s good to have a few adoptees you can confide in. Having fellow adoptees is such a good support system, which I believe is crucial for your well-being in the long run. I have pretty much always had a Korean adoptee support system my entire life. I started going to Korean adoptee culture camp when I was six years old and am still friends with someone I met that year. Shoutout to Jonathan! It helped to know there were other people just like me who faced similar issues, insecurities, and challenges. Since those culture camps I have kept in touch with a number of adoptees, but have also met countless others through birthland tours and local Korean adoptee groups. That’s a little background of my support system, now why is it important? I believe that all adoptees deal w...

Wish I Learned My Heritage Language When I was Young Maybe I’m being presumptuous, but I feel many older adoptees have similar thoughts as me when I think I should have learned my heritage language as a child. I was extremely reluctant to learn Korean when I was a child. It is one of my greatest regrets being so resistant to learning it. I ended up decided to learn Korean when I was 15, but I’m poor with languages, so while I am between beginner and intermediate, I still struggle with it. I wish I was forced to learn Korean when I was young. Would I have hated it then? Yes, probably, but with a lot of things you are forced to do when you are young, you end up appreciate it later in life. Now that I have embraced my heritage I wish I had the fluency in Korean to go with it. Sigh, I hope others don’t make the same mistake as me and learn their heritage language while young. At the very worst, it gives you another skill for a potential career. What is the harm in that?

Importance of Culture Camps I believe culture camps are extremely important for adoptees, especially transnational adoptees. I should clarify that I mean culture camps specifically targeting adoptees. There are other culture camps such as Concordia Language Camps, Supsogui Hosu!!!!! which are great, but I’m not speaking about them in this post. Culture camps provide cultural and heritage background for the adoptees, which I believe many appreciate later on in life. I for one am appreciative from the Korean culture knowledge I gained from the camps as I grew up.  I know many older adoptees who inform me they wish they had culture camps when they were growing up. Another benefit of culture camps is for the parents. Culture camps that target adoptees usually provide support and classes for the parents to learn more about their child’s heritage and culture, but also about issues that plague parents such as their child’s identity and potential birth searches. Finally, these cam...

Here are some of the Slice of Life Anime I have watched and enjoyed in no particular order! ReLife Ready to take a second chance in life? A failure in life is given the opportunity to re-live a year of high school to gain the confidence he lost that prevents him from succeeding in life. He gladly accepts and rehabilitates, making new friends, and having adventures along the way. Usagi Drop This is a heartwarming tale of a single man taking in his young female relative who has lost her parent and raising her. Their relationships is a mix of father and daughter and brother and sister. Seeing the progression of their bond is sweet. However, do not read the manga cause it gets really weird after the anime storyline ends. It will ruin Usagi Drop for you if you read the rest of the story. Hanamaru Kindergarten ULTIMATE CUTENESS. That is how you can describe Hanamaru Kindergarten. It is the story of a new kindergarten teacher, who has one of his students madly in...

Dean Acheson’s Decisions Opened the Door for the Korean War Acheson standing. Photo Credit: Tullio Saba A major controversy during Dean Acheson’s time as Secretary of State was why South Korea was as undefended as it was when North Korea invaded. Many argue Dean Acheson’s decisions leading up to the outbreak was the reason South Korea was almost lost. His memoir surprisingly was very scant about the buildup to the Korean War and his reasoning for the actions he took during that buildup indicating implied agreement that he had the information to have deterred an invasion. Specifically the reports of undersupplying the South Korean military, the limiting of US military aid to South Korea, the assessments of both Korean forces, and his memoir support the claim Dean Acheson could have prevented the rout South Korean forces experienced at the outbreak of the war if not prevent the war from even occurring.         Dean Acheson’s memoir...