Korea industrialized 50 years ago but old habits die hard. The cabbage + turnip harvest is still the most joyful time of year. In the countryside, entire villages celebrate the plenty but also pickle + save it for winter (in the cities, people still celebrate with store-bought kimchi). To the developing world, these rituals haven't changed in millenia
Food is life
in the West, life is served fast + easy + in a greasy wrapper. we buy genetically-modified + chemically-treated produce in refrigerated 24-hour supermarkets. @ buffets we stuff ourselves w/ low quality food. 1/3 of the world is starving, another 1/3 is underfed, but we suffer from obesity + eating disorders
in some ways, we can excuse ourselves. like a dog in heat that humps everything in sight: if u get a group of hungry guys together, they'll elbow each other for the choice cuts. "gotta pile MY plate high + get MINE." + the unassertive ones can scrape the bottom of the casserole dish. we're animals fighting for scarce resources. too bad for us Americans, there's just too many resources
if it's survival of the fittest, this country's a scrawny chicken
a GDP per capita that's less than $1,000 where people barely make enough to feed their families. but when "villages" gather to eat, they sit in groups. the food's brought out in little dishes. + everybody shares, whether it's sticky rice or bamboo shoots or germs. you reach + grab + shape rice balls + dip + scoop + chew + talk
talking with your mouth full or reaching across the table isn't rude. what's considered impolite is to keep eating when everyone else is finished. + it's common courtesy to leave a little pocket of rice at the bottom of the rice basket. so the host doesn't get embarrassed, in case you wanted more and they ran out
this week @ the "village" potluck, people didn't bring a lot of food. bad harvest this week. extra small dishes. nobody could eat their fill. somebody, however, kept picking at the scraps when everyone else was done. + was even rude enough to finish off the last ball of rice.
forgive me. i'm learning that life's about more than food
