Holidays Away From Home

[This article was first posted on Cent]

Another Thanksgiving spent away from home is now in the books.

To be honest, it's been years since the fourth Thursday of November became just another day on the calendar.

There's an equivalent holiday in Korea, called Chuseok (추석), which literally translated is 'autumn moon' but is usually translated as 'autumn harvest festival', that takes place at the end of September or early October depending on the lunar calendar. Sometimes people call it Korean Thanksgiving. By people, I mean me.

Despite getting a grip of time off for Chuseok, and it being one of the two major national holidays in Korea (the other being Lunar New Year), it just doesn't feel the same as the Thanksgiving I remember as a child. Probably because I never experienced Chuseok as a child.

It's amazing how values and expectations can be so arbitrary and so influenced by specific experiences. It's equally amazing how we can lose traditions and make new ones.

I guess it's kind of sad to lose a holiday that used to mean quite a lot as a kid. But as long as we remember what made those holidays special to begin with (e.g. family, friends, good eats and drinks) we can re-create those days whenever we want.

That's what I did last night with a few good mates. Good za, good brews, and good talk (about Cent!) were had in a pub in the middle of Seoul. And for that I'm thankful.

P.S. It snowed in Seoul.