Christine Kim
Int Seminar 1 : Fake
9/16/18
Memoir – Spooning Memories
“Food is ready!!!!!!” The first thing that I was reminded of after looking at my silver spoon was this phrase I heard every single day from the kitchen. Every morning before school and every night after school, my mom would have to always yell at least three times for me to come downstairs, sit down at the table, and grab my spoon from the hello kitty basket for breakfast and dinner. I would routinely use this same silverware to eat up the meals prepared by my mom. Whether it be a bowl of cereal or a full course korean meal, the five fingers on my right hand would consistently grab my silver spoon to carry the frosted flakes and milk or rice and kimchi straight to my mouth.
The history of this spoon travels all the way back to when my parents got married in 1999. In Korean culture, it is a tradition for the parents of the bride to present a set of silver spoon and chopsticks right after marriage. Because silver is known to eradicate toxin, such action of giving the silverware represents the parents’ hope of good health and long life for their daughter and the family she is about to form. Not every moment of my life was smooth and easy-going, but I have never experienced a major catastrophe or misfortune. As its explanation, I want to emotionally rely on my silver spoon, that my grandmother handed down to my mother, for my fortunate condition so far.
The Korean tradition dealing with the silver spoon does not just stop at marriage, but continues on to the twenty-fifth anniversary of the married couple. It carries the same meaning of wishing the couple a good health and long life even after twenty five years of living together, but this time from their children. As a daughter who have relied on my mother’s silverspoon for my fortune, I would like to hand back a similar fortune by giving my parents a set of silver spoon and chopsticks as a means of a lucky charm for their twenty-fifth anniversary to come in 2024.
Although this spoon just looks no different from any other spoons, its past history, its present memories, and its possible future distinguishes that specific silver spoon from all the other spoons that people use daily.
