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I kept meticulous photo albums of my school pictures. These two albums contain class pictures and the 2x3 handouts for every year from kindergarten through 8th grade. I also collected pictures from friends and as I flipped through these dry pages I was so surprised to see my brown face amidst so many white classmates. I was often the "only" kid of color in my classes but my child mind registered it differently.

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We had to do this almost every year in elementary school because there was a "missing children" pandemic that rears its ugly head every decade. This was one of the programs instituted that was part of my yearly files in elem school. I think it was when Jacob Wetterling was abducted in '89/90-ish (there's a really interesting podcast about this).

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I found one of these knotted friendship bracelets that I would make obsessively over the summer, and either wear until it fell off or sell at a stand at the beach. As I ran my thumb over the knots, I felt so many of those childhood crafts - lanyards, potholders, and the like - come back, and, with the shell, could almost feel the salty, sweaty, sandy hot summer days.

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The scene from the movie that most resonated with me emotionally was when the grandmother was  sitting on the floor unpacking her gifts from Korea, the gochugaru, the myulchi, the crinkle sound of the bags, the money that gets fought over and eventually accepted. I imagined the smell of the room and the feeling of the little boy peering through the doorway. So many little things reminded me of being child with Korean parents in the American context, but I really appreciated what the director said in the Q&A, that he didn’t create the movie with immigrant issues in mind, he instead tried to make each character human.

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I loved when Halmoni taught David how to play cards and delighted in her wins, the expert way she peeled the cards off the deck and cursed up a storm if they didn't help her hand. Later she sat on the floor enjoying the wrestling show on TV, ignoring her grandson but loving his presence, and then reacting in laughter when he accused her of not being a "real grandma."  All of those scenes of Halmoni being unapologetic about being exactly who she was but deeply loving her family nonetheless really resonated with me and how i understand my own mother's love. Navigating personal desires with expectations to care for others is  a complex kind of love for a child to understand. It's helpful to see it portrayed in film.

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The scene where Soonja teaches David to play cards also resonated with me. Gin rummy is a big game for my (dad's side of the) family in Ohio, marking every family get-together. I have strong memories of learning to play amidst the jostle and good natured foul-mouthing of the grown-ups table, that didn't slow down for the kids.  It was also a game that marked a loose sense of place. Sometimes I would introduce the game to friends, as David does. If someone was already familiar with the game, that could create a quick sense of belonging, and interest would turn to the dozens of regional variants and hotly contested local rules.

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there were lots of scenes in the movie that struck an emotional chord but I actually think the ending scene where David and his father were harvesting (?) the minari from the riverbank was quite touching. Sometimes I am frustrated by movies that leave such an open ending but there was something so beautiful and quiet about the father and son clipping the minari. especially in connection with the earlier scene when the children went with the grandmother to plant the minari. Halmoni talks about how minari can grow anywhere and it's a way to feed lots of people (I am greatly paraphrasing here). But this resonated with me, the idea that if we each find a place to plant ourselves we can possibly help others.

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I kept a rock collection when I was young. Many people collect rocks. My collection was different. I collected rocks that looked interesting or came from important places. My mother found a printers drawer to keep my rocks in for preservation. It provided a way to organize rocks and experiences. She kept all my childhood stuff, but she just has my rocks in a bag. I never really bought rocks. My brother-in-law had like a real rock collection. We had a good laugh about my rock collection which includes a landscaping rock that I took from Pizza Hut parking lot after a family dinner that I left feeling particularly happy.

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Classic Rock Collection 🍷 Bon Jovi, The Eagles, CCR, Guns N Roses, Dire Straits

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Layers of belonging; inclusion; and exclusion. I felt like a minority within a minority.

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This book is written about my uncle and his life in North Carolina. It is an artifact because it offers look at the people and places who have raised me, loved me, and helped me become who I am.  This text documents 3 generations. For me it documents people I love and places I have lived, been a part of and visited. It enables be to travel back in time to see the people in my life past, present, and hopefully future. It brings me joy and sadness.

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Roberts, Bruce-photographs; text by Nancy Roberts

Crowell-Collier Press, 1969. 1st edition. Cloth. 1st edition. A Very Good copy in Good dust jacket. 4to., (44) pp., illustrated with b&w photographs, many full page. Orange cloth in orange, photo-illustrated dust jacket. Ligh soiling and some foxing on the jacket. The jacket is now protected in a mylar sleeve. Very Good / Good. Item #23993

A photographic look at a week in the life of Robert Lee Harris, a young African-American boy living in a small town in North Carolina.

Price: $25.00

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A Week in Robert's World: THE SOUTH by Bruce-photographs Roberts, Nancy Roberts on Frey Fine Books

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Crowell-Collier Press, 1969. 1st edition. Cloth. 1st edition. A Very Good copy in Good dust jacket. 4to., 44 pp., illustrated with b&w photographs, many full page. Orange cloth in orange, photo-illustrated dust jacket. Ligh soiling and some foxing on the jacket. The jacket is now protected in a mylar sleeve.

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The near sculpture that my father created. It lived for years outside the front door of my house and recently brought it inside