One large family

Although the crisis in Japan is ever so close to us, it certainly seems a world away.  Everything is going on as usual here in Korea.  Students are going to school into the late evening hours, Aaron and I made homemade pizza last night, our school had our monthly evacuation drill in case of a North Korean attack, and the markets are fully supplied with kimchi and radishes.  There is no worry (aside from the possibility of radiation blowing our way), no shortages, and no destruction.

As some of you may know, Japan and Korea do not have a very good "social" relationship.  Aside from reading Japanese comics and watching Japanese cartoons, my students are not big fans of Japan.  I once had an English Olympics in my classroom and each group could choose a country.  I held up the Japanese flag and the students "booed" it. Japan has quite the history of invading Korea and the two countries still argue over the names of the sea in between them as well as the ownership of various islands. 

But after the recent catastrophe, I had my students write about what happened in Japan, and none of them "booed" or showed any kind of hostility.  Instead, we discussed what the Japanese are feeling, how their lives have changed, and the effects of the disaster.  Some of my students even had family or friends living in Japan, and one student has a family member unaccounted for.  They showed sympathy and were concerned about their neighbor to the east. 

And things are happening on a larger scale as well.  The South Korean Red Cross sent $1,000,000 to Japan, South Korean pop-stars are sending exorbitant amounts of money, and the country is even sending Boron to help stabilize the nuclear situation. 

Yes, there is tragedy.  Yes, Japan is suffering.  And yes, there is probably still some resentment in the land of kimchi towards the Japanese. But, for right now, grace has replaced hostility.  It seems when challenges and hardship arise, people step up to the plate. Our humanity unites us.

It's easy to get upset in these times, and I think we need to feel sympathy for Japan and do what we can to help in any way, shape, or form.  But I think it's also a time to realize that we're all part of this world together--one big family. This is true now more than ever.  As a result of technology, no country is void of global communication, no country is isolated from aid, and no country is forgotten when disaster strikes. We can simply turn on the tv or our computer and see a video of the tsunami or a crying child in need. Technology has allowed us all to be "part of a large family" (great song by the Great Lake Swimmers by the way).  And so, as any close family does, we cry together, we scream together, we smile together, we yearn together, we get angry together, we grieve together, and we love together. 


But we also have responsibility for each other.  In a time when wars, slavery and natural disasters abound, it's refreshing and hopeful to see people taking care of each other in whatever ways they can. Not only does this separate our generation from those in the past, but I think, more than ever, it is what our family truly needs.