Author Archives: garc531

Feast of 7 Fishes

Age: 19

Christmas Tradition

 

Primary Language- English

Occupation- USC Student

Residence- Virginia

Date of Performance- 4/15/16

At home, we have an italian tradition that we partake in each year during christmas eve. Everyone in our family has to eat 7 types of seafood in one day. We call it the Feast of 7 Fishes. I have done it almost my entire life and will continue to do it. I have always believed that if we do not eat the 7 types of seafood during christmas eve, it would be bad luck. I do not really know why but I just know that bad things will happen if we don’t do it one year.

Mark is from Virginia and has lived there his entire life. His great grandparents are from Italy but his parents are also from Virginia. His parents and grandparents have also partaken in this long tradition so naturally, he has too. Besides eating the delicious food, he likes it because its something special to his family and he would not do it a year, there would be bad luck and it would not feel right

When you partake in the tradition, it has to be during christmas eve and the entire family or members you are gathered with must be present. The family gives thanks, then feast on seven types of seafoods. The food is typically gathered very recently. If seven foods are not eaten or it is after christmas eve, many also believe it is bad luck.

I think this tradition is very interesting because a lot of cultures have different types of food they like to eat during the same day of the year. In my family, we typically eat tamales and posole for christmas eve, but we make so much that we end up eating them for another two weeks. We have no superstition along with it except that the food is just made during that time of year in excess because it is delicious and perfect for the time and vibe set. The feast that italian americans do during christmas eve is slightly different than the one in Italy. It originated from the celebration of the birth of jesus. The Feast of 7 Fishes is called the Vigil in Italy and was started in Southern Italy. This tradition also comes from not eating any meat before christmas eve which is lent in other traditions.

 

Flood Myth

Age: 18

Flood Myth- Korea

 

Primary Language- English

Secondary Language- Korean

Occupation- USC Student

Residence- Los Angeles, CA

Date of Performance- 4/10/16

Sometimes before bed, my mother used to tell me Korean myths. One that she told me was very short yet interesting, it was a flood myth. It was about a man named Namu Toryong who was son of the tree god and managed to survive the world’s biggest flood along with saving another young boy and all the animals of the world. After he saved the animals, he traveled to Mt. Baekdu where he met two girls that survived because the mountain was so tall. Toryong then had to prove to the girl’s guardian that he and the boy were worthy to marry them and have children. Toryong won the competition which meant he and the boy could marry. They were then the ones who restarted and began the next human race.

Jacob Hyun is from Los Angeles, United States but his parents are from South Korea. His mother used to tell him similar stories many times throughout his live. It was folklore he listened to before he slept which caused him to dream about them more. The folklore is also special to him because it reminds him of the time spent with his mother when life was more simple compared to being an adult in college. Myths such as these are losing their popularity in Korea but his memories for the myths will never fade.

Most people often love telling stories that are special to them. This piece of folklore is no exception. Hyun usually leaves the listener with awe when he tells the story because it is so strange yet deeply saturated in Korean culture. It is another myth that can be told anywhere at any place.

I believe this myth is very interesting since it gives an answer to how the human race began. It shows a different side to other myths that explain how the world, universe, or stars became because in this story, the world already existed and it had almost died until Toryong saved the animals and the human race. Before the internet and many other things that challenged culture, many people still believed that myths like these could be possible and often worshipped the people in the stories. Except now the faith is disappearing as people are questioning how the story can even be possible. It goes to show that science and knowledge can undermine folklore even though a lot of medicine used in science is derived from folklore. It can go either way. Despite this fact, it’s amazing to see how Hyun still loves to tell the story even though he himself believes it probably is not true.

 

Happy Birthday

Age: 48

Happy Birthday Ritual

 

Primary Language- Spanish

Occupation- Factory Worker

Residence- Los Angeles, CA

Date of Performance- 3/19/16

Every Time it is someone’s birthday, you have to sing Haaaappy Birthday to you, Haaaaappy Birthday to you, Haaaaapppy Birthday to Anthony, Happy Birthday to you. Ya queremos pastel! (Translation- We want cake now!) Shortly after you blow the candles, everyone chants, que lo muerda, que lo muerda (Translation- bite the cake) and when they go in for a bite, you grab the back of the person’s head and slam their head into the cake. After that, we start to cut pieces off the cake where the face did not touch and give a slice to everyone. In Honduras, it was the same tradition except we said feliz cumplanos which is just happy birthday but in spanish.

The happy birthday song alway brings a smile on anyone’s face because it is the time of the year where you celebrate the day you were born. Reina loves to go birthday parties and sing happy birthday, especially the recording of when their faces get plastered on the cake. She learned the song when she was in Honduras from her mother who would sing happy birthday to her along with her other relatives and bought a cake to eat as well. The song means a lot to her because in Honduras, they did not have the money to throw any parties but they had enough to buy a cake so to be able to do the same here and much more makes her feel happy and remember the celebrations she had with her mother.

When performing the happy birthday song, you must say it with a group a people while the birthday person sits in front of the birthday cake. While the candles are lit on the cake, before they blow it, you must sing the song, let them blow the candles, and tell them to bite the cake. Even if they do bite the cake, it’s tradition to just smash their face on the cake either way. Then everyone screams from laughter, takes pictures, and eats the cake that does not have any face on it.

I have had a lot of experience from this birthday celebration since my aunt Reina has celebrated almost every birthday with me. Her husband has usually been the one who bought the cake for us. I have also had an enormous amount of cake in my face. My mother also sings the same song and everyone does the same performance at any hispanic birthday party. It even happens for grown people because the tradition will most likely never change. There are a couple alterations such as saying cha cha cha after you say happy birthday in the song, but in our family, we just clap three times instead. One thing that will most likely never change is the fact that the birthday person must get cake on their face somehow. Finding the root for the tradition through history would be difficult, there is also no particular reason for why it happens. It is all in good fun and just keeps the party going. The face smashing also creates memories in which tons of pictures are taken. The singing is also very special because everyone can have a meaningful birthday celebration despite their income with the song and a cake. The photo uploaded is a picture of my last birthday party where my family and friends completely masked my face with cake. There is almost no chance of escaping so sometimes it is best to just take it in and laugh at it later. This long simple tradition will be maintained in my family for generations to come.

 

El Raton

Nationality: Honduras
Age: 48

Fairy Tale

 

Nationality- Honduras

Primary Language- Spanish

Occupation- Factory Worker

Residence- Los Angeles, CA

Date of Performance- 3/19/16

El raton

Translation-The rat

One day, when i was 6 years old and my first tooth started to wiggle. I told my mom and she said that i have to keep shaking it each day so it can fall off smoothly. And that once it came off nicely, I should put it under my pillow and “the raton” would come and get it and once it was gone, he would leave me some coins as a thank you. The first day I did, when I woke up i found 4 coins under my pillow and kept doing it until i was 13. Every time I would put it in my pillow i would get money and wondered how a rat was able to do that. I believed it had to be a magical rat. After i turned 13, I realized that it was my mom the whole time because I saw her putting money under my sister’s pillow when she was sleeping. My sister had just took out one of her tooths and put it under her pillow. Even though I figured that out, I still never told my sister because I thought she would enjoy the fact that the magical rat still comes to give her money, especially since she was 6. I told my mother about it and she was surprised when I told her i know but knew it would happen eventually. She also told me not to tell my sister and I agreed with her because I too still wanted my sister to believe in it.

Reina Centeno is from Honduras. She has lived there till she was about 20 and then moved to the United States. Her mother was the one who told her about the raton and made her believe in it. She loved believing in the raton because removing her teeth was one of the worst things she had to go through but knowing that she was going to get money and a visit from a magical creature made it worth it and try to remove her tooth as fast as possible. Having better teeth was a plus as well. She learned this fairy tale from her mother who learned it from her mother. It has been passed down two generations and she also told her son about it.

When Reina told me the story, she said it with a big grin on her face because it reminded her of the good times she had as a child and her time in Honduras. She has not been there in over 30 years yet still remembers everything perfectly. She tells the story with happiness and laughs at how gullible she was as a child. Along with the fact that she got her own son into believing it.

Hearing Reina tell me her story was delightful because my mother also told me the same tale when I was a child. Reina Centeno and my mother are sisters and maybe it was because of her not telling my mother that the raton was fake at an early age was the reason my mother passed it on to me. It is such a great tale since it really does make going through the teeth removal process worth it. In Honduras, many can not afford to go to a dentist so they have to tough it out and remove the teeth themselves. El raton is basically the same thing as a tooth fairy that is very popular in America considering there are a multitude of movies, books, and stories about it. Fairies are not very popular in countries like Honduras so they had to make another version which so happened to involve a rat. Obviously not as popular as a fairy which is why there are not any famous films abou it. But in spanish culture, he is very popular as “El Ratoncito Perez” or “El Ratoncito”. El raton had originated from Madrid in the 19th century and is still spread to this day. People who immigrate to the United States have only helped spread the folklore. It is amazing how a few stories can shape the way a culture thinks about certain aspects of life.

 

Santo Toribio Romo

Age: 45

Legend

 

Nationality- Mexico

Primary Language- Spanish

Occupation- Construction Worker

Residence- Los Angeles, CA

Date of Performance- 3/17/16

Santo toribio romo

Before i had crossed the border from Mexico to the United States, I did a lot of preparation and praying for the trip. I also talked to a lot of my friends about relatives that they know who have gone and made it there safely. One of my friends whose name was Rosalba told me a story about the Santo Toribio Romo. Her husband had traveled to the United States with another friend and his son. They traveled day and night only stopping to sleep and the occasional rest. One day, they ended up getting lost and ran out of food and water for two days. They kept marching on but had no idea where to go. The father then said he saw an oasis and a man who looked like a priest standing next to it telling them to come this way. The man was obviously hallucinating since it was in the middle of the desert. He grabbed his son and hoped it was the way to go.  When he went towards the oasis direction, they found out it was the right way to go and made it to the United States. When he arrived and settled down, he called his wife and told her what he saw. She said that it was because she prayed for Santo Toribio Romo to guide them and he was the one who appeared to them. He thanked her for her prayers and said he will work till he can afford to send her safely to the United States. This story gave me hope because if things turned out bad, I can have my family pray for me and hope would keep me alive during my trip.

Francisco is from Mexico and has personally heard this story from one of his friends. His friend had heard the story directly from a man who experienced a legend himself. He liked the story she told him because it gave him hope to keep pushing on his journey to America. Opportunities were thin in Mexico so he did not really have another choice but to cross the border so having his faith lay in a priest made him feel safer about the crossing. Santo Toribio Romo lays on his wall in his living room because even to this day he treasures the faith he received from the saint. It was at a time when crossing the border was at its high so a lot of people in his family or just his friends used the saint to guide them on their journey.

When Francisco told me the story, it made him remember how tough it was to cross the border and how grateful he is to be here. His faith was very high because he later met the man who crossed and he confirmed that it was true. Francisco’s cross was not as vigorous as his but it was still difficult. The story is very uplifting so hearing it whenever wherever is suitable.

I believe this story is very interesting. Santo Toribio Romo was originally a priest from Jalisco, Mexico who died during a Christian uprising in 1928. To many of the Mexicans, after his death, many can recall seeing him on their journey to cross to the United States recognizing him as a patron of migrants. Many come to United States in search of miracles and put their lives in the hands of a saint. They have to overcome countless obstacles such as more patrols, night vision, and armed guards who shoot to kill, not to mention the dangerous environment they have to get through with limited supplies. Hundreds die each year attempting to cross with their faith in the saint and hundreds more continue to cross with the same faith despite the many deaths that have occurred. Francisco is one of the ones who made it with the faith placed in Santo Toribio Romo. The courage instilled upon Francisco was enough to get him to take the risk and make it to the United States. Many of the Mexican people have very little to count on yet end up having countless hope. It is because of folklore like this, legends and saints that allow people to keep on going and obtain a better life for themselves. Francisco worships the saint and lets his son know about his journey and the saint that helped him get there because he wants his son to know the struggle he had to go through and to appreciate how good he has it.  This legend is very strongly exchanged within the citizens of mexico and those who hear the stories of the people who crossed successfully.