Tag Archives: memory

Stickers on my Computer

Context

“When I was 8 I loved collecting stickers. I would pay quarters at pizza restaurants to collect the random stickers and get sticker books. When I got older, I saw how popular it was for people to put stickers on their water bottles and binders. I was so happy to finally use my stickers, so I had the sticker-iest water bottle and binder. This childish thing I did seemed like a stupid phase, but it stuck with me as I grew. They were meaningless and fun until I got to high school.”

Text

“I was more mature in high school, in pursuit of meaning in life, and most importantly, I got a computer. I began to put stickers on the laptop signifying places I’ve been, passions I’ve had, or people I was close to. Some of these stickers have been transferred from my water bottle, taped over and over again because it keeps falling off. My favorite is a picture of Justin Bieber. Not because I love Justin, but becuase my little brother and I had a running joke that we were his biggest fans. The sticker reminds me of him now that I’m in college. Eventually, the computer will die, but the memories won’t. I’m keeping it to show my kids, and explain what I was like when I was their age through my favorite childhood accessory: my stickers.”

Analysis

The meaning that the simplest objects can have for different individuals show a key trait of typical folklore. In folklore, the piece of lore being shared is often underappreciated or meaningless to those outside of the folk group. Thus, this personal connection to different things such as stickers shows how folklore is so important in our lives. For my friend, his computer stickers carry memories of childhood and family giving his computer a piece of his identity. In contrast, I do not hold the same heartfelt connection to stickers which is why my laptop is bare. Still, I can appreciate his lore and pass it on to others who too like sticker decorations. As we discussed, material culture is a prominent form of folklore because it acts as a reminder of important things in one’s life. Through the stickers he is reminded of his family and childhood making a laptop into folk art that tells stories of his life.

Korean military folk food: ppogeuri

Text

Ppogeuri (뽀글이) is a slang name for instant ramen that Korean soldiers often eat. The food has to be eaten at a specific time, and that is late night after a soldier comes back from night watch. What makes ppogeuri different from regular instant ramen is that because cup noodles weren’t available during the time my informant was a soldier, they had to use the plastic packaging the instant noodles came in as the cooking pot and plate. With no kettle and hot water only being available during shower times, you would have use cold water and put the packaging near a radiator to actually boil and cook it. With Korean culture’s emphasis on age and the strict environment Korean soldiers train in, my informant talked about how only sergeants were allowed to secretly make this dish after night watch. The only time he ate ppogeuri as a lower-ranked personnel was when he was a private and one of his superiors allowed him to have a bite, which he described that first bite as heavenly.

Context

The informant is a 51 year man born and raised in South Korea. As a South Korean male, he was required to serve in the military, and he served in the Korean army from October 1994~ December 1996 after his freshman year in college. This topic came up when we were talking about military food, when I told him about my worries for food quality at my military training center for ROTC. He first saw this folk food when he was coming back from his first night watch as a private, when one of the superiors he was standing watch with cooked ppogeuri as a late night snack. Even after his discharge, he said he tried cooking instant noodles the same way but said the noodles tasted raw and the soup was chalky. His interpretation of this dish is that it can only be enjoyed by people who went through the same military experience – during his service, when barracks were old, cramped, and soldiers often trained hungry, soldiers could at least count on ppogeuri to fill their stomachs after a grueling shift of night watch.

Analysis

Based on what I learned, my takeaway from this folklore is that ppogeuri is a vernacular folk dish that can only exist under specific, strict constraints. To start, its preparation method was created due to the lack of cooking tools on base, and can only be eaten by superior ranks while lower ranks can only hungrily watch or stand lookout. In this way, ppogeuri symbolizes the hierarchal nature of militaries, where even simple acts like cooking ramen is denied. However, just like my informant’s first experience with the dish, when a lower-ranked personnel is allowed a bite, this goes beyond an act of kindness – it creates an unforgettable moment of bond as one individual directly contradicts the system he’s supposed to blindly follow for a fellow soldier. Finally, the timing of when one eats ppogeuri, which is after a long night of watch, reflects the shared struggle a folk group (soldiers in this case) go through. As such, it may not even be a stretch to say that one way to identify membership within the folk group of Korean soldiers is if one has ever ate and enjoyed ppogeuri under these same conditions. All in all, ppogeuri is a reminder of how folk dishes can be crafted from creativity that is developed to get around constraints. At an individual level, I believe ppogeuri holds a great personal value for former Korean veterans, as it is a dish that symbolizes the strict system they adapted to during their youth, while being a source of comfort and nostalgia they can look back on.

Korean Military folk dish: gundaeria

Text: ***google translated from Korean to English via google translate

Informant:

“Back when I was in the military 30 years ago, our country was slowly becoming a developed nation. As a result, the military decided to copy foreign armies and offer a wider variety of food option. Western-style dishes began appearing on the menu on weekends. That dish was the “gundaeria” – essentially a chicken patty and some shredded lettuce inside a hamburger bun. It didn’t taste particularly good, but it was a welcome change from the usual rice and soup, and since it was something you could only get while in the service, it’s something I Iook back on in a bittersweet way. When I first saw it, it felt like nothing more than a cheap imitation of a real hamburger. As for the taste? It tasted like shit. Looking back now, even that has become a cherished memory”

Context:

The informant is a 51 year man born and raised in South Korea. As a South Korean male, he was required to serve in the military, and he served in the Korean army from October 1994~ December 1996 after his freshman year in college. This topic came up when we were talking about military food, when I told him about my worries for food quality at my military training center for ROTC. As shown in his words, his first impression was not particularly good, but it has become one of his core memories from his time in the military.

Analysis:

In my opinion, this piece of food folklore serves great historical value that helps one understand the culture and history of South Korea. Historically, as South Korea rapidly industrialized and grew its economy following its desolate state after the Korean War, issues in human rights, free speech, and democracy were often suppressed by force to prioritize improving its world image as a developed nation and growing the economy. Likewise, this dish symbolizes this trend of Korean history, as it was introduced to mimic the Western and developed countries South Korea strived for, but its inner truth of cheap ingredients could not be masked, as shown from the informant’s distaste for the actual dish.

Despite its horrid taste, however, its exclusivity of only being served on weekends and contrast from traditional military meals created the dish’s significance for soldiers during their service, and gundaeria’s distinct taste only being something you could taste in the military made it an unforgettable memory for veterans at that time like my informant. Hence, just like this famous Ratatouille scene where the critic is blown away by the dish’s ability to bring back nostalgic memories, it goes to show that folk dishes can become significant not just for its taste, but for the nostalgic values it brings. Moreover, this exclusivity surrounding this food also becomes something that only the Korean military veterans folk group can relate to, serving as a group marker. In short, while it may not be remembered for taste, gundaeria is a folk dish that provides historical commentary and a reminder of shared experiences.

Paper Crane

Text
“In middle school, my crush, like that I liked like a lot. He would make paper cranes. 
And he would make them at like, every single class in the back of the classroom. And I remember being like one day like, “oh, you should, like, teach me how to make the paper cream, you know, whatever. And so I learned, but then he made one that was, like, really good and he’s like, no, you can have it.” 
And so he gave it to me, and I still have it today. It’s on my, it’s on my shelf, in my home. 
And like my home is kind of like a childhood, like my shelf is like a collection of my childhood. Like I have all these little things, but I still have that crane. And then I tried to make it just now, and it came out as a boat. 
And I think I’m like halfway there. But like the memory’s in there. Like, my hands are kind of just doing stuff. That’s the story.”

Context
AI tells a story about learning how to make a paper crane from a boy that AI liked in middle school, as well as her memory of him giving them a paper crane that he made, which AI has kept to this day. In attempts to make a paper crane from memory, AI says that she doesn’t remember exactly how to do it, but still remembers bits and pieces of the process.

Analysis
Paper cranes are a form of material culture and folk art that carry a lot of meaning such as peace, healing, and hope. They’re also a form of origami/paper folding creations like paper airplanes and fortune tellers that are taught to kids as ways to play and be creative. In AI’s story, the meaning and value of a paper crane come from the physical representation of a strong memory she had with her crush, and the fact that she still has the same paper crane so many years later shows the power and value of this specific moment in her life, and how materials are able to carry memories and meanings. AI’s story highlights Witzling’s idea that handmade objects can communicate through form, materials, and social context. AI’s crush was able to teach and create an endearing moment through gifting the paper crane and paper cranes have embodied these childhood moments and feelings for AI ever since.

Borrowed Keys

Nationality: American/Mexican
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: West Covina, CA
Language: English/Spanish

TEXT: “When I was a lot younger, my grandfather passed away, and I was heartbroken. I tried not to remember him so I wouldn’t get sad and start crying, but when that wouldn’t work, my mom started a wholesome joke to keep his memory alive. Anytime someone would misplace something or lose it, she would say, “Abuelo probably borrowed it”. It was a little thing that meant a lot, since he would always misplace things or lose them and borrow other people’s instead. One morning, I was looking for my keys, since we needed to leave for a family dinner, and I couldn’t find them for the life of me. I looked all around my room and our house, but no luck. As I finished checking our kitchen and living room, I headed back up to my room in hopes of finding them, and there they were. My keys were sitting on my desk when I walked back in, and when I told my mom, she laughed and said, “Abuelo’s always around”.

CONTEXT: This short personal narrative describes the quiet impact of grief and the small, meaningful ways families keep loved ones present after they’ve passed. The narrator recalls the death of their grandfather during childhood and how that early loss brought emotional difficulty. In response, the narrator’s mother introduces a gentle family tradition: joking that “Abuelo probably borrowed it” whenever something goes missing. This phrase becomes a wholesome coping mechanism that transforms grief into connection.

ANALYSIS: This memorate serves as a wholesome example of how families create small traditions that keep the memory of loved ones alive. The informant’s family marked the moment of loss in a gentle way by saying something meaningful that offered a small comfort, “Abuelo probably borrowed it.” The missing keys provide a bit of mystery, but it’s less about animating the dead and more about how memory, love, and belief intersect and interact in daily life. The mom’s response is an indication of how this small ritual comforts the grieving family and allows the grandfather to still have a presence in the family narrative, even though he has passed.