Another week of the holiday went by, and not slowly. I finished the final classes of my first semester of postgrad, pulled together a draft of the third chapter of my thesis, and had the supervision meeting that comes with it. There will be rounds and rounds of edits ahead, and ethics approval is still a way off — but things are moving, more than they aren't.
The Kids' Holiday Hustle
The children had their own rhythms. English holiday programme, piano lessons, the pool. Now at intermediate, Min was busier still — a church camp, and afternoons out with friends. Four eleven-year-olds meeting at the mall, lunch in the food court, an animated film, sweet bubble tea. An ordinary afternoon that, to her, felt like an occasion.
Our Quiet Family Meals
With three meals a day at home, our table grew quieter. A single bowl of pasta on a weekday; on weekends, the kind of small, comforting plate I grew up with. One afternoon Min made fried rice — enough for everyone.
An Outing for Sotbap
Another day we all went to the library and walked over to Sangsang, a Korean restaurant just nearby, for a warm bowl of sotbap. Rice in a stone pot, scorched crust at the bottom, grilled fish with crisp skin, tender tteok-galbi in its sweet glaze. Familiar tastes, filling us up properly. One day after another, the time kept going — steady, unremarkable, whole.
Read More: Term 2, A New Beginning
한국어 요약
방학의 또 한 주가 지나갔다. 나는 대학원 첫 학기 수업을 마치고 논문 3장 초안을 묶어 지도 면담까지 했다. 고칠 일은 한참 남았고 윤리 승인도 아직 멀지만, 멈춰 있기보다는 나아가고 있다.
아이들은 아이들대로 바빴다. 영어 홀리데이 프로그램, 피아노, 수영장. 인터미디어트에 올라간 Min은 교회 캠프에 다녀왔고, 열한 살 친구 넷이 몰에서 만나 푸드코트 점심과 애니메이션 영화, 버블티로 오후를 보냈다. 평범한 오후였지만 Min에게는 특별한 날이었다.
세 끼를 집에서 먹는 동안 식탁은 조용해졌다. 평일엔 파스타 한 그릇, 주말엔 내가 먹고 자란 소박한 한 접시. 하루는 Min이 온 식구 몫의 볶음밥을 만들었다. 또 하루는 다 같이 도서관에 갔다가 근처 한식당 Sangsang에서 솥밥을 먹었다. 바닥에 누룽지가 눌은 돌솥밥, 껍질이 바삭한 생선구이, 달큰한 떡갈비. 익숙한 맛으로 든든히 채운 한 주였다.
Yussi
Writer · Social work student, Massey University
A mother of three girls and a Korean immigrant making Mairangi Bay home — writing about starting school, home learning and everyday life on Auckland's North Shore.
More about Yussi →Frequently asked questions
- What do kids do during the school holidays in Auckland?
- Ours kept their own rhythms — an English holiday programme, piano lessons and the pool. Min, now at intermediate, also went to a church camp and spent an afternoon at the mall with friends: lunch in the food court, an animated film and bubble tea.
- What is sotbap?
- Rice cooked in a stone pot, with a scorched crust at the bottom. At Sangsang, a Korean restaurant near the library, ours came with grilled fish with crisp skin and tender tteok-galbi in a sweet glaze.
Join the conversation
Comments
Loading comments...
