Korea - Early 1950's

One historical event that is very closely associated with me and my family is the Korean War. The Korean War was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula between North Korea and South Korea and their allies. It lasted from June of 1950 to July 1953, and with the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement, the war became a frozen conflict, meaning even though all combat has ended, no peace treaty has been signed to end the war. The reason why this event is so close to my family is because my grandma was one of the 2.4 million refugees who evacuated their homes because of Northern forces moving down the Korean peninsula. She was only a baby at the time, but to this day she says she remembers one day that changed her future. Her and her family were walking for days to move further down to escape the North Korean soldiers making their way down the country. One day, her sister who was tired of carrying my grandmother said that they should leave my grandmother behind because she would only be a burden as a small and vulnerable baby. However, her oldest sister stepped in and carried and cared for my grandmother through the refuge. If they decided to leave her there, she would have starved to death, or be found by North Korean soldiers and killed. Then, my mom, my uncle, and myself wouldn’t be here today. Imagining what would have happened if she was abandoned like many of the children who were left by their families during the war, made me realize that history is not only in the books, but is directly connected to our lives. Being a part of this project and learning about my family’s history made learning history more engaging and definitely increased my interest in the subject. It made me think more deeply about the context of the history lessons in class, and especially in my case, made me appreciate the people who put their life on the line for the future generation.