Korea - New York - Early 90's

Back in the early 90s, after the IMF in Korea, my grandfather lost his job when his company went bankrupt. He took whatever savings he had and started a fried chicken business that also eventually failed. Left without many options, he moved to the United States to pursue a new life and ended up working in a chicken farm, much like the one featured in the movie Minari.

He jokes now that after the IMF, he only remembers chickens from frying them to farming them. He still doesn't really like eating chicken dishes.

His son, or my dad, didn't adjust very well in school. He faced racism and bullying in school and would come home crying. My grandfather packed up his things and moved to a place that is more diverse than Georgia. When I asked him if he wasn't afraid of such a big change, he laughed and said, "I was going from nothing to nothing. There was nothing to be afraid of, even."

And that's how we settled in NY. In NY, he worked in a deli under a rather understanding Korean-American owner. He likes to tell one story in particular from those days of working at the deli.

He didn't speak much English so when a customer walked in and asked for a "toasted everything bagel," he said he was shocked. He said he asked three times: "Everything?" And each time the customer confirmed, "Yes." So my grandfather proceeded to take everything out of the bagel display to cut and toast.

Unlike chickens, he still loves eating bagels.