Connections

These two pieces of reading by Ahn and Nicholson both place significant cultural and personal ties to the foods that these two authors ate growing up in their families. Although they are very different cultural ties, such as Ahn’s ties to Korean through specific spices and or sauces, and Nicholson’s ties to his mother through ascetic appeal and whiteness of the food, the fact that both of these authors are able to draw personal connections to important people in their life through food is extraordinary in my opinion. Looking at myself and trying to think about foods that bring up specific memories about either important people in my life or important cultural ties is very difficult. Although there are foods that can bring me back to a specific moment in my life, the cultural and personal ties to these foods are not nearly as strong each of these authors. It was very apparent in Ahn’s article that he passionate about food and in being passionate about food he allowed himself to make connections between his mother’s passion and his own. This connection manifested itself in the commonalities between him and his mother, which turned out to be their ties to the Korean culture through food. While Ahn’s connection to food tied back to the taste and or smell of the dish, Nicholson’s connection tied back to the ascetic qualities of the food. Nicholson’s connection to food in my opinion is much less significant due to only the personal tie to which he connects it, while on the other hand Ahn places significance on the cultural as well as personal. Although I have not established my own connections to cultural and or people through food, there are some dishes that will always carry some significance in my life.