Ahn and Nicholson

        Ahn and Nicholson both use food to feel a connection to loved family members that have passed away as well as the cultural aspects associated with the dishes they used to eat. Ahn's Korean heritage had been something that he was embarrassed of when he was growing up. He was not confident in accepting his different culture than his American friends. A major part of Ahn's culture was its food and he wanted little to do with the garlicy and strongly smelling Korean dishes. Still, he took pleasure in watching his mom in the kitchen cooking. When his parents passed away, it was these same Korean dishes that helped him to feel connected with his parents and his Korean culture. He is now proud to be a Korean-American and wants to be able to share his Korean culture with his son. One of the main ways he seeks do to this is through food prepared in the same fashion has his mother used to. Korean food is very important and deeply sentimental to Ahn.
        Nicholson lost his mother and also seeks to remember her through food. He does not share the same love of his mothers food as Ahn does but it is still comforting and important to him because it reminds him of her. Nicholson's mother loved bland white food. His mom is catholic and he guesses that white food might have signified purity to her. Nicholson uses his moms food preferences to try and figure out parts of his mothers life that he did not understand. He cannot be sure why she had a love of white food of if it anything to do with being catholic, but still eating the meal of white bread and cheese that he used to eat with his mom is his way of honoring and remembering her. This meal differs from Ahn's because Nicholson is not catholic and it doesn't seem to have any cultural significance to him, still Nicholson and Ahn are both seeking similar things by eating the food of their passed away parents.
         I cannot say that I have as strong of a cultural or sentimental connection with certain foods as Ahn and Nicholson do. I do still love my family's cooking and enjoy it very much when I go home. It is possible that I might place greater significance in the food I once ate with my parents after they pass away, just like Ahn and Nicholson do. I have no way of knowing whether this will happen. Time will tell whether I also seek comfort and connection with my culture through these family dishes.