Half of my mom, half of me too, half of Chuseok

Description

Moon, moon, what moon, a moon as round as a plate!
When we think of Chuseok, we think of abundant food and fun games, but
A warm and bright face like the full moon comes to mind. It's my mother's face.
Mom came half, I came half, so we could meet each other even during the busy Chuseok holiday.
Introducing Korea's Chuseok custom, Banbogi!

summary

Chuseok is just a few days away. Sooni's mom is even busier. All the relatives are coming to Sooni's house to perform ancestral rites. Dad is out in the field harvesting the new rice, and Mom is busy preparing the food for the ancestral rite table. Grandma carries Dol-i on her back and picks out the beans to make songpyeon filling.
Mom was busy all day. She made rice cakes, stir-fried vegetables, steamed fish, and pan-fried pancakes. Sooni diligently ran errands beside her. Sometimes Mom would look across the fence and sigh.
Finally, after the ancestral rites were over and the relatives left, Sooni's family found some peace. But Mom had no time to rest, cleaning up the ancestral rites and preparing the lunch table. Then, Grandmother sent Mom on an errand: to Orijeong in Yeonji Village. Mom was annoyed that Grandmother would only send her as far as Orijeong, when her parents' home was just over a hill from Yeonji Village. But when Mom, Suni, Dol-i, and I went to Orijeong with the bundle Grandmother had given us, our maternal grandmother was there. It turned out that Grandmother had told the peddler to come to Orijeong for a half-day visit. Mom hugged Grandmother and cried. Then they shared the delicious snacks Grandmother had packed. This kind of meeting between the in-laws and parents' home, when they were far apart, in a scenic spot, was called a half-day visit. When Sooni, Mom, and Dol-i returned to the village, a ganggangsullae dance was in full swing in the large yard under the full moon.

No more, no less, always be like the first day of the month!
Chuseok is a representative Korean holiday, just as big as Seollal. It falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, the day when the beautiful, round full moon rises brightly. Because it's the middle of autumn, it's also called "Hangawi" or "Gawitnal." Chuseok is a day when families gather together to perform ancestral rites, make and eat songpyeon (rice cakes), and wear beautiful Chuseok bean-covered hats. On this day, people pay respects to their ancestors, offer ancestral rites, and pray for a good harvest in the coming year.
Chuseok was always filled with plenty of food and entertainment. After a busy day of farming, the harvest, when the crops were ripening deliciously, meant a bountiful harvest. A grand feast was held to celebrate the bountiful harvest. Families, relatives, and neighbors gathered together for a joyous time, enjoying various events and games, including wrestling, bullfighting, ganggangsullae (a traditional Korean game of "ganma ssireum"), palanquin wrestling, and turtle play.
Our ancestors have often used the phrase, "No more, no less, always like Chuseok!" This is because Chuseok was a day of abundant food and entertainment, making it the day people felt the most joy and happiness. This phrase embodies the wish, "May every day of the year be as joyful and happy as Chuseok."

Half mom, half me, half meeting my longed-for family
Unlike today, in the past, after a man and woman married, there wasn't much interaction between their families. In particular, married women found it difficult to visit their parents' home freely. Since they made their living by farming, daughters-in-law had to help with both household chores and farm work, so leaving home was unthinkable. Even Sooni's mother hadn't visited her parents' home in nearly seven years since she got married, so you can imagine how busy she was.
But even with all this busyness, there was a clever way to make a day trip to see your family around holidays like Chuseok. This was called Banbogi. Banbogi (半보기) was called this because, if the two houses were far apart, you would meet at the halfway point between your parents' and in-laws' houses. It is said that it was also called this because tears would cloud your vision when you met your family, making it seem like you could only see half of them. In Chinese characters, it was also called Jungnobogi (中路貨) or Jungnosangbong (中路相逢). Since the Joseon Dynasty was a Confucian society, women were not allowed to stay overnight at their parents' house, so they could meet their family for half a day at a scenic mid-point.
When we went to the half-day retreat, we brought delicious food with us. It must have been a great joy to see our daughter and mother again after such a long time. So, those who went to the half-day retreat brought special food, like the snacks Sooni's maternal grandmother brought, and we ate together, chatting, and had a wonderful time. How wise our ancestors were.

A happy and exciting old scene from our Chuseok
[Half Mom, Half Me, Half Chuseok] is filled with heartwarming scenes from our Chuseok holidays on every page. From Sooni's family preparing for Chuseok to making Chuseok beams, songpyeon (rice cakes), playing bullfighting, wrestling, tug-of-war, playing half-bok, and even ganggangsullae (a traditional Korean game), you can see how joyful and fun our ancestors spent Chuseok. You can see the warm Chuseok scenes even more vividly through watercolor paintings that capture the unique colors and beauty of our hanok (traditional Korean houses) and hanbok (traditional Korean clothes). Professor Jeong Yeon-sik of the Department of History at Seoul Women's University reviewed both the text and illustrations based on thorough research.

Introducing the Dalmaru Series

The beginning of an exciting curiosity about our culture and history, the [Dalmaru: Our Stories in History] series.

History is an interesting story.
Many children quickly become overwhelmed by the thought of "studying history." The list of unfamiliar events and place names, the names of difficult artifacts and figures, the sheer number of dates... The sheer number of concepts that inevitably arise when studying history can be suffocating. Studying history, where you're forced to memorize it in a chronological order, segmented and without understanding its meaning, is simply unavoidable.
But history itself is a fascinating "story." Like the old tales that begin with "Once upon a time," it depicts the world and the lives of people long ago. History can begin with a fascinating glimpse into the lives of people in the past. The stories of the lives of people in the past, the stories of our history and culture, rooted in this land and passed down through generations, can be unfamiliar yet fascinating and intriguing to children.

[Dalmaru] is where history and stories come together.
[Dal Maru] is Woongjin Junior's exclusive historical picture book series. "Dal" means "earth" and "maru" means "sky," pure Korean words. True to its name, [Dal Maru] introduces the lives, history, and culture of our ancestors who lived between heaven and earth, through engaging stories.
[Moon Maru] is a series with the great strength of naturally incorporating the materials and themes it explores into its narrative. Rather than providing dry information about the lives of ancient people, it presents vivid stories that allow children to empathize with the times and freely unleash their historical imaginations, creating enjoyable picture books.
Rather than simply listing textbook-like information, the "Our Stories in History: Dalmaru" series presents concrete and vivid accounts of the lives of real people and the social landscape. These engaging stories will spark children's curiosity and interest in our culture and history. They will also share the thoughts, feelings, and wisdom of people from long ago.