Nick+Yun+Interview

**Oral History of the Korean War** **by Nick Yun **

**Questions and Answers:** **Please tell me briefly about yourself. Your name, birth date, hometown, family, and where you were at the time of Korean War, etc.** My name is Myung S. Choi. I was born in April 6. 1940. I lived in Kangwon province on the east coast area close to the 38th parallel. I have lived in the United States in Washington and I currently live in Kangwon province today. I am visiting/staying with my family in Seoul and Bundang for the weekend. During the war, when it first started I was around ten years old and by the end I was around thirteen. Even so, I couldn't really get that three years worth of education due to the constant disturbance of war leading to infrequent education. However, I continued shortly after. '

I have one younger brother named Myung K. and two older sisters Miyeun and Migyung. They are living in the states and I miss them very much. We moved around together as a family during the war. Even though we sometimes frequently lost each other, we always found each other and continued to migrate as a family.
 * Did you have any brothers or sisters?**

Before the war, I was just a normal 5th grader attending an elementary school. I had a relatively normal life with my brothers, sisters, and friends. My parents owned land, farms, and had a store. As news that a war was coming, us being relatively close to North Korea, we had to flee. After the war, I would never see my friends again.
 * What were you doing before the war?**

During the war, I was still a school boy. We moved a lot of places because we tried to move to one place, North Korean soldiers would come and then we would have to move again. We moved as a family and we usually tried to follow soldiers around in certain parts of the war but we sometimes got lost. I still had some education during the war but it was very abrupt.
 * What did you do during the war?**

The situation during the war was terrible especially in the war zone areas. We would always move around and try to reach armor heavy areas and underground areas for shelter to sleep and from safety from warfare. Everywhere was very dangerous and there were several times where there was not enough food. Sometimes we had to go several days without eating. But the South Korean soldiers would always have food to share with us, so we tried to stick around with the soldiers as long as possible. They also were able to provide shelter for us and other families.
 * What was the situations like in the war, did you have enough food to eat, what about shelter?**

My experiences were relatively the same throughout the war. We were constantly moving and just trying to stay alive because that was our only objective at several points in the war. I remember meeting several soldiers from South and North Korea.
 * Are there any specific stories you want to tell about your experiences in the war?**

I was only 11 years old at the time. I wasn't old enough to fight in the war, but even if I was, I'm not sure if I wanted to fight in the war. My uncle had died fighting and that scared me. I did not want to leave my family even though situations were unbearable.
 * Did you want to fight in the war?**

My uncle had joined the army and other relatives that I wasn't too close with. When I heard he passed away, I cried and I became very scared of the war.
 * Did you know anyone that joined the army that was close to you?**

My uncle had died during the war in battle and I had many other relatives that were separated from us. I think they were then separated and are now in North Korea, but I believe they have probably passed away due to old age.
 * Did you know anyone that was hurt in the war?**

We had to move around very frequently. We had to move around 3 to 4 times per day constantly moving towards the south coast area because the North Korean soldiers were pushing south. So we evacuated towards the South.
 * Did you have to move around a lot?**

Yes, we went two to three years with no permanent home, as did most of all South Koreans. Every day, we would stay at shelter homes and new places that we've never been before. I didn't like it and i really missed our home.
 * Did you miss your home?**

The nation is not normal. The people are controlled by an abnormally controlled nation. The North Korean army was always trying to occupy different and new areas in the South and were always killing people. I actually talked to some North Koreans. They are no different than us, however there country's policies are so poor and unfortunate.
 * What were your feelings towards North Korea? What about now?**

My parents felt the same way as they were with me almost the entire time. They did not welcome North Koreans because they were communists and the nation was ruled by a dictatorship like government.
 * What were your parents feelings towards the North Koreans?**

We lost a part of our lives that was not a good experience. I lost my home as it was very close to the coast and the north which was bombed several times and hit by artillery and gunfire. Along with that went my childhood memories as I spent most of my life in that area. We lived in a luxury home which was also destroyed in the process. I missed my home and my friends whom I never saw again. I did not return to my homeland and I missed a portion of my education.
 * How did the war affect you? What did you do when the war ended? What were your feelings?**

I moved to America in July 1973. I was a young school instructor as an electrician.
 * When and why did you move to America?**

**Video** I recorded a video interview of my Grandfather. Unfortunately, youtube doesn't allow videos longer than 10 minutes so I had to condense it down to only essential questions and the shortened answers. I requested that he speak in English which he is not very fluent in, so please bear with it. Thank you for watching! media type="youtube" key="OSRVDD1TPxo" height="385" width="480"

This interview was overall a positive experience. I'm honestly not that close with my grandfather, so I thought it would be a bit awkward; and it was. Probably like many of the other students in the class, I didn't really want to burden my grandfather with these questions about a horrifying moment in experience. However, my grandfather rather enjoyed the interview and reassured me that he would be there in case I needed anything else. This interview not only strengthened our bond and relationship but also gave us both a positive experience in reminiscing on a critical inside perspective of a significant time in history. It is preferable to get a perspective from not only a South Korea that had actually experienced this time in history but also someone who is close that you can trust. It means more than an article found online. Because of the relationship that relatives have, you were able to get a better vibe and feel of the experiences that they had gone through. When you read about the Korean War, or any war in that sense, you don't necessarily cover the perspective of the victims other than the victims of the holocaust. Other than that, I am nearly oblivious of the real victims of the war. Honestly, I am more interested in the big picture of significant victories and losses. My knowledge of the Korean war was shamefully avid and vague. This interview helped me sharpen up my perspective on this time in history. Of course, it may have been one-sided as I would need to see or experience the perspective of a North Korean during this war. My knowledge has a limit to one side and so I would have to extend that; that being a minor flaw in this project. All in all, the interview was a success in that I was able to improve my understanding and more importantly my comprehension that is important to my identity.
 * Reflection **