Holiday Special Collection

🌕 Chuseok special: Happiness sent by the moon rabbit

The festival grounds were filled with the sweet, subtle scent of steamed pine needles and the nutty aroma of sesame salt. On the eve of Chuseok, the night market buzzed with the warm glow of hanji lanterns and the low murmur of families blooming into laughter.

Chanyeon and I had volunteered to run the night stalls, and on our long wooden table the bowls of colorful rice-flour dough were stacked high. Bright green tinted with mugwort, soft pink colored with berries, and classic white dough too.

"No, look at my thumb."

A low laugh that pleasantly rumbled in his chest mingled with Chanyeon’s deep voice. He gently nudged my elbow out of the way to make room, then lifted up a sticky lump of dough and showed me directly how it was done.

His rough, big hands moved with astonishing delicacy. He pressed down in the middle of the white dough to make a small indentation, filled it with a heaping spoonful of filling made from sweet honey and sesame seeds, then folded the dough in half. After that, he skillfully and rhythmically pinched it several times with his fingers, shaping a flawless crescent-shaped songpyeon.

He held up the songpyeon in the nearby lantern light, clearly very proud of himself.

"How is it? Perfect, right?"

He tilted his head slightly and flashed a mischievous smile.

"In old stories, they say if you make pretty songpyeon, you'll meet a pretty spouse. I think mine is a total masterpiece."

I looked down at the sad, lopsided, sunken triangular lump of dough resting in my palm. Sweet filling was oozing out through the small crack on one side.

"Mine looks like a mashed potato."

I burst out laughing and held up my ugly little songpyeon beside his perfect creation.

"So does that mean my future spouse is going to look like an ugly vegetable?"

Chanyeon’s eyes curved softly, and a clear, refreshing laugh slipped between his lips. He leaned in, carefully took the lopsided creation from my hands, and set it on the wooden tray. Then he reached back into the bowl, took out a fresh piece of pink dough, and placed it right in my palm. His warm hand then wrapped around mine, guiding my fingers as I pressed the edges of the dough together and helped seal them.

"Try again."

He let go of my hand and said it in a low, gentle voice, as if encouraging me.

"Don’t rush."

As we stood side by side, shaping the dough together, the crowd at the festival slowly began to thin and the night grew peaceful and quiet. A sudden chill rode in on the autumn wind, and I shivered slightly inside my sweater. Chanyeon noticed my tiny tremble at once. Without saying a word, he walked to the back of the stall, fetched his oversized flannel jacket, and draped it softly over my shoulders. It carried a faint scent of fabric softener and cedarwood, and its warmth quickly melted through my body.

Leaning against the wooden stall, he lifted his gaze toward the huge, radiant full moon hanging in the ink-black sky. Then he raised a hand and pointed at the moon, its silver craters clearly visible.

"Look closely."

Chanyeon whispered in a soft, nostalgic voice.

"When I was little, my family used to tell me to look inside that moon and find the moon rabbit. Can you see it too?"

I narrowed my eyes and looked up at the white, glowing full moon.

"The rabbit with the mortar and pestle?"

"Yeah, that's right."

He answered with a nod, still looking at the moon.

"According to the story, long ago a god disguised himself as a beggar and went to test the forest animals. The fox and the monkey brought him food, but the rabbit had nothing to offer except itself, so it jumped into the fire to feed him. Moved by the rabbit's selfless heart, the god sent it to the moon to live under the cassia tree. Now the rabbit pounds rice cake for everyone beneath that full moon, so it can send happiness to them."

He lowered his gaze from the sky and looked straight into my eyes with a gaze so earnest and warm it nearly stopped my heart.

"When I was little, I used to look up at the moon and wish for good luck."

Chanyeon moved a little closer to me, speaking with a soft smile at the corner of his lips.

"But tonight, sitting here with you and making a mess of the dough... I think the moon rabbit already sent me all the happiness I need."