Korporal Punishment

A Korean friend of mine regaled me with the tale of what happened to her when she wet the bed as a kid. The parents, on top of doing laundry, will administer a very unusual punishment. After soiling the bed, the offending child is required to perform the following activity the next day:

Step #1: The child must wear a strange, wooden headdress (see the attached picture).
Step #2: After donning the headdress, the child must go over to their neighbours house, knock on the door and ask for salt.

That's it.

After this utterly horrifying embarassment, the salt was brought home. My friend couldn't explain what the salt was for. As far as I know, the salt was either thrown out or perhaps used in some Korean dish that day.

Some enuresis studies back home indicate that children who wet the bed is a result of neglection on the parents part. Well, in Korea, after turning your bed into a swimming pool, you definitely get the attention of your parents... AND the neighbours.

This makes me think of my childhood and imagining that I had to perform this corporal punishment. The definition of corporal punishment is the infliction of pain. Well, I can't think of anything more painful then having to dress up in some weird wooden headdress and beg for salt from the neighbours.

This is a depressing version of Halloween.

Growing up, most of my neighbours were grizzled, jaded people. Particularly one house with a man my brothers and I nicknamed "Grumbles". I believed him to be a retired, crotchety, old prospector. He loathed children and having 5 brothers and 2 sisters, we were considered an infestation on the street. I can just picture walking up to his house in my wooden garment and asking for salt. He'd probably force me to tuck my pant legs into my socks and pour the salt down my trousers.

While being in Korea, I think I'll watch my drinking intake... just in case.