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| 세상 수많은 일들이 결국은 아쉽게도 도로무공(徒勞無功)으로 마무리한다 |
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Sunday, October 16, 2011
나의 취향
For plane seat, my preference has always been the right window seats. On the trip to Seoul, I would get to witness sunrise and on home-bound, sunset awaits me. In-flight entertainment doesn't appeal to me as much as the chance to witness the start and end of a day. The boundary where light and darkness meets always fascinates me; it's like a divine fight for world dominance.
Friday, October 14, 2011
바람 먹기러 가자
I like the feeling of wind blowing into my face. My spirit, like a kite that catches wind, soars every time that happens. "바람맞다" is a Korean expression which when literally translated means "hit the wind". "바람" is wind and '맞다' means to hit. No, "바람맞다" doesn't mean putting your face in the wind and let it 'hit' you. It means someone stood you up. Imagine this, someone you are supposed to meet did not turn out for the appointment and you were alone out in the open with only the wind blowing into your face. Not a good feeling right? "바람맞다" conveys quite an opposite feeling to what I usually feel when wind 'hits' me.
In Chinese, "바람맞다" is known as "放鸽子" (let loose a pigeon, 비둘기를 날리다). I do not know the connection between being stood up and letting loose pigeon. But since language is a social contract, I have to use it as it is. It does not matter if I cannot make sense of it. Another similar expression, but slightly more 'ridiculous' sounding, is "放飞机" (let loose a plane, 비행기를 날리다). Again, that's how Chinese language goes, so there is no need for deeper explanation.
In Hokkien (a Chinese dialect), there is an interesting expression which literally means "eat wind" (吃风， 바람을 먹다). What it actually means is to go on sightseeing in a car or go on a tour. When I was kid, my father frequently took me out to "eat wind". As the car, travelled down the peaceful East Coast Parkway, I liked to wind down the car window and open my mouth. To feel wind blowing into my mouth was yet another way which I 'enjoy' its company. However, my mother always showed disapproval look. She would hit and scold me for sucking in all the dirt in the air. Well, that was my naive and innocent childhood.
In autumn, tall silver grass (억새) of human's height grows all over the fields. Whenever cool autumn wind disturbed them, the graceful swaying of their lanky figures which ensued always touches me. That is nature's beauty in its rawest form. I relish standing in the autumn wind again and let its coolness freshen up my weary face. When 'hit' by wind, I always smile. 바람이 거세게 차갑게 불어도 우리 바람을 먹기러 가자! (不管风有多大多冷，我们一起去吃风吧！)
In Chinese, "바람맞다" is known as "放鸽子" (let loose a pigeon, 비둘기를 날리다). I do not know the connection between being stood up and letting loose pigeon. But since language is a social contract, I have to use it as it is. It does not matter if I cannot make sense of it. Another similar expression, but slightly more 'ridiculous' sounding, is "放飞机" (let loose a plane, 비행기를 날리다). Again, that's how Chinese language goes, so there is no need for deeper explanation.
In Hokkien (a Chinese dialect), there is an interesting expression which literally means "eat wind" (吃风， 바람을 먹다). What it actually means is to go on sightseeing in a car or go on a tour. When I was kid, my father frequently took me out to "eat wind". As the car, travelled down the peaceful East Coast Parkway, I liked to wind down the car window and open my mouth. To feel wind blowing into my mouth was yet another way which I 'enjoy' its company. However, my mother always showed disapproval look. She would hit and scold me for sucking in all the dirt in the air. Well, that was my naive and innocent childhood.
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| Silver grass swaying in autumn wind |
In autumn, tall silver grass (억새) of human's height grows all over the fields. Whenever cool autumn wind disturbed them, the graceful swaying of their lanky figures which ensued always touches me. That is nature's beauty in its rawest form. I relish standing in the autumn wind again and let its coolness freshen up my weary face. When 'hit' by wind, I always smile. 바람이 거세게 차갑게 불어도 우리 바람을 먹기러 가자! (不管风有多大多冷，我们一起去吃风吧！)
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Sunday, October 09, 2011
바보
It was 29 May 2009, the day the national funeral for the late South Korean president, Roh Moo Hyun, was held. There was still one hour left before the end of my Korean language class but my teacher was too distraught to carry on. After getting consent from the students, she stopped the lesson and switched on the TV. The live broadcast of the funeral proceedings in front of Gyeongbok Palace was on air. At that moment, a choir sang the late president's most favourite song "상록수" (常綠樹, Evergreen), a song which accompanied him through his fight for Korea's democratic reform and later, his bid for the country's highest office.
A cold wind swept through the class. The tears in my teacher's eyes were unstoppable. From Gyeongbok Palace, the view was switched to the Seoul Plaza where millions of Korean were already gathered to mourn the demise of the people's president. The aerial view of the plaza and its adjacent areas showed a sea of yellow, an image which was unmistakably one of nation in deep grief.
When asked what was his life's motto during an interview in Japan, Roh Moo Hyun quoted Kim Gu's "대붕역풍비 생어역수영" (大鵬逆風飛 生魚逆水泳), translated as "big (mythical) bird flies against the wind, live fish swims against the current". He believed a man of conviction does not bow in the face of adversity, he stands tall. Roh Moo Hyun never made compromise by taking the easier way out, he always chose the difficult route to trek on and for that, he was given the nickname "바보 노무현" (Roh Moo Hyun, the fool).
"Babo" (바보, 笨蛋, fool) may be a derogatory term, but it is a term which Roh Moo Hyun liked very much because it describes his non-mainstream and non-conformist character very well. In his attempt to break the unhealthy practice of regional politics, Roh Moo Hyun (a Liberal) stubbornly chose to run for National Assembly seat and mayorship in Busan, a "fortress" of the Conservatives, in 1992 and 1995 respectively. Without a doubt, he lost both elections. Below was his thought on being called "babo":
"내가 그동안에 사람들이 나에게 붙여 주었던 별명 중에서 제일 마음에 드는 별명입니다. 정치하는 사람들이 바보 정신으로 정치를 하면 나라가 잘 되거리 생각합니다. 어쨌든 그냥 바보 하는 게 그게 그냥 좋아요."
(All this while, there were many nicknames attached to me, but among them, I like "babo" the most. If politicians can act with the mentality of a "babo", I think it will do the country good. Anyway, being a "babo", I just like it.)
A cold wind swept through the class. The tears in my teacher's eyes were unstoppable. From Gyeongbok Palace, the view was switched to the Seoul Plaza where millions of Korean were already gathered to mourn the demise of the people's president. The aerial view of the plaza and its adjacent areas showed a sea of yellow, an image which was unmistakably one of nation in deep grief.
When asked what was his life's motto during an interview in Japan, Roh Moo Hyun quoted Kim Gu's "대붕역풍비 생어역수영" (大鵬逆風飛 生魚逆水泳), translated as "big (mythical) bird flies against the wind, live fish swims against the current". He believed a man of conviction does not bow in the face of adversity, he stands tall. Roh Moo Hyun never made compromise by taking the easier way out, he always chose the difficult route to trek on and for that, he was given the nickname "바보 노무현" (Roh Moo Hyun, the fool).
"Babo" (바보, 笨蛋, fool) may be a derogatory term, but it is a term which Roh Moo Hyun liked very much because it describes his non-mainstream and non-conformist character very well. In his attempt to break the unhealthy practice of regional politics, Roh Moo Hyun (a Liberal) stubbornly chose to run for National Assembly seat and mayorship in Busan, a "fortress" of the Conservatives, in 1992 and 1995 respectively. Without a doubt, he lost both elections. Below was his thought on being called "babo":
"내가 그동안에 사람들이 나에게 붙여 주었던 별명 중에서 제일 마음에 드는 별명입니다. 정치하는 사람들이 바보 정신으로 정치를 하면 나라가 잘 되거리 생각합니다. 어쨌든 그냥 바보 하는 게 그게 그냥 좋아요."
(All this while, there were many nicknames attached to me, but among them, I like "babo" the most. If politicians can act with the mentality of a "babo", I think it will do the country good. Anyway, being a "babo", I just like it.)
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| "그냥 바보 하는 게 그게 그냥 좋아요." - I just like being a fool |
As a kid, I was already captivated by the beauty of Apple computer. Its attention to beauty details extended right down to the cursor. Till today, I cannot forget how its cursor used to radiate in changing rainbow colours. Some labelled Steve Jobs an inventor equivalent to Thomas Edison and Henry Ford, but I see him as an artist. His single-minded quest for perfection, his not-so-pleasant temperament, have all the markings of a great artist. He once quoted Pablo Picasso as saying, "Good artists copy, great artists steal." In real life, Steve Jobs 'stole' the idea of graphics user interface (GUI) from Xerox and perfected it with artistry to a state where it become the default standard for all computing platforms. Microsoft could not have done it better except to copy. Without Steve Jobs, computer may just be a chunk of metal that works but never an art form which we can proudly display.
At the end of Steve Jobs' famous commencement speech delivered in 2005 at Stanford University, he said, "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you."
At the end of Steve Jobs' famous commencement speech delivered in 2005 at Stanford University, he said, "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you."
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| "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." |
Where are all the fools in this world? The world needs you, the world misses you.
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