Simple, But Beautiful Time

 

    

     I think I was a really obstinate girl for the sake of disagree.  I was inquisitive at least few candies or bubble gum.  So, To get a good scolding resulted from many argument.  And I often argued with my aunt, my father's younger sister, sharing a room with me.  The aunt lives in New York, United States now.  


     I was raised a Korean-style house with the red roof. - I just remember from around six years old without before then even if I don't know why.  When before school days, it seems to be the most happiest time on looking back upon the past because simple daily works are my own everything such as meals with a sweet smell, playing house, a rubber cord and taking a noon's nap.  At that time, I have no worry except how I play with anybody.


     My favorite play was playing house and I was always Mommy, I had to prepare our Meal.  I made powdered red pepper with the red roof in the way of scratching that with a spoon.  So, my mother could not help hating that because it hurt the roofs.


     I kept a dog and five young chickens.  I remember the chickens had each peculiar names from my father dipped a dot on their each head with each of the five enamels, Balgangi(a chicken with a red dot on his head), Norangi(a chicken with a yellow dot) and Parangi(a chicken with a blue dot), in this way.  They followed me wherever I was, so I was very proud of them and felt to become a kind of king.

 

 


Little Society

 

 

     Before I entered Cheong-pa elementary school in Seoul at March 2, 1987 - my parents told from five years old - I could read and write thanks to my father's earnestness.  So, I had never been second to none in any subject when I was a elementary school.  At that time, I had a high opinion of myself because I did not need a heavy effort. 

 

    However, the teacher in charge of me when I was a fourth grader helped me to get out of my egoism.  Her method of teaching was remarkably  special as a Korean teacher at that time.  She let our desks be close one another by threes like the right picture.  And then, we had to elect a head of each group. It goes without saying that there were also presidents and vice-presidents of our class. - in a peculiar way of our school, we elected a president of males and a presidentof females, and either did vice-president.  I think it was the reason my school had extraordinary high percent of the female presidents of the student council.  Anyway, we felt a sense of closeness from members of our own group than the others.  So, we did not divide into male side and female side like other classes.  


     I think nowadays, my teacher seemed to want to make a little society on the model of democracy society. Each group was a self-governing body, it was unsophisticated, though.  We members helped each other in all respect and if there was some needs, we consulted with a president of our class or our teacher.  The process taught us many things about society we will have to live and socialized us. 


     I think the first time that most people realize the opposite sex is from thirteen to fourteen.  And I also did.  When I was in grade 6, I and my friends talked about male classmates we liked.  Although I didn't like anyone then, I recall it was my first time I discriminated between the sexes and I had become more womanly.

 

 

 

Puberty

 

 

 

     I entered Shin-Kwang Girls' Junior High School at Cheongpa-dong, Seoul in 1993.  My puberty started from the point. My father meddled in everything even our mere feelings.  Being only around fifteen at the time, there was nothing I could do about it.  So, my active character was getting smaller and smaller - furthermore, my older brother had changed a little bit violently and now, he and my father become estranged. My father knew his son too changed lately because he didn't want to know his feelings and thoughts and even ignored those.


     One day, I seemed to be crazy.  To tell the truth, I considered running away from home.  I was really getting sick of my father's meddling.  My father very sharply scolded if I came back ten minutes late than my usual.  Furthermore, his tenacity for my record choked me.       A day which came out my record, I decided I would not enter into home again.  So, I went to my friend's home and slept there even though I was anxious about my parents.  The next day, I went back home with a broken heart that I managed nothing.


 

 

 

Change of A School, Change of My Life

 

 

 

     I entered Sin Kwang Girls' High School in Seoul in 1996.  After the entrance, I took a first sham examination on the model of Korean SAT soon.  The result was very disappointed, so I was a little depressed.  However, I had no time to disappoint because my family had to move to Buchon on a sudden.  I had no relations in Buchon and I would be separated from my friends.  I wept so long.


     I changed to Won-jong High school in Buchon, eventually.  But I didn't acclimate myself well to a new environment.  The new guys are aggressive I had never met. To make matter worse, unlike standardization system of Seoul, they had to entrance examination for high school - their school ranked third in Buchon - and most of the students had some senses of inferiority.  I truly really didn't know I would become the top of whole school no matter how they weren't studious.  So, they could not judge me good.


     I met two good guys finally and made them best friends though it was not easy to look for friends after my heart.  We became closely one another quickly and my reputation was risen.


     As time passed, we all students had been under pressure more and more from the national academic aptitude test - the entrance examination for colleges or universities.  Owing to a little change, we smiled and wept even spoke ill of a friend behind her back.  It was a great comedy and tragedy.   

 

 

 


Failure, Love and Now

 

 

 

     I thought I failed in my first entrance examination and decided to prepare myself for the college entrance exams for the next chance.  I avoided meeting friends and relatives until the next examination. 


     To crown my misery, I got a poor record in my second entrance examination.  I came across into my mind even suicide out of despair and my parents are hard on me though it was understandable. - That anguish is still in my mind.


     I entered Department of the English language and literature in Myong-ji University at last after many twists and turns and I got a little hope.  A senior - He entered the university one year early.  We Koreans call him a senior. - suggested me worked for Myongji University Press.  So, I became a reporter but I leaved there after only one semester because I judged there was no hope in University Press due to extreme meddlesomeness of the part of the university and a professor in charge of Myongji University Press at that time.  We could not make papers which we had wanted. 


     I have studied hard and thought about my way after then.  At the first semester of sophomore, I met a boy and I fell in love.  He was a mischief and a kind of handsome for me.  My parents wanted me to show him, so I did.  They were pleasant pretty. 


     After I leaved Myongji University Press, I have taught elementary school students at an institute for my part-time job.  Now, I would like to have been in New York - my aunt lives - to improve my English.    But, it is not easy to be granted a visa to America because of a difficulty of IMF in Korea and New York terrors in U.S.A. 


     I have went to a language institute for English conversation. and I am going to learn Computer Programming during this winter vacation and acquire a certificate of qualifications by all means. And I would like to discover a job which is fit for me and needs both of the computer skills and abilities of speaking, translating English.     
      
                 

 


You Know? They Are Really Vulnerable!

 

 

 

     As I already told you, I have worked at an institute for elementary school students from about one year ago as my part-time job.  We adults are always complaining that children of modern society have no sense of propriety - but actually when we were young, we also heard of that kind of complaining from our mother or father's generation.  Yes, that is right in our adult's sense.  However, children are just children.  What do you want?  Nothing is purer than children.


     I have gotten mad all my classes since my students are extremely forgetful to my scolding even if I'm a strict teacher.  It is no use any sharp scolding.  They are always fighting, crying, screaming and running in classroom.


     But, there is only one thing that can let them calm.  It is not to scold or to get angry, but to reason them into compliance and to praise.  Children know and express their feelings because they are also human beings.  We adults have not to forget they are vulnerable...


     We grown-up persons really need to pay attention of feelings and thoughts of children. Otherwise, when our children are grown up, they practice the ways we did. Children are the weak of society. When we are children, the need to be loved is phenomenal. When we are adult, the need to love is greater. Let's practice tolerance for children. Then, You'll like yourself a lot more, and so will others as well as for children.