Among the many Korean authors, my favorite author that is close to my heart is Park Wan-Suh. She lived up to her will of “I would be happy to die an author.” And following her dream, I also hope to live as an author until the last moment of my life. Her words, “Waste your youth as much as you wish, for it is the only thing acceptable to be wasted.” are etched in my heart. I interpreted the quote to mean that wasting youth is like taking on challenges that may seem unachievable. It helped me live through the days in my 20s. Out of all the good novels and essays she has left, I would like to introduce Even If the Truth is Worth a Grain of Sand, an essay written by a person who loved beautiful things – beautiful for being humble, sincere, and simple.

“There’s one day when everyone seems to be kinder than me. That day was the day, and it is that day that makes life worth living. (Page 20)” This is from the part where the main character thinks badly of a young man when she thought he did not yield his place to the weak in the subway. However, it turned out that she was confused by the man, as he was waiting for a woman, a pregnant woman with a girl, to give her his seat. This sentence came at the end of the incident when she felt real joy. I was taken aback by the author’s writing technique throughout the story. The honest story of the protagonist where she mistakes a man that is seemingly not yielding his seat to a pregnant woman, and how she could describe things happening in ordinary daily life in such a happy narration enabling people to relate to were just wonderful. And I think of the time when everyone seemed nicer than me. Well, if the world is so, wouldn’t it be a wonderful place to live in?

The author says she went to Jeju because the person she loved wanted her to be a poet. She then debuted in Jeju with her poetry. As I read her book, I thought about the happiness and grief that love brings. As he didn’t recognize her feelings, her broken heart turned into poems – I Live in Jeju Alone, and I Don’t Do Alcohol Well (Munhakdongne). When you read this book, you’ll feel like you’re listening to songs with your eyes. The story’s so beautiful that I didn’t even notice myself searching for plane tickets to Jeju Island. I came to realize, “Oh, that’s how it is when you fall in love at Jeju Island.”

“I quickly breathed in as he breathed out, but I could smell the warm scent of spring. (Page 40)” Reading the gorgeous language of the young poet, I pictured myself falling in love with a man, who I more than wish to breathe in his breath. And not too long after, I could smell the warm fragrance of spring. On the day I felt I fell in love, I could smell the fragrance of flower petals floating gently around me, even though it was not spring. I find myself – myself from the past who would sing along to music related to spring with a beating heart, in a sentence of the book.

“On my way home, I left my body adrift along the alley. (Page 41)” I imagine myself in Jeju, where I let myself be adrift along the alley, which seemed to say, “Trust me and follow me.” After receiving this book as a gift from a junior writer and reading through it at a party on Moseulpo, I could not resist but book a ticket to Jeju. And guess what? Jeju was simply gorgeous. This book offers abundant happiness to readers, together with the tasty writing style of a young Korean poet and the beautiful feeling of Jeju Island.

Written by Yoon Jeong-Eun (Essay Writer)