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By Lee Nan-hee
There are times when I am disappointed or upset by some people or unexpected circumstances. I did not mean for things to go that way. But deplorably, life plays out not as I expect it to. This is the very time when I need to use my confidence in myself and faith in the absolute good being, God.
Nowadays I am learning this lesson again. Though I never meant to do any wrong or any harm, things turned out to be that way sometimes. There are not many ways or things that I can do in order to make things right and anew again. This often makes me feel upset and frustrated. Such a situation reminds me of the famous poem that Russian poet Alexander Pushkin wrote. It is as follows (this is my translation from Korean to English):
Though life betrays you, do not be sad or angry.
When you endure sad days, joyful days will come.
Though the world deserts you, do not be sad or angry.
When you endure hard days, joyful days will surely come.
As the mind dreams of the future, a sad day soon passes...
Worry and concern will disappear, you will have a happy day tomorrow.
Yes, this is life. Life betrays and deceives me from time to time. At such moments, it would be natural to feel sad and angry. But days pass, time flies. Tomorrow I will have a nice, pleasant day again. Tomorrow, tomorrow's sun will rise again. This is the last word of the female character in the famous novel "Gone with the Wind" written by Margaret Mitchell.
Yes, I need to be reminded of this fact that tomorrow's sun will rise again and that I will be happy again with that bright sun, warm breeze and chirping birds. I will take a brisk walk and enjoy my day. I will make up my mind to be happy, merry and satisfied. It is neither a matter of how many people I meet, nor how much I achieve in this society.
It is not how many friends I spend time with nor how rich or great I am in the sight of other people. It is totally a matter of whether I love and accept myself as I am. On top of that, it is a matter of whether I am confident in myself so that I am not shaken, not trembling no matter what may happen to me both now as well as in days to come.
May is here. The beginning of 2023 felt like only several days ago. Time flies. It is a season of spring with the blossoming of colorful flowers and fresh green trees. A couple of days ago, the weather in April was awfully cold like winter with plummeting temperatures and gusty winds. Likewise, life will be full of various unanticipated happenings and incidents. Some will be good. Some will be bad and hurting. Nonetheless, I will choose the good side, not overwhelmed or swayed by the bad, harrowing side.
Dr. Lee Nan-hee studied English in college and theology at Hanshin University.
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