By Kim Heung-sook
The Christian hostages are back from Afghanistan. Their fervent brothers and sisters chanted ``You’ve done nothing wrong” to them at the airport and police managed to seize a man just before he threw eggs at them.
Cicadas have suddenly stopped chirring. Hot pants and mini skirts are receding as breezes cool one off in the morning and evening. Farmers are busy drying red peppers. Autumn is coming, subtropical or not.
After months of struggling against the heat and humidity, life regains its peaceful moments in September. Thinking is possible again and reminiscing makes a better snack than chocolate chips.
This season will pass within winks of time and ginkgo leaves will turn yellow only to go back to ashes on the street. Soon, the scent of impartial death will fill both the rich and poor alleys.
Who can afford to waste September? Don’t read politics. Don’t read economy. No more Bush, no more Abe. No more Dow Jones, no more KOSPI. Pick up some essays by George Gissing, Michel Tournier or Natsume Soseki. They will make a good companion on your journey back to where you started.
If and when the autumnal sun tickles your feet or the fragrance of soothing rain wakes up an unidentified yearning inside your shrunken body, close the book and go out, humming Patti Kim’s ``Song of September.”
``Listening to the sound of September coming
The sound of petals blooming, the sound of petals falling
Street trees are still full of leaves
But leaves are already fallen in our hearts
Wandering about the lonely street
With thoughts of you calling me from somewhere
Listening to the leaves under my feet
The sound of love coming, the sound of love going
The last one word coming back again
People fall into longing, leaves hastening to fall
When in love, anyone can be the one on the lonely street.”
The next best thing will be going to a movie. Go well before the show begins. Buy a ticket, go into a sunlit cafe and find a seat a couple of meters from the window so that the sunlight can’t touch you any more.
Sipping bittersweet Espresso, look around the weather-beaten faces of your fellow humans who have survived yet another test of nature.
If you happen to be a parent, bring your kid/kids along on your walk or visit to the cinema. You may not realize, but you are making memories for them, which will turn out to be better medicine than antidepressants in their times of frustration and sadness.
I’m almost a senior citizen but I still vividly remember the walks I took as a child alongside my father. As we passed the impoverished hillside neighborhood, I heard my father telling me, ``Always remember those who are less fortunate than you. Don’t forget what you should do for them. Being happy alone is not real happiness.”
You don’t have to be too choosy about movies even if you are going with the little ones. Just avoid the X-rated ones and it will be all right. Movies are movies and they are like any other experience in life. There are good ones and bad ones and you learn from all of them. So, be it ``D-War (Dragon Wars),” ``Remember U 518,” ``Disturbia,” or whatever.
Whether it is a fantasy film or a realistic one, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you love your younger partner and that love doubles when you are doing something together. I recommend D-War, because it will most certainly free the children, particularly Koreans, from their microscopic, cramming reality.
Forget the mundane little struggles and enjoy the great mega actions achieved by computer graphics. If you are a father, you will come to agree with Brad Pitt who has just said that being a father is ``the most fun I’ve ever had.”
If there still are remaining hours, you may want to have another cup of coffee. Don’t bother to order a decaf for only one night’s sleep you are going to miss.
Click www.deathclock.com and you will see how many nights you have in store. You will also learn that your tendency will make a huge difference in your lifespan. I, as an optimist, will die on Dec. 8, 2051, but as a pessimist, it will be as early as Aug. 5, 2011.
In any case, I’m happy that I’ll die on Friday. Huh? I’m ruining the survivors’ weekend? Oh, Okay, I will see what I can do about it. At the moment, let’s enjoy life. It’s September!
kimsook@hotmail.com