May the sacred carol we sing reach the heavens,
So that in March 2026, we may witness once more a miraculous Christmas.
Poet Ms. Chung Young Sook is member of Korean literary organizations
Poet Ms. Chung Young Sook (鄭英淑, pen name Nara 那羅) is a South Korean poet born in Daegu, Gyeongsangbuk-do. She graduated from Seoul National University of Education and later from the Department of English Language and Literature at Korea National Open University, where she established a solid literary and academic foundation. She made her literary debut in 1993 with the poetry collection The Forest Calls You and has since continued her creative work steadily, contributing to a distinctive current in contemporary Korean lyric poetry. Her major poetry collections include The Forest Calls You (1993), A Leaf of Love on Earth (1995), A Temple in the Water (1999), The House of Undine (2001), Sky Bird (2007), How to Read the Golden Drawer (2012), Bolero, Rose-Colored Sentences (2016), and Who Stole My Kiss? (2022). Through these works, she has developed a poetic world characterized by delicate reflections on nature, love, and existence, conveyed through symbolic imagery. In addition, she has expanded her literary scope beyond poetry with the letterpress poetry edition Amour, Perfect Love (2019) and the prose collection Reading Paintings that Make Women Happy (2013), which explores renowned artworks. In recognition of her literary achievements, she received the Grand Prize at the 4th Mokpo Literary Award in 2012, the Poets’ Choice Award in 2015, and the Gyeongbuk Ilbo Literary Grand Prize in 2017. In 2001, she was also awarded a grant from the Arts Council Korea. She is currently an active member of the Korean Poets’ Association, the Korean Women Writers’ Association, and the Korean Catholic Writers’ Association, and continues to engage in active literary exchange as a member of the poetry coterie “Siter.”
Christmas in March
Let us sing together the carol “Silent Night, Holy Night.”
So that it may resound in the blood-stained lands of Iran and Israel,
and reach the White House where the Stars and Stripes are flying—
let us all lift our voices and sing.
On the night of December 24, 1914,
a song echoed along the front lines between France and Germany.
From the German trenches came “Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht,”
and from the British soldiers joined in, singing “Silent Night, Holy Night.”
Let us now all sing that carol together once more.
On the morning of Christmas Day, December 25, 1914,
before the white flag of the British troops,
soldiers laid down their arms and shook hands with the enemy,
burying their fallen comrades in the snow-covered earth—
a song of profound emotion.
From Christmas Day to New Year’s Day, the war fell silent,
as enemies embraced like brothers and rolled together in the snow.
Let us raise our voices and sing again
that miraculous carol from 112 years ago.
Beyond ideology and religion,
beyond conflict and hatred, beyond doctrines and national interests—
let us embrace one another in love.
Let us bring an end to war with a carol of love.
If our earnest song rises into the heavens,
snow will fall white as Christmas even in March,
covering the blood-red earth with gentle flakes,
erasing the black smoke that climbs into the sky,
and saving the innocent lives that are fading away.
May the sacred carol we sing reach the heavens,
so that in March 2026, we may witness once more a miraculous Christmas.
Let us join our hands in prayer.
***
3월의 크리스마스
우리 모두 <고요한 밤 거룩한 밤> 캐럴을 부르자
피로 붉게 물든 이란과 이스라엘 땅
성조기가 펄럭이는 화이트 하우스에 울려 퍼지도록
우리 모두 소리 높여 노래 부르자
1914년 12월 24일 밤
프랑스와 독일의 최전선에 울려 퍼지던 노래
독일군 진영에서 들려오는 <Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht> 노랫소리에
반대편 진영의 영국군들도 <Silent Night Holy Night> 함께 따라 부르던 캐럴을
지금 우리 모두 다 함께 노래 부르자
1914년 12월 25일 성탄절 아침
영국군의 백기 앞에서 모두 총을 내려놓고 적군과 악수하며
눈 덮인 땅에 전우의 시체를 묻어주던 감동의 노래
성탄절부터 새해 첫날까지 전쟁을 멈추고
이름도 모르는 적군과 형제처럼 얼싸안으며 눈밭을 뒹굴던
112년 전, 그 기적의 캐럴을 우리 모두 소리 높여 부르자
사상과 종교를 넘어
갈등과 증오를 넘어, 이념과 국익을 넘고 넘어
사랑으로 서로를 껴안자
사랑의 캐럴로 전쟁을 멈추게 하자
우리의 간절한 노랫소리가 하늘에 퍼지면
3월에도 성탄절처럼 눈이 하얗게 내리고
하얀 눈송이가 붉은 대지를 덮고
하늘에 치솟는 검은 연기를 지우고
죽어가는 무고한 생명들을 살릴 수 있을 테니
우리가 부르는 성스러운 캐럴이 하늘에 닿아
2026년 3월, 또 한 번 기적의 크리스마스를 맞이할 수 있길
손 모아 빌어보자
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