On the blank page called today, I was left with nothing.
Lee, Hee Kuk, an eminent poet from Korea, the Land of Morning Calm, shares his poetry
Lee, Hee Kuk is a Korean poet. Born in Seoul city of South Korea, he is Pharmacist and Adjunct Professor of College of Pharmacy, The Catholic University of Korea. He is a member Executive of PEN Korean Center of PEN International. He published 5 poetry books and won 4 Literature awards.
Square Record Book
The darkness beyond the window stirs softly.
Yesterday’s energy disappears to the other side.
Moonlight passes over the back wall,
Footprints at one o’clock in the morning are left here.
A piece of paper called today became the horizon and was placed in front of me.
Humidity tries to steal the wind,
Sneaking through the window.
The moisture seeps into the A4 paper faster than my heart.
There was a time when I woke up in the morning holding only a white flag.
She went a long way.
The night the last will became a star and fell here.
I couldn’t leave anything on the wet paper.
This cool energy, the complaint of the moon and stars.
How should I carry all the weight of now?
On the blank page called today,
I was left with nothing.
***
네모난 기록장
이희국
창 너머 깔린 어둠이 나지막이 출렁인다
어제의 기운은 저편으로 빠져나가고
뒷담을 넘어가던 달빛
새벽 한 시의 발자국이 이곳에 찍힌다
오늘이라는 종이 한 장, 지평이 되어 앞에 놓였다
바람을 훔치려다
창문을 몰래 넘어온 습기가
마음보다 먼저 A4용지에 스며들어
백기만 들고 아침을 맞은 적도 있다
먼 길 떠나버린 그녀의 마지막 유언이
별이 되어 이곳에 내리던 밤
젖은 종이에 아무것도 남길 수가 없었다
이 서늘한 기운, 달과 별의 하소연
지금의 무게를 어떻게 다 담아야 하나
오늘이라는 백지에
아무것도 남기지 못했다
***
After you come and go
Trying to remove a red, rusty nail,
The head broke, and I couldn’t pull it out.
Knocking the nail that sticks out halfway,
I pushed it completely out of sight.
Placed a sticker over it.
Only I know
***
당신이 다녀가고
이희국
벌겋게 녹슨 못을 빼려다
못대가리가 부서져 뺄 수가 없자
반쯤 튀어나온 못을 두드려
아예 보이지 않게 박는다
그 위에 감쪽같이 스티커를 붙인다
나만 안다
***
Around the season of spring
In my dawn slumber,
I hear the gentle patter of water droplets,
The refreshing sound of them striking the veranda railing.
Winter is thawing.
Long ago, I harbored disdain for my homeland and distanced myself from it.
Returning now feels akin to starting anew,
The resonance and breadth of emotions,
Echoing within my heart are invigorating.
Now, the once frozen Han River flows silently, thawed.
Our lives, too, mirror this cycle of freezing and thawing.
To persist,
If not for such ebbs and flows,
What depth of emotion could life hold?
Life is
A descent and ascent,
Much like a seesaw reverting to its original position.
***
입춘 무렵
이희국
새벽 잠결에
물방울 똑똑 떨어지는 소리 듣는다
베란다 난간 위를 부딪치며 신선하게 다가오는 소리
겨울이 몸을 풀고 있다
오래전 내 나라가 싫어서 멀리 떠났다가
다시 돌아와 시작할 때 기분처럼
마음선반을 두드리는 울림과 음폭이 상쾌하다
이제 얼었던 한강도 녹아서 고요히 흐르고
우리의 삶도 이렇게 얼고 녹아가는 반복을
계속하는 것
이런 기복이 없다면 삶에
무슨 감동이 있으랴
삶은
기우는가 싶으면
다시 제자리로 오르는 시소를 닮았다.
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