Thursday was the birthday of Korea's most beloved general, Yi Sun-Sin. He was born in Asan, which is ten minutes from school, so me and Csilla went to be a part of the festivities. There was a huge festival in the town. We also went to the memorial built in honor of this great hero of Korea.
Yi Sun-Sin was the general who led the Korean navy to victory over the Japanese during the Japanese invasion in the late 1500's. He never lost a battle and was one of the reasons why Korea was able to withstand the Japanese. He invented several new battle techniques including the Turtle ship, which is a wooden ship with an iron spiked cover, protecting the men on board. He crippled the Japanese navy, giving the Korean army a chance against the powerful Japanese army. He is buried in Asan and every year he is honored on his birthday.
I think he epitomizes what a true Korean patriot would be. All his battles were in defense against the Japanese, he never initiated an invasion of Japan. Before being called for duty, he was well educated and wrote poetry. He invented the Turtle ship to modernize the Korean navy. He was a brave and intelligent general who only fought because his country was being attacked.
At the memorial, we saw his home that his family continued to reside in after his death. We also saw the graves of his family (he is buried in a different area of Asan). His most beloved son, who was killed by the Japanese while he was at sea fighting, was also buried there. There were several gardens connecting each area of the memorial, which were blooming with a variety of flowers. The last area we went to was the shrine to Admiral Yi. When we reached the shrine, there were several elderly Korean men paying their respects to Yi. They lit incense, bowed, and said "Thank you great Admiral Yi" in Korean. It was touching to see these men, who most likely fought in the Korean War, paying homage to the greatest Korean war hero. I wonder sometimes what Yi would think of the issues facing both Koreas today. I don't think he could have ever imagined the tragedy that Korea faced in the last century: Japanese occupation and the division of his country.
We got back from the festival in time to watch the English Royal Wedding live. Csilla and I were the only people somewhat excited about the wedding, so we watched it together. I find English history and culture absolutely fascinating. It is one of the few monarchies that remain and one of the most well known. We loved watching it, for Csilla, to see all the Europeanisms reminded her of home. For me, watching the royal wedding was like glimpsing the hundreds of royal European weddings that have occurred over history. There is so much tradition and history that is represented, it's beautiful to see. Amidst a world that is changing faster than ever before, we could see an event that has remained the same for about two thousand years.
While we were watching the wedding, Csilla got a call from one of her Korean friends. She lives in the Korean dorm across from our dorm. She told Csilla that a freshmen girl in the Korean dorm had committed suicide by jumping from the 6th floor. She was 18. We do not know too much information about her, except that she was not adjusting well to school. It was a huge shock, especially since it happened in a dorm on campus. There was a lot of chaos at the dorm as ambulances rushed to the scene and police came to file a report. It breaks my heart that a young girl with so much life to be lived ahead of her would think that there was nothing left to live for. I pray that her family may find peace amidst this tragedy and that the school may honor her memory by raising awareness among students about being alert for signs from friends and classmates that may be suicidal. Too much remains unsaid, we need to care enough to care about each other.
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