Seoul

Jeong-Hyeok, 

O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?

Deny thy father and refuse thy name.

Or if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love

And I'll no longer be a Capulet.

Jeong-hyeok, I never understood Shakespeare and his idealistic love before. But now that I'm reading this tragic love tale again, I can't help but understand how Juliet would have felt. Instead of warring families, we are separated by warring nations- same in flesh and blood, but born on the opposite sides of the border. Are we at fault here?

When Juliet asks Romeo to renounce his Montague name, and she chooses to forgo Capulet, I couldn't help but feel if we could renounce our countries and go somewhere else- somewhere where we could be together. Don't get me wrong. I love my country. And I know you do too. But I'm just hoping for a middle ground, a place like Switzerland. In any case, wasn't Switzerland where we first met? Was it a sign from God that we were meant to be together in Switzerland?

Love is a funny thing Jeong-hyeok. It makes you think and do things you never thought were possible. Just yesterday I took Mr. Hong for a trek to Mt. Bukhan. I waited in the scorching sun for hours at the top, peering at the reed fields through my binoculars. Every time I felt I saw someone move, I'd ask Mr. Hong if he could see him too. And I wondered if it was you, moving about in the fields, patrolling the land as usual. I wondered if there was something different in your gait, if you were eating well, or sleeping properly. I wondered if you were thinking of me as you made the rounds. And then I pondered if it was one of the others- Eun-dong, Kwang-beom, Joo-meok or Pyo Chi-su.

I never thought I could feel this way- nostalgic about North Korea. That's what love can make you do. That's what Romeo and Juliet did for each other. I have finally understood their love. 

Caught in a tale of two countries

Se-ri