Sometime in early January I pulled out my collection of Korean poetry in translation and began reading, skimming is a more accurate description. Our granddaughter Michelle, three-fourths Korean, told me she wanted to take a Korean class as part of her curriculum at the local community college. I’d been thrilled. We adopted her mother, Julia, at age 14, when we lived in Seoul, South Korea during the 1970s. I tried, during those two years, to learn Korean and found the language most challenging.
Wanting to find our daughter Julie’s birthmother, we decided, at the invitation of a Jesuit friend, to return to Seoul to teach at Sogang University in the spring of 2001. And this is when Brother Anthony of Taize and a Korean female colleague gifted me with several Korean poetry books in translation.
Yes, two of our daughters are Amerasian: Julia and Julie, but my interest in Amerasians began when, at 13, I first read Pearl Buck. I’ve been intrigued by the Asian culture most of my life, but it’s my recent readings and reflections and how I came to them, I’ll share Sunday night. We’ll probably start by reading a few Korean poems, in translation. If you have one or two Korean poems you’d like to share, please bring them. If you have time, go here.
Join us
Sunday 7 April
Potluck dinner begins at 6:00 p.m.
J’Ann starts sharing at 6:45
At J’Ann and Jim’s home
4519 Oakland Avenue
Forest Park Southeast
63110
