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“There goes the boar! Get it!” 

The snow began to slide downward as if in an avalanche. 

The beast was more like a rolling rock rather than an animal. 

I was standing on a steep slope under a jutting ledge. The boar appeared on the ledge, spraying fine snow on me, and looked around. 

Just at that moment, my eyes met those of the boar, which was still on alert to let its babies escape. 

I suppressed the urge to pull the trigger and simply aimed my rifle at it.

Breathing out steamy air from its nostrils, the creature shivered violently before ignoring me and running after its babies

“그, 그, 그쪽으로 멧돼지 내려간다. 잡아라!”

산사태라도 일어난 듯 

쌓인 눈이 아래쪽으로 쏟아져 내리기 시작했다.

눈을 뿌리며 둔덕 위로 나타난 멧돼지는 

잠시 주위를 두리번거렸다.

바로 그 때 둔덕을 따라 새끼들을 대피시키느라

경계의 눈초리를 늦추지 못하던 멧돼지와 내 눈이 마주쳤다.

나는 방아쇠를 당기고 싶은 욕망을 억누르면서

그저 총으로 겨낭하기만 했다.

멧돼지는 뜨거운 콧바람을 내쉬면서 몸을 부르르 떨더니

나를 본숭만숭하고는 새끼들이 사라진 쪽으로 달려갔다.

The dogs must have chased after the boar family, because their barking echoed around the valley. The real hunting was about to begin.

While the dogs were barking furiously, overwhelmed by the boar’s ferocity, Uncle and the boar stood glaring at each other without moving a muscle. 

With his eyes fixed on the beast, Uncle slowly released the safety catch. The baby boar with a broken leg crawled toward its mother. 

“It’s coming. Shoot, shoot!” 

At his shout, the mother boar, which was about ten meters away, rushed toward Uncle. Uncle aimed his rifle. The muzzle of his rifle followed the boar’s movement, but he couldn’t pull the trigger.

멧돼지에 압도당한 개들만 요란하게 짖어댈 뿐,

삼촌과 멧돼지는 옴쭉달싹하지 않고 서로 쏘아볼 뿐이었다.

삼촌은 멧돼지에게 시선을 고정시킨 채 천천히 안전장치를 풀었다.

관절이 부러진 새끼가 엉금엉금 어미쪽으로 기어갔다.

“내려온다, 쏴라 쏴” 

도라꾸 아저씨가 소리쳤다,

어미 멧돼지가 삼촌을 향해 달려들었다.

삼촌은 총을 겨눴다.

삼촌은 멧돼지의 진행 방향을 따라 총신을 내렸다.

삼촌은, 그러나 끝내 방아쇠를 당기지 못했다.

Interview by literature critic Jeon So-yeong

His uncle fell in love and was willing to kill himself for the sake of that love. But what he learned through this experience was not that love is great, but that life is resilient and powerful. What he saw in the boar’s eyes was the same resolve and hope for life. That’s why he couldn’t shoot it.     

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Kim Yeon-soo (Born in 1970, Gimcheon, Gyeongsangbuk-do Prov.)

: Won the Grand Prize at the 33rd Yi Sang Literary Awards in 2009, the 34th Dongin Literary Award in 2003