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“Father, why did you come back? Where were you when Mother and I were barely getting by on watery porridge? Were you playing for the singers at some third-rate countryside theater? You should not have shown up in front of me. The only thing I want to ask of you is not to be a drummer in front of my family. Just be a father.” 

“아버지, 왜 돌아오셨습니까.

 제가 어머니와 양키담배를 골라낸 꿀꿀이 죽으로 

 주린 배를 채우고 있을 때,

 아버지는 어디서 무얼 하셨습니까?

 시골의 3류극장에서 소리꾼들의 장단을 맞추고 있었습니까?

 아버지는 끝끝내 제 앞에 현신하지 말아야 옳았습니다.

 아버지가 우리 가족의 면전에서는 북장이가 아니라는 사실을

 알아주셨으면 하는 겁니다. 그냥 아버지로 남아있으면 됩니다”

Mr. Min’s drum was the symbol of pain to his son.

“Grandpa, would it be possible to play this drum to a pop song?”

“Su-gyeong, do you think this drum or I had something to do with your brother’s arrest?” 

“No, I don’t think so. But I’m curious. You know Seong-gyu and I are four years apart, but while Seong-gyu is really into the sound of your drum, it honestly sounds just like a noise to me. Why do you think that is?”

“I think your brother is destined to wander around like me. How are wandering and demonstrating different?”

“Grandpa, I don’t understand what you’re saying. You’re not listening to me.”

Not really listening to his granddaughter’s chatter, Mr. Min half closed his eyes and beat on his drum even more loudly.

“할아버지 이 북으로 팝송 반주를 하면 어떻게 될까요?” 

“수경아, 늬 오래비가 붙들려간 게, 나나 이 북과도 관계가 있겠지?

둥 둥 둥 딱 뚝

“무슨 상관이 있겠어요. 그보다도 궁금한 게 있어요.

 오빠와 저와는 네 살 터울이거든요.

 그런데 오빠는 할아버지의 북소리에 푹 빠져있고,

 솔직히 저는 잡음으로만 들려요. 그 차이는 무엇일까요?”

“아무래도 그 녀석이 내 역마살을 닮은 것 같아. 

 역마살과 데모는 어떻게 다를까”

딱 둥둥 뚝.

“할아버지, 지금 무슨 말씀을 하고 계세요.

 제 말은 들은 둥 만 둥 하구요”

손녀의 새살거림을 한 옆으로 제쳐놓으며

민 노인은 눈을 지그시 감고 더 크게 북을 두드렸다. 

Interview by literary critic Jeon So-yeong

In this story the drum flows through the three different lives of the grandfather, the father, and the son. To the grandfather’s generation, the drum represents a kind of life that pursues only the artistic ideal, but for the father’s generation, it become a motivation that drives people to live a life totally dedicated to the real world. Finally, for the son’s generation, the drum symbolizes something that bridges the two worlds, one that is grounded in the reality and the other striving to reach an ideal and make a difference. 

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Choi Il-nam (Born in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do Prov., Dec. 29, 1932)

: Debuted by publishing “Payang (Dissolution of Adoption)” in 1956

Won the Yi Sang Literary Award in 1986, the 61st Seoul Cultural Award in 2012, etc.