2019. 7. 23: Belated "Thank you!" for My Mother

 

 

 

 

I happened to share a table with two Americans today at a steak grill place in downtown Kotor, Montenegro.

One lady and a man was seating opposite me who came in late and joined with them at the table.

 

We were introducing each other as usual.

Then the woman said her father was an English man and went to Korea during the Korean war when she heard me saying that I come from Korea.

 

Later I found out that her father had emigrated to U.S. with his parents before he went to Korean war, but at first I thought that he joined the Korean War as a British soldier.

That fact does not decrease the thankfulness that my mother would have expressed to him though.

 

But, here is why I said "Thank You!" to my mother's stead to her father.

My mother told me many stories and the following is only one of those.

 

When the Korean War (625 War) broke out on June 25th of 1950, the Communist North occupied Seoul in three days.

And the government broadcasted it will stay in the capital but blew up the only bridge that connected then most of the city to flee south.

 

Under the communist occupied Seoul the life was more dangerous especially to families like ours who escape/came fron the North.

Then our house near Seoul Railway Station was hit directly by American bomb which were intended for the station obviously to block movement of soldiers and materials from/to the North.

 

Most people were escaping the city to South towards Busan which is the biggest port city.

My mother's father was abduct to North and my father escaped while abducted to North with others.

And now my family decided to move to South.

 

Somehow, my mother has to guide her two young girls and her sister-in-law who became invalid and dumb because of the shock she took during the bombing of their house.

I still quite do not have the full picture since my father was not moving with them because he has to hide from occupation army.

 

My mother has to carry some basic foods and whatever valuables they had and guide two girls and a disabled.

When some young man offered to help her carry foods and things she was more than happy, but soon he disappeared leaving my family to become one of many beggar families with nothing to eat and no money.

 

But, somehow they survived the hunger and somehow they moved to around DaeJeon I heard.

Now DaeJeon is one of the major city and vital traffic hub to connect the northern region to the southern ones.

 

There are many trains going mostly South to Busan, and she decided to get on one of the many trains.

But, two young girls and a disabled cannot move fast enough to get on a cabin when even the roof of the cabins were full of people.

 

When she was all dismayed about not being able to get on a train, one of the cabin door was opened a little and some person waved her to come close and get on in the cabin.

It was a cabin of British soldiers and some took pity on her because it looked obvious she cannot do anything with her kids and more.

They took care of her and the family members among their own cabin.

She was so thankful but she knew little English since her high school days under Japanese occupation got rid of English language after one month or something.

 

So she had something special thankfull feeling about British soldiers in her heart all her life, and I heard the story several times.

 

So, I told this women from California that I would really like to tell her father in my mother's stead 'Thank You Very Much!' because I know how much she wanted to say that.