Family

by Choi Bum Young

If you can’t say you’re hurt when you feel hurt,

You’re not family.

If you can’t say you’re happy when you’re happy,

You’re not family.

A sweet and soft ice cream cone

Isn’t enough to become a family

Pain, happiness, and love must be shared.

And you must endure all hardships in prayer

Until you can feel it together.

That’s how we become a family.

You must be able to express your sadness

And be able to cry together to be a family.

You must be able to express your happiness

and be able to be happy for one another to be a family.

You must feel like you’re under the same blanket

no matter where you are to be a family.

Joke

by Lee Moon Jae

When you’re faced with something beautiful

If you think of someone you wish was by your side

You’re in love.

When you’re faced with quiet scenery or delicious food

If no one comes to mind

You are either strong or really lonely.

In order to make the bell ring louder,

the bell must hurt more.

Love and Happiness

by Jung Yeon Bok

I’m happy because I love you.

And because I’m happy,

I love you even more.

My happiness grows

with my love for you.

My love, is it okay to be this happy?

As I gently press down my overwhelming love for you.

I’m happy because I love you.

It’s Okay If You Don’t Love Me

by Lee Jung Ha

It’s okay if you don’t acknowledge me.

A new leaf will sprout, even under the cold rain.

And the stars will come out, even if clouds cover it.

It’s okay if you don’t offer me a hand.

I blazed up like a dry leaf

As someone who couldn’t say a word

I’m okay with being in one-sided love.

And then becoming love myself.

My love,

It’s okay if you don’t love me.

Standing Close

by Ki Sa In

Her bent back collects newspapers and cardboard boxes

Her work pants are loose on her shrunken body

When a car enters the alley, she stands close to the side.

With her small cart which is her only flesh and blood

Standing close in solitude

Like a spider on a dirty cement wall

Like an old sting ray at the bottom of a water tank.

Standing low and close to a gray wall.

Once the car passes, the grandmother who was like crinkled paper

Slowly straightens out again.

The cart’s wheels follow her at her heels like young goats.

If I think about the worn out television that will turn on in that room

If I think about the tilted sink, pots, and pans

And the bent back that will stand in front of it.

I choke up.

If I think about the rag in the corner which she has probably wrung out.

First Meeting

by Ha Geum Joo

I’m very thankful to you

Who treated me like a flower

When life was the coldest.

I was stepped on a lot

And never got any attention on this journey

By meeting you,

I met a new me.

I’m very thankful to you

Who treated me like a flower.

I Like You

by Kim Yong Taek

One spring day, I saw your love

Light up my backyard with happiness

Which was once dark, under the shade.

You, who called me out from the darkness with your love

With bright light that can only come from darkness

You stood in front of me

And smiled like a wild flower.

Ah, even the thought of you makes me happy.

One Sided Love

by Lee Nam Il

That voice, which happened to call my name

I loved that voice.

I stay up all night dreaming about that one gesture.

And I fantasize about our future because of your smile.

When your scent brushed by me

And told me that it loved me

I shattered to pieces as if I was sunlight.

A Fresh Start

by Oh Bo Young

I untangled the twisted knot

I also took out the thorn

Without lingering attachment or regret

I straightened out my position

I let the twisted relationships go

With a lighthearted feeling and a confident mindset

I erased yesterday with the hope of a better tomorrow.

Every Moment is Like a Flower Bud

by Jung Hyun Jong

At times, I regret it.

What happened back then might have a gold mine

That person back then,

And that object back then

Could have been a gold mine.

I should’ve gotten closer to you

And talked to you more

I should have listened to you more

And loved you more

I wonder if I sent you off

As if I was hard of hearing

As if I was absent-minded

I should have loved those moments more.

Every moment is like a flower bud.

A flower bud that blooms when I’m eager

Pain and Sadness Can Also Become a Path

by Lee Chul Hwan

I realized this after a long time of pain

That pain can also become a path.

There is no life where no wind blows.

The wind must blow, so that the tree will root deep inside the earth

So that it won’t fall over.

That is why the wind shakes the trees

That is why the wind shakes all of us

Pain can also become a path.

Sadness can also become a path.

Flowers That Bloom When Shaken

By Do Jong-hwan

Where have flowers bloomed but never trembled?

Even those most beautiful

all trembled as they blossomed,

and as they shook, stalks grew firm.

Where is there a love which is never shaken?

Where have flowers bloomed though never been made wet?

Even those most brightly sparkling

were soaked and soaked again as they blossomed.

Battered by wind and rain, their petals opened warmly.

Where is there a life which is never been drenched?