From what I know, Korea and Japan share a history marked by war, tension, and bitterness so it is no wonder that I find myself curious about the Koreans' reactions to the disastrous situation that Japan is currently in. One of my co-teachers told me that she asked her students what they thought about the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. Many children expressed deep sympathies for the people of Japan. One student went as far to say "serves them right" in Korean. I am in no position to judge any of their responses, regardless of how extreme they sound, so I won't.
When bad things happen I find that people, including myself, often try to express their sympathies and condolences in well thought out and eloquent sentences. For instance, "Words seem inadequate to express the sheer sadness I feel for you during these difficult times." Today, I was reminded of the intensity and power that can shine through just a few basic words that don't even make grammatical sense. One of my grade 4 students came to my classroom door after school. He just wanted to say "hi." I asked him the obligatory native English teacher question, "how are you?" His uncommon response surprised me.
"I...very sad..."
"Why are you sad?"
I could tell he wanted to say so much by the determined look in his eyes and the constant gestures he made with his hands but all he could muster out was, "Japan. Tsunami...I very sad."
Then, he raised a finger, abruptly turned away from me and sprinted towards a nearby Korean teacher. He returned 30 seconds later with the English translation of his Korean thoughts.
"Everyday I (he folded his hands together and gestured upwards to symbolize praying) Japan."
I gently patted his head and smiled sorrowfully only because upon hearing the few innocent words he had to say, I was left speechless.
