Poet Kim Sun-Young was born on May 17, 1938, in Kaesong, Gyeonggi Province. She graduated from Sudo Women’s Teachers College and later served as a teacher at Sudo Girls’ Middle School and as a professor at Sejong University. In 1962, she made her literary debut in Hyundae Munhak(Modern Literature) after her poems Bluebird, Echo, and Graffiti of the Seasons were recommended for publication. She was also an active member of the literary coterie Cheongmi (靑眉). Since the publication of her first poetry collection, Saga (思歌), in 1969, she has published 15 poetry collections, including The Shoe Store of Emptiness (1972), Wildflower Ritual (1976), Atmosphere of Fantasy (1976), Words Written at Night (1982), God Who Lives in the Lilac Tree (1983), Song of Longing (1987), and To Shatter (2008). She has received numerous literary awards, including the Contemporary Poetry Award and the Korean Literature Award. She has also served as an advisory board member of the Korean Poets Association and the Korean Women Writers’ Association, as well as a member of the International PEN Korea Center.
The Vegetative Nature of Longing
Even when erased,
Even when erased again,
It reappears like a crescent moon,
Grows beyond a half-moon,
Becomes a full moon.
Like a face
Drifting as a full moon,
People hang
The space of longing
In their hearts.
Love,
Even when one tries to forget,
Has a terrifying vegetative nature—
It reveals itself, it grows.
That is why tonight is a full moon.
그리움의 식물성
지워도
지워도
생기는 초승달같이
반달에서 더 자란
만월같이
만월로 둥실
걸린
얼굴같이
사람들은 그리움 공간을
가슴에 걸어 두지요
사랑은
잊으려 하여도
드러나고 자라나는 무서운
식물성이 있어요
그래서 오늘밤 만월이에요
